A sheer delight, this one is by far the best of the three movies (one of them even re-starring Ty Power) made from this material. The four principals, Ty Power, Loretta Young, Don Ameche and Slim Summerville were never handled funnier lines nor more delightful characters. The pace whipped up by director Tay Garnett is movie magic at its fast- moving best. Highly skillful direction is absolutely essential to the success of this film as most of the humor is revived by repeating the same visual and speech gags over and over. Only a really clever and right on top of his game director could get away with a constant repetition of the same gags, let alone make them seem funnier and funnier, but that's exactly what Garnett (a much under-rated director) succeeds in doing here. Needless to say, the re-makes with other directors in the chair (including Robert B. Sinclair, a stage director who found his real home in TV), are not a patch on this movie, the original version.

Why is it that in the old days, movies used people's private lives as front page news? Wasn't there a depression going on? A war about to break out in Europe? A big New York newspaper then has to focus on the life of a silly millionairess (Loretta Young) who has just broken off with a gold-digging Russian Count (George Sanders). Reporter Tyrone Power gets on her plane, gets her to talk, then gets the story to his editor (Don Ameche), on a break from saying "yes, dear" to his constant telephone calling nagging wife (whom, thankfully, we never see.) Young decides to get even by alerting the other local newspapers that she has become engaged to Power, which causes him havoc at every turn as he deals with sudden "celebrity status" and the fury of Ameche. Cute premise, yet beyond "today's newspaper, tomorrow's fish wrapper" premise, who would really care about such goings on when the world is in trauma? OK, in the society column perhaps, but on the front page? Oh, let's be real here! OK, this is just a film, a screwball comedy famous for such lapses of reality. Did audiences really think that a bunch of rich people would traipse all over New York looking for a forgotten man, or that a woman dying of uranium poisoning would become the darling of New York society? Yet, "My Man Godfrey" and "Nothing Sacred" were spoofing the ridiculousness of society and newspaper headlines with their farcism. The problem here isn't the premise, or even the stars; It would be great if the story appeared in another section BUT the front page. It is also very apparent that Loretta Young and Tyrone Power were one of the best looking screen couples of the 30's, and had TONS of chemistry. That made them box-office bonanza, and they could re-do "Abie's Irish Rose" and get away with it. But I don't think anybody believes that Loretta Young was anything like the rather brainless twit she plays here that would waste her entire life trying to make Powers' miserable by acting all lovey dovey and not end up falling in love with him herself. Tyrone Power comes off best; He is handsome without being embarrassed by it (like Robert Taylor was), and masculine without being ridiculously macho. He's just your average guy who happens to look like a movie star, that's all. His charm was very apparent and he comes off more likable than Ms. Young.As for Don Ameche, sadly, he is wasted here. There is no love triangle involving him; His role could have been played by any contract character actor. Even though he had been in films for only a year, it was apparent he was going places, so he is sadly wasted. George Sanders plays his typical Euro-Trash cad, not as deadly as in some of his other films, yet obviously out for his own gain. Walter Catlett is funny as a rival reporter who plays chess with Power using beer and whiskey as the pieces. It probably set off a trend of college parties where the winner gets drunk, and the looser ends up hang-over free. (Who's really the looser?) Then, there is the small town jail scene with Slim Summerville as the droopy faced judge who sentences Power and Young to do time for various crimes. (She was speeding; He was taking something out of her car at her request, which she later denied). The sequence is funny (featuring prison doors that keep falling off the hinges) yet unrealistic. Yet again, this is a screwball comedy, not at all to be taken as anything but a fantasy of what life is really like. Jane Darwell has a few amusing moments as Powers' landlady. Dudley Digges, usually cast as elderly villains, has a change of pace here as Young's likable uncle.The film was remade in 1948 (with an aging Power and Gene Tierney) as "That Wonderful Urge" that seemed even more out of place in Post-War America when there was more important things to go into the entire newspaper than stuff like this. This time, the heroine pretends their married, which adds some sexual tension into the midst. Comparing the two films on the DVD, "Love is News" comes off a bit better, though not much.

LOVE IS NEWS is a great old style film that they just don't make any more. It's really a shame, as I had a lot of fun watching it and don't know why the film isn't better known. Sure, I'll admit that the plot is hard to believe, but this is like most screwball comedies of the era! You just need to suspend disbelief and enjoy.This is one of the earliest films of Tyrone Power and considering his short record in films, it was quite the coup to be starring in this film with Loretta Young. Power plays a guy much like many of Clark Gable's--glib, good looking and not afraid to stretch the truth...'a bit'. In fact, Gable played newspaper men like this on at least a couple occasions at rival MGM. Power, despite his lack of experience, was at the top of his game--delivering a professional and enjoyable performance. Young is equally likable, though considering she'd been in films for some time and her track record, it wasn't surprising at all that she was up to the task.The film begins with Power sneaking on to a plane to get an interview with a rich millionairess (Young). The problem, though, is that Young hates reporters, as they've made her life a circus for years and she gets no peace at all. So, on a lark, when she discovers that Power is yet another reporter, she decides to give him a piece of his own medicine and have him learn what it's like to be constantly hounded. She tells the other reporters that she and Power are engaged and soon Power is besieged with fortune hunters, reporters and people wanting to sell him practically everything! And, no matter how much he tries to convince everyone that his is NOT engaged, Young insists that they are! Knowing where this all will end isn't a total surprise but the journey there is exceptional--and fun! The supporting characters (I particularly liked Slim Summerville as the judge and he had a great little jail) were great, the writing (aside from a ridiculous plot) was great and the whole thing was directed very well--resulting in a funny as well as romantic old film. After seeing it, I could easily see why Power soon rose to fame--this was an excellent vehicle.By the way, this film and its remake (also starring Tyrone Power), THAT WONDERFUL URGE, are available bundled together on DVD. Of the two, LOVE IS NEWS is definitely the better film--not just because it's original but because it just works much better.

Back when this film was made in the mid Thirties there seem to be an abundance of films about madcap heiresses. In the middle of the Great Depression films about the rich partying away seemed to find an audience.Back then the real life model was Peggy Hopkins Joyce, today it's Paris Hilton. We just love to read about the rich doing their reveling.So the premise is a bit ludicrous about Loretta Young getting very angry at the newspaper reporters for reporting on her every move. Believe me if she didn't want publicity she wouldn't get any. Believe it or not, then as now, there are rich people out there who are not tabloid fodder.But I guess anyone can get a little cranky and Loretta has come her time of crankiness in Love Is News. When an especially enterprising reporter gets on board her private plane, she's had it. While reporter Tyrone Power thinks he's scooped his colleagues, Young has an impromptu press conference with the others and announces she's engaged to Tyrone Power.And then Power as he was in real life becomes the object of a lot of tabloid fodder. His editor is Don Ameche who keeps firing and hiring him back to straighten the mess out. If this were done at Warner Brothers, Love Is News would have been perfect for James Cagney and Pat O'Brien.Twelve years later Power did a remake of this same film with Gene Tierney. Hard to choose between the two which is better. Ty is at the beginning of his career and Darryl Zanuck was casting him in all kinds of parts, comedic, adventurous, dramatic. And Power himself was perfecting his screen image.Best scenes in the film involve small town judge Slim Summerville who Young comes up before for speeding and that sets up a whole bunch of funny situations.I can see this being remade today, unless Paris Hilton herself wants to star in it.