''Public Pigeon No. 1'' is a 1957

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

film directed by Norman Z. McLeod. It stars

Red Skelton Richard Red Skelton (July 18, 1913September 17, 1997) was an American entertainer best known for his national radio and television shows between 1937 and 1971, especially as host of the television program '' The Red Skelton Show''. He has stars ...

and

Vivian Blaine Vivian Blaine (born Vivian Stapleton; November 21, 1921 – December 9, 1995) was an American actress and singer, best known for originating the role of Miss Adelaide in the musical theater production of ''Guys and Dolls'', as well as appearin ...

. It is the theatrical feature-length remake of the ''

Climax! ''Climax!'' (later known as ''Climax Mystery Theater'') is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS progra ...

'' television episode "Public Pigeon #1" that also starred Red Skelton, but was directed by Seymour Berns, which aired in the second season of that show on September 8, 1955.

Plot

Rusty Morgan is irresponsible, but girlfriend Edith Enders trusts him. They put their money in a joint bank account. A con man, Harvey Baker, is able to persuade Rusty to buy his worthless uranium certificates, claiming they are worth $10,000. His cronies Rita and Frankie take the swindle further, resulting in Rusty losing his job at a cafe and Lt. Qualen of the bunco squad letting him know that these are wanted crooks with a $10,000 reward on their heads. Rusty accidentally finds out where Rita is and follows her. He is so gullible, he believes it when told they are agents working secretly for the FBI. He ends up a pigeon for their scheme, arrested and sentenced to five years in prison. No one could be this stupid, the crooks conclude, and mistakenly believe Rusty has their stolen money in a safety deposit box. Edith concocts a scheme with Qualen to break Rusty out of jail so the crooks will follow him. Qualen ends up arresting the lot, and Rusty and Edith get to share the $10,000 reward.

Cast

as Rusty Morgan *

Janet Blair Janet Blair (born Martha Janet Lafferty; April 23, 1921 – February 19, 2007) was an American big-band singer who later became a popular film and television actress. Early years Janet Blair was born Martha Janet Lafferty on April 23, 1921, in ...

as Edith Enders *

as Rita DeLacey * Jay C. Flippen as Lt. Ross Quelan * Allyn Joslyn as Harvey Baker *

Lyle Latell Lyle Latell (born Lyle Zeiem; April 9, 1904 – October 24, 1967) was an American character actor. He was perhaps best known for playing Pat Patton in the ''Dick Tracy'' film series. Biography Latell was born Lyle Zeiem on April 1904 in ...

as Police Sergeant Ryan

References

External links

* {{Norman Z. McLeod 1957 films 1950s crime comedy films American crime comedy films American prison films Films about con artists Films based on television plays Films directed by Norman Z. McLeod Films scored by David Rose RKO Pictures films Universal Pictures films 1957 comedy films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films