''The Day the Bookies Wept'' is a 1939 American

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 Leslie Goodwins and written by

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 Serli ...

and

George Jeske George Washington Jeske (February 22, 1891 – October 28, 1951) was an American screenwriter, director, and actor. Career Jeske was born in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1891. He was one of the original Keystone Kops for Mack Sennett. He wrote f ...

. The film stars

Joe Penner Joe Penner (born József Pintér; November 11, 1904 – January 10, 1941) was an American vaudeville, radio, and film comedian. Early life Penner was an ethnic Hungarian born József Pintér in Nagybecskerek, Austria-Hungary, (present-day Zren ...

Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million; for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she reign ...

, Richard Lane,

Tom Kennedy Thomas or Tom Kennedy may refer to: Politics *Thomas Kennedy (Scottish judge) (1673–1754), joint Solicitor General for Scotland 1709–14, Lord Advocate 1714, Member of Parliament for Ayr Burghs 1720–21 * Thomas Kennedy, 9th Earl of Cassilis ...

and

Thurston Hall Ernest Thurston Hall (May 10, 1882 – February 20, 1958) was an American film, stage and television actor.Aylesworth, Thomas G. and Bowman, John S. (1987). ''The World Almanac Who's Who of Film''. World Almanac. . Pp. 186-187. Career Stag ...

. The film was released on September 15, 1939, by

RKO 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 ...

Plot

Pooling their resources, New York City taxi drivers–who are tired of losing money at the racetrack–designate Ernie Ambrose to go to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

and buy them a racehorse. Ernie leaves behind his sweetheart Ina and spends all their money on a horse, relying on advice from a fake "colonel" by buying a nag called Hiccup. The horse is useless until Ina discovers via the colonel that Hiccup has a taste for beer. At long odds, she bets $2,000 on the drunken horse to win, which it does, bankrupting bookies all over town.

Cast

as Ernest 'Ernie' Ambrose *

as Ina Firpo * Richard Lane as Ramsey Firpo *

as Pinky Brophy *

as Colonel March * Bernadene Hayes as Margie * Carol Hughes as Patsy *

Vinton Hayworth Vinton Hayworth (June 4, 1906 – May 21, 1970), also known as Jack Arnold and Vincent Haworth,Although some sources cite Vinton Hayworth's real surname as Haworthwhich clearly shows the surname as Hayworth. The genealogy site indicates that his ...

as Harry *

Emory Parnell Emory Parnell (December 29, 1892 – June 22, 1979) was an American vaudeville performer and actor who appeared in over 250 films in his 36-year career. Early years Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Parnell trained as a musician at Morningside ...

as Motor Cop

References

External links

* * * * 1939 films American black-and-white films RKO Pictures films Films directed by Leslie Goodwins American comedy films 1939 comedy films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films {{1930s-comedy-film-stub