1930 HookLine and Sinker

"Hook, Line and Sinker" is a 1930 American pre-Code slapstick comedy film directed by Edward F. Cline. It was a starring vehicle for the popular comedy duo Wheeler & Woolsey (Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey) and also featured Dorothy Lee.

Here are the details of the movie:

Title: Hook, Line and Sinker

Release Year: 1930

Genre: Comedy, Romance, Pre-Code Slapstick

Director: Edward F. Cline

Screenplay by: Tim Whelan, Ralph Spence

Production Company: RKO Pictures, Radio Pictures

Plot:
The story revolves around two fast-talking insurance salesmen, Wilbur Boswell (Bert Wheeler) and J. Addington Ganzy (Robert Woolsey). They encounter Mary Marsh (Dorothy Lee), a young socialite who is running away from her wealthy mother, Rebecca Marsh, who wants her to marry lawyer John Blackwell.

Mary decides to take over a dilapidated hotel that her uncle willed to her, hoping to escape her mother's plans. Wilbur and Ganzy, seeing an opportunity, agree to help her run the hotel. When they discover the hotel is run down and nearly abandoned, they concoct a phony public relations campaign. They promote the hotel as a luxurious resort favored by the rich and famous, hoping to attract guests and make it a success.

Their advertising campaign works too well, attracting not only legitimate guests but also two rival gangs of crooks, led by John Blackwell (who is secretly a gangster) and Frank Dukette. Both gangs believe there are valuable jewels hidden in the hotel's safe. Complications arise from the various mistaken identities, the gangs' attempts to crack the safe, and the romantic entanglements, as Mary falls for Wilbur, and her mother Rebecca takes a liking to Ganzy. The film culminates in a chaotic finale involving runarounds, a shoot-out in the hotel, and the comedy duo saving the day (and the non-existent jewels).

Cast:

Bert Wheeler as Wilbur Boswell

Robert Woolsey as Addington Ganzy

Dorothy Lee as Mary Marsh

Jobyna Howland as Rebecca Marsh

Ralf Harolde as John Blackwell (Buffalo Blackie)

William B. Davidson as Frank Dukette (Duke of Winchester)

Natalie Moorhead as Duchess Bessie Von Essie

Hugh Herbert as Hotel House Detective

George F. Marion as Ritz De La Rivera Bellboy

Stanley Fields as McKay

Significance:
"Hook, Line and Sinker" was the third starring vehicle for the popular comedy team of Wheeler & Woolsey. It was one of the largest financial successes for RKO Pictures in 1930 and is notable for its pre-Code humor and fast-paced slapstick comedy. The film entered the public domain in the United States in 1958.