Hook, Line and Sinker (1930)
1h 15m | PG-13
Two fast-talking insurance salesmen meet Mary, who is running away from her wealthy mother, and they agree to help her run a hotel that she owns. When they find out that the hotel is run down and nearly abandoned, they launch a phony PR campaign that presents the hotel as a resort favored by the rich. Their advertising succeeds too well, and many complications soon arise.
Director: Edward F. Cline
Studio: RKO Radio Pictures
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Video: 720p
Cast
Bert Wheeler
as Wilbur Boswell
Robert Woolsey
as Addington Ganzy
Dorothy Lee
as Mary Marsh
Jobyna Howland
as Mrs. Rebecca Marsh
Natalie Moorhead
as Duchess Bessie Von Essie
Hugh Herbert
as Hotel House Detective
Reviews
This starts off with Messrs. Wheeler and Woolsey nonchalantly riding their tandem when they are pulled over by a police officer. Moments later that have fast-talked their way into selling him insurance for just about everything and we are clued up for what to expect over the next 75 minutes. It turns out our two sweet-talkers could sell sand to the Saudis - and when they meet up with "Mary" (Dorothy Lee) who is on the run from her wealthy, overbearing, mother, they agree to help her run her ramshackle hotel that soon becomes a roaring success. That success is, however, based on a few false premisses -and that causes more that it's fair share of adventures and mis-haps. When it works, the partnership works well and it is funny and fast-paced, but it is far too long and after a while the comedy becomes wearisome and predictable.