Out of the Frying Pan

For those, if any, who have wondered why so many Paramount contractees appeared in United Artists' films during the war years, this is another one of the Paramount productions that was sold to United Artists in the early-40's when U.A. was having trouble meeting their exhibitor contracts because of lack of product, mainly due to their loss of production in England. A group of starving, but young and willing, actors band together to share finances and an apartment. Norman Reese (William Holden) orders no love nonsense between the boys and girls till they are set on Broadway, but Marge Benson (Barbara Britton) and Tony Dennison (James Brown) are already secretly married. A friend drops in to see Dottie Coburn (Martha O'Driscoll) and is shocked to find the boys and girls sharing the same apartment and insists it is her duty to inform Dottie's father (Jay Fassett.) Since Dottie is the only one with any money, the boys hurriedly pack their belongings and leave until after Mr. Coburn's visit. Seeing nothing but girls, Dad is pacified until one of the boys, George Bodell (Eddie Bracken) not in on and unaware of the "move", comes home to take a bath, and the girls, to keep Coburn in the dark, accuse him of bring a "mad housebreaker." The downstairs tenant, producer Arthur Kenny (Robert Benchley), also gets involved.