My Man Godfrey

In the depths of the Depression, Godfrey, a "forgotten man," is rescued from his packing-crate home by ditzy socialite Irene Bullock during the course of a scavenger hunt

Irene offers Godfrey a job as butler to the banking family of Bullocks

Godfrey tolerates their eccentricities, alcoholism and general nuttiness

He cures hangovers, dodges missiles thrown by Irene's jealous sister, Cornelia, and charms matronly Angelica Bullock, who sees pixies every morning

Irene and Molly - the pert Irish maid - both fall in love with Godfrey

But for Irene it's serious

And she's determined to get her man

Falsely accused by Cornelia of stealing the famous Bullock Pearls, Godfrey uses the opportunity to recover his personal finances

And when the Bullocks end up going broke, he rescues them by getting them all - Gasp! - jobs in The Dump - a new nightclub Godfrey has built to provide work for his friends

First published as a serial in Liberty magazine, the story was later issued as a hugely successful novel

Author Eric S. Hatch was summoned to Hollywood to write the screenplay

The film starred Carol Lombard and William Powell and the script was nominated for an Academy Award

My Man Godfrey has endured all these years because it has a serious social theme anchoring a wacky comedy

The theme is simple: a job dignifies and provides purpose in life - without it you're a bum on the one hand or an empty socialite on the other

Unit set, flexible staging - runs about 100 minutes.

CAST
M8-12,F7-12