Le Célibataire marié

Robert Young is a confidence man, always fleeing from a disgruntled mark. Wife Ruth Hussey thinks he should get an office job, so he does: a bookie office in partnership with Sam Levene. A loss of $17,000 to Sidney Sheldon leaves them scrambling from unpaid money. Unsuccessful author Felix Bressart lets them have his manuscript, which Young flogs to publisher Lee Bowman as a bachelor's look at marriage, passing off Young as the author. It's a hit, and the money starts to flow. But his marriage collapses.

It's one of those attempts at screwball that MGM made in this period that doesn't bear think about.... except for the comedy bits. The sequence in which Young is translating between slangy Sheldon and formal Bressart is very funny; other bits keep it going throughout. Miss Hussey's Myrna Loy imitation is very evident at several points.

This doesn't have very many big-name stars. Not too many people have heard of this movie. In fact, when I'm writing this comment, it doesn't even have the 5 votes yet.

But this is a pretty good movie. Don't expect anything spectacular, but it has some good laughs. The two stars have good chemistry. The plot is well-written but somewhat predictable. Not the best movie, but not a complete waste of time.

Randy Haven, a married con artist, gets in trouble when he goes into hock for $17,000 to a local hood. He runs into a somewhat eccentric professor who has written a book on marriage but can't get it published. Haven gets it published by posing as the professor, a "bachelor taking a look at marriage". The book becomes an unexpected hit and Haven becomes a celebrity, much to the annoyance of his wife. This is a breezy comedy--no uproarious laughs, but carried off well by a charming cast. Robert Young and Ruth Hussey have undeniable chemistry and work fine together, Lee Bowman is cast somewhat against type as a wealthy publisher who is shy and awkward around women, but pulls it off well, and Felix Bressart is letter-perfect as the professor. The film has the expected MGM gloss, even though it's a "B" picture, and director Edward Buzzell keeps things rolling along smoothly. A pleasant little film, worth a watch.

The main problem I had with this film was casting Robert Young for such a role. While I do enjoy seeing him play against type in some films (such as in "They Won't Believe Me" where he played a womanizer who plans on murdering his wife), here I just had a hard time believing him. Young plays Randy Haven--a guy who goes to work as a bookie! When a horse unexpectedly wins, he and his partner are in trouble because they don't have enough to pay off. This is compounded because the client (Sheldon Leonard) is a tough guy who certainly will make them pay if they don't pay...get it?! So, the pair go in search of money. One client who owes them is a professor (Felix Bressart) who cannot pay but instead gives them a book he's written--with a bachelor's view on marriage. Well, with no other prospects for money, Randy markets the book and gets a ridiculously lucrative offer to publish it (my wife, who has published quite a few books had a good laugh at this!). However, the publisher thinks that the guy pretending to be the author (Randy) is a bachelor himself--and offer him not only money but a radio show that's contingent on him being single. So, his wife (Ruth Hussey) has to pretend to be his secretary...which is a problem when she finds another man falling in love with her!

If this all sounds quite contrived, it is. However, it's also a breezy little film that you can still enjoy provided you don't think too much about the silly plot! Worth seeing? Perhaps. But not one you should hate yourself for missing! But, if you do see it, watch for the wonderful scene where Randy translates between the gangster (Leonard) and the author (Bressart)--it's awfully cute.

"Married Bachelor" from 1941 is a light comedy, nothing special, and typical of the era. It sports an attractive, charming cast: Robert Young, Ruth Hussey, Felix Bressart, and Lee Bowman.

Young is Randolph Haven, who won't take a decent job and as a result drives his wife Norma (Hussey) nuts. They're crazy about one another, but Norma is tired of his schemes and wants him to get a 9 to 5 job.

Randolph, always looking for easy money, starts working with a bookie. But a dark horse comes in and they owe $17,000 to someone who, if he doesn't get the money, will have them measured for cement suits.

While going to people who owe the bookie money, Randolph meets a professor (Bressart) who has written, but never published, dozens of books. Randolph takes one, "The Psychology of Marriage," supposedly written by the bachelor professor. It's published, a big hit, and Randolph has to pretend he's not married.

Well, the whole thing gets mixed up. Norma feels as if she's fallen through the cracks, and when the publisher (Lee Bowman) acts interested, for spite, she flirts with him. All very platonic, of course. He doesn't know she's married to Randolph.

Ruth Hussey and Robert Young worked together several times, the last time on an episode of Marcus Welby in 1971. They made a wonderful couple. They were not first tier MGM stars, but they did good work there. The rest of the cast- Bowman, Sheldon Leonard, and especially Felix Bressart, provide solid support.

I'll take issue with one thing posted here. One of the comments was that the poster didn't know how anyone could choose Robert Young over Lee Bowman. Uh, this wasn't a reality show called Wives Who Cheat. When a woman is in love with and committed to her husband, there is no choosing; she doesn't drop her husband because someone else might be better looking. I grew up in the '50s and have a soft spot for Robert Young anyway.