''Meet the Missus'' is a 1937 American domestic

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Joseph Santley Joseph Mansfield Santley (born Joseph Ishmael Mansfield, January 10, 1890 – August 8, 1971) was an American actor, singer, dancer, writer, director, and producer of musical theatre, musical theatre, theatrical plays motion pictures and tele ...

, using a screenplay by

Jack Townley Jack Townley (March 3, 1897 – October 15, 1960) was an American screenwriter. He wrote for nearly 100 films between 1926 and 1957. He was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and died in Los Angeles, California. Selected filmography * ''The T ...

Bert Granet Bert Granet (July 10, 1910 – November 15, 2002) was an American writer and television producer whose credits included ''The Locket'' (1946) for RKO Radio Pictures. Granet worked with Desilu Productions and was instrumental in getting Rod Serlin ...

, and

Joel Sayre Joel Grover Sayre, Jr (December 13, 1900 – September 9, 1979) was an American novelist, war reporter, and screenwriter born in Marion, Indiana. Early life and education Sayre was the son of businessman Joel Grover Sayre and Nora Clemens S ...

, based on an original story by Jack Goodman and Albert Rice. The movie was produced and distributed by

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...

, and was initially released on June 4, 1937. The film stars

Victor Moore Victor Fred Moore (February 24, 1876 – July 23, 1962) was an American actor of stage and screen, a major Broadway star from the late 1920s through the 1930s. He was also a writer and director, but is best remembered today as a comedian, play ...

and

Helen Broderick Helen Broderick (August 11, 1891 – September 25, 1959) was an American actress known for her comic roles, especially as a wisecracking sidekick. Career Broderick began on Broadway as a chorus girl in the ''Follies of 1907'', the first ...

(in the fifth of their six 1936–38 films) as well as

Anne Shirley Anne Shirley is a fictional character introduced in the 1908 novel '' Anne of Green Gables'' by L. M. Montgomery. Shirley is featured throughout the classic book series, which revolve around her life and family in 19th and 20th-century Prince Edw ...

Plot

Mrs. Foster loves to enter contests which she never wins. Mr. Foster is exasperated with his wife. The Happy Noodle Company is looking for

Mrs. America Mrs. America may refer to; * ''Mrs. America'' (miniseries), a 2020 US television mini-series * Mrs. America (contest), a US national beauty pageant See also * '' Mr. and Mrs. America'', a 1945 film * Mr. America (disambiguation) * Miss America ...

and Emma Foster becomes a finalist. The couple go to Atlantic City for the finals. Emma never had time to do homemaker chores and during the contest she has to get her husband Otis to do the work. Other husbands were likewise frustrated with the contest and their wives. The wives went full force to out do the other finalists.

Cast

as Otis Foster - Husband *

as Emma Foster - Wife *

as Louise Foster - Daughter *Alan Bruce as Steve Walton * Edward H. Robins as Gordon H. Cutting *

William Brisbane William Henry Brisbane (October 12, 1806 Beaufort County, South Carolina – April 5, 1878 Arena, Wisconsin) was a Baptist minister of the southern United States who, having convinced himself of the immorality of slavery, freed and settled a group ...

as Prentiss *

Frank M. Thomas Frank Marion Thomas (July 13, 1889 – November 25, 1989) was an American character actor of stage, screen and television. He and his wife, actress Mona Bruns, both lived to 100 years old. He died the day before her 90th birthday; she died 11 y ...

as Barney Lott * Ray Mayer as John White *

Ada Leonard Ada Leonard (July 22, 1915 – November 29, 1997) was an American bandleader. She was the leader of the All-American Girl Orchestra, the first all-female band to tour with the USO during World War II. The big-band leader was a performer with a ...

as Princess Zarina - Stripper * George Irving as District Attorney *

Alec Craig Alexander Younger Craig (30 March 1884 – 25 June 1945) was a Scottish-born American character actor, particularly known for his roles in ''Mutiny on the Bounty'' (1935) and ''National Velvet'' (1944). He was particularly known for portraying ...

as College President *

Willie Best William Best (May 27, 1913 – February 27, 1962), known professionally as Willie Best or Sleep n' Eat, was an American television and film actor. Best was one of the first African American film actors and comedians to become well kn ...

as Mose - Shoe Shine Boy *

Virginia Sale Virginia Sale (May 20, 1899 – August 23, 1992) was an American character actress whose career spanned six decades, during most of which she played older women, even when she was in her twenties. Over the 46 years she was active as an actr ...

as Mrs. Moseby - Emma's Maid *

Jack Norton Jack Norton (born Mortimer John Naughton; September 2, 1882 – October 15, 1958) was an American stage and film character actor who appeared in more than 180 films between 1934 and 1948, often playing drunks, although in real life he was a ...

as Mr. Norton aka Mr. Cotton Belt

References

External links

* * * *
''Meet the Missus''
at ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' (1987 write-up was originally published in ''The Motion Picture Guide'') RKO Pictures films Films directed by Joseph Santley 1937 comedy films 1937 films American comedy films American black-and-white films Films scored by Roy Webb 1930s American films Films about beauty pageants Films set in Atlantic City, New Jersey {{1930s-comedy-film-stub