All the Classic Movies That I Have Seen

1. George Washington Slept Here (1942).

Jack Benny used to devote so much time on his TV show dissing his film career that it was actually quite shocking for me to see this movie and realize that he actually made movies that were quite good. This movie, of course, is not as famous as To Be Or Not To Be, the most famous film in Benny's career, but it is amusing. Ann Sheridan plays his wife, Hattie McDaniel plays his maid, Charles Coburn plays his uncle-in-law, and Percy Kilbride plays the same type of comical rustic that he played in the Ma and Pa Kettle movies.

The plot, such as it is, involves Benny's wife buying a house out in the country that proves to be more of a fixer-upper than she thought. Complications ensue, and yes, the title actually has something to do with the movie, but I won't tell you just what.

Anyway, it made me laugh and not every movie I see nowadays does that. Especially the new releases...

2. Dinner at Eight (1933).

A classic film comedy that goes to some surprisingly dark places. It is perhaps most famous for a scene toward the end involving Jean Harlow and Marie Dressler, but Billie Burke and John Barrymore give memorable performances as well.

I could talk all day about this film but it is hard to say anything about it that most classic film buffs have not already heard, so I won't.

But if you have not seen it yet, then for God's sake, go see it.

Or else you will drive poor Billie Burke out of her mind.