Just watched this early Bob Hope picture made before his established movie personality of a cowardly hero was ingrained in the minds of the public. Here, he's a rich man who believes he's dying due to...well, just watch the picture. Anyway, Martha Raye is also in this. Both of them are engaged to a someone neither wants to marry so they decide to wed each other. Oh, and Andy Devine is also here as someone who really likes Ms. Raye. Let me just stop here and just say that I found the whole thing quite funny and the fact Preston Sturges was one of the writers may have had to do something with it. There's also a game supporting cast involved. So on that note, I highly recommend Never Say Die.

NEVER SAY DIE—8 One of Hope's Best. The plot of this Bob Hope comedy is very familiar, but I cannot hold this against the film. In the 1950s and 60s, many TV shows ripped off the plot—including "The Honeymooners" and "The Flintstones"! So, while it might seemed clichéd, I think it's one of the first films to use this plot, so its familiarity cannot be held against it.The film begins with a very cute scene involving a health spa in Switzerland and their water with magical properties. You just have to see it to appreciate it. As for Hope, he plays a millionaire hypochondriac who insists he's ill when he's actually in fine condition. However, though a silly mistake, doctors now assume he's going to soon die.In the meantime, Hope is pursued by a rather scary woman with a history of husbands who die under mysterious circumstances. She insists they marry and Hope is too cowardly to say no. But, on the day of their wedding he meets another woman (Martha Raye) who is also being forced into a marriage she doesn't want and Hope proposes that they marry each other. After all, it will save both of them and he's expected to be dead within a month—so it's a no-lose proposition. Shortly after their wedding, Raye's true love (Andy Devine) arrives to wait for Hope's demise. Soon, the black widow and Raye's fiancé arrive as well and so the countdown begins.What sets this apart from most Hope films is the writing—it's just better than usual and the film abounds with laughs. Plus, surprisingly, the chemistry between Raye and Hope was nice—and a bit romantic. It's a swell film that you can't help but enjoy.

Bob Hope at the point in time that Never Say Die was released was not the big name star he became, but he was definitely getting there. Please note that Martha Raye is billed above him in the credits.Preston Sturges, year away from getting his first film as a director as well as writer, wrote a pretty funny and witty script, not an easy thing to accomplish both. Bob Hope temporarily escapes the clutches of a predatory widow played by Gale Sondergaard who has him picked out to be her latest rich husband who have a knack of dying. In fact it's a mixed up diagnosis with a dog that makes Hope think he is dying.Enter Martha Raye who's a nouveau riche daughter of a nouveau riche Paul Harvey who's a new Texas millionaire. He wants her to marry Alan Mowbray who's one no-account count. His daughter with a title will get him into society. She wants to marry her boyfriend Andy Devine back in Texas.When Hope and Raye meet up they decide to marry each other and solve all their problems. I can't mention the rest but take it on faith that the players here perform to the stereotypes we have of them.Even with Hope and Raye in the cast, my favorite moment is with Gale Sondergaard trying to vamp Andy Devine. Among other things Gale is the Olympic pistol target shooting champion. Poor Andy doesn't have a prayer in every sense of the word.In two years, both Preston Sturges and Bob Hope were at the top of the Paramount pecking order. It begs the question why they never worked together at that period. Was it that they couldn't find a mutually agreeable project or was it a question of a couple of egos clashing. Hope and Sturges did in fact work together, but it was Hope's film Paris Holiday where Sturges had a brief acting role. Sturges was living in Paris at the time and living what could be described as genteel poverty. Anyway I think it's a real loss that Never Say Die and Paris Holiday are their only joint credits.

Never Say Die is a funny old comedy, made in 1939.The movie takes place in Switzerland.In the movie the great Bob Hope plays this guy called John Kidley, who thinks he's dying, so he decides to get married before he's gone.And he marries a woman, whom he saves from a suicide.This woman is called Mickey Hawkins, played by Martha Raye.John and Mickey are supposed to marry some others, but they marry each other, without any love.They hardly know each other.But they've got nothing to lose.And then there is this Henry Munch(Andy Devine), who is very much in love with Mickey.But everything works out just fine.Mickey and John start to love each other, Henry finds his own sweetheart and John's not even dying.The movie has a great ending.Great movie from the 1930's.