I watched this film for two reasons. The first was Ruth Etting. A favorite of mine since I heard her great Columbia LP at a faculty member's home at college. Disappointing here as she sings one awful song and a bit of a reprise and then goodbye. Bummer. The other reason was to see Douglas Fowley a good friend of my Dad's when they were young men. (I think Fowley was at my folk's wedding in 1933 a year before this film. Seeing him as a young man before he adopted his trademark pencil mustache made me see my Dad at that age. Otherwise, Gloria Stuart was lovely, Ethel Waters was fine singing a dull song and it was Alex Woollcott who surprised me. Who knew he was so soft spoken? I always thought of him bellowing as did Monty Wooley in The Man Who Came to Dinner. On the other hand, Edmund Lowe was repulsive as the fast talking con man. Yuch. Watching this once will be quite enough.
Review of Gift of Gab
