Love Is a Racket

The title is something Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. concludes at the end of this film. Perfectly understandable after all he goes through in the running time.

Fairbanks is a reporter on the Broadway beat modeled after of course Walter Winchell who was just going into high gear in his career. The column that Fairbanks writes dishes dirt on both the Broadway and gangland scene and how they mix on more than one occasion. As such he's made an enemy out of gangster Lyle Talbot whom I think is based on Owney Madden.

Promising Broadway newcomer Frances Dee has gotten into a nice jackpot with bum checks that Talbot has assumed the debts for. He wants payment however one way or another.

Fairbanks is crazy about her even though Ann Dvorak is crazy about him. He certainly goes above and beyond for her in the film and no good deed goes unpunished.

Lee Tracy has a nice part in a sidekick role for Fairbanks. Warren Hymer is one of Talbot's gunsills. Hymer has a little more menace to him than usual, but just as dumb.

This is a nice pre-Code drama, note some of the items when the camera goes to Fairbanks's column. Some really nice and saucy double entendre there.

In the best Walter Winchell style of course.