WARNING! A blackface musical number is included. If sensitive to such, best not to view this film, or close your eyes during that portion. The 2nd of 6 films produced by Sam Goldwyn, from 1930-36 starring Eddie Cantor. You will experience Eddie's usual combination of verbal and physical comedy, along with the occasional song with or without dancing by the Goldwyn Girls.Eddie begins as the assistant to a fake fortune teller(Yolando), hopefully providing the correct sound or visual effects or message from an adjoining room. Charlotte Greenwood, who supervises the physical training of workers at a giant bakery, is told by Yolando, that her ideal man will appear at a certain time and place, and sends Eddie to the gym. Surprisingly, Charlotte is impressed, but feels Eddie needs a lot of physical training to build up his body. He objects that the medicine ball is way too big to swallow, the mechanical horse is too fast, and the body contortions that Charlotte imposes on him are breaking his body.Eddie miraculously lands the job of efficiency expert at the bakery, and is soon smitten by the boss's lovely young daughter, Joan(Barbara Weeks), who acts as a secretary. Eddie poses as a visiting famous French mystic, who visits Yolando in his séances room, and abuses Yolando mentally and physically, claiming his methods are outdated.In Mr. Clark's(president of baking company) office, Eddie places $25,000. of bonus money in the safe, Clark having written the combination on a little piece of paper. Yolando somehow learns about this and sends two goons to scare or beat Eddie into giving them the paper with the safe combination. There ensues a chase within the bakery, ending in the girls' change and shower room, with Eddie made up as one of them. The paper is stolen from his locker while he is so engaged. The goons somehow get into Clark's office and open the safe to find it empty. Eddie has, in the meanwhile, returned to the safe and taken the money to another hiding place. Mr. Clark discovers that the money is missing and blames Eddie for stealing it. Eddie says he baked the money in a loaf of bread!?, which he produces, but no money is found. He and Charlotte are arrested and driven toward jail, but they trick the cop, stealing his car to get to the bakery to look for a bread loaf that contains the money. Incredibly, the first loaf they open contains the money, but Yolando and gang arrive and a fight for the money ensues. It's found on Yolando when the police arrive , and his gang is arrested. As with most of Eddie's films, the climax could have been done without sound and been almost as effective. The question remained whom Eddie might pair up with, now that he was a hero: the boss's pretty young daughter, or Charlotte: the aging plain-looking spinster. I will leave that question unanswered.There were only 3 musical numbers, usually, these films had s few more. Eddie, in blackface, sang "There's Nothing too good for my Baby". The other two were musical productions, involving the Goldwyn Girls. One occurred quite early, involving dancing in formations in the gym, to "Bend Down, Sister". The other occurs about midway, with Eddie singing "Yes, Yes, my Baby said Yes!" . Busby Berkeley was the dance director, and it shows in the 2 production numbers, with some signature features, including close-up facials of some of the girls, and overhead projections.Charlotte Greenwood was about the same age as Eddie, around 40,and several inches taller. Like Eddie, she started in vaudeville, and became famous for her long legs and sideways high kick. She could sing and act, as well. She was best in films with a combination of music and comedy. Thus, she fit in well as a supporting actress, in a number of Fox musicals in the 1940s and '50s, playing Aunt Eller in "Oklahoma".Barbara Weeds, playing the ingénue , was only 18. That year, she was voted an actress likely on the verge of stardom. However, her life would soon change, as she refused the casting couch at Goldwyn, and then Columbia, where she was relegated to cheap westerns. Turned out, she loved being in westerns.This film is presently available as part of a 4 film DVD package.

this movie begins with the finest five minutes, principally consisting of a busby Berkeley dance number performed in the girls gymnasium. as they dance their daily exercise routine to stay slim and attractive (they work in a bakery), Charlotte greenwood sings "bend down sister". but leading up to that is a little gem that lasts less than 30 seconds in which a man comes in to order a cake. i won't "spoil" it for you by describing any further. suffice it to say, in my opinion of course, this could well be the best twenty eight seconds ever put on film. you see, inasmuch as it really has nothing whatever to do with the rest of the movie, it was simply put there for the sake of laughter. and it succeeds. o how it succeeds. i would hope to see this film on television one day again. but hope springs eternal. it is apparently not available on DVD.

Palmy Days was Eddie Cantor's first original feature film, the previous two Kid Boots and Whoopee were film adaptions of Cantor's previous Broadway successes that presumably carried built in audiences. Palmy Days could be said to be Cantor's first personal film success. It sure came at a time he needed it because being wiped out in the stock market crash Cantor was working real hard to rebuild his nest egg and support his wife and five daughters.His innocent schnook character who turns the tables often on bigger and cleverer foes was finding real appeal with the movie going public. Cantor works for phony psychic Charles Middleton working all the special effects to convince Middleton's marks during séances that their dearly departed are actually communicating with them. One of Middleton's bigger suckers is bakery owner Spencer Charters who employs a flock of beautiful Goldwyn Girls as his bakers. Cantor who's been abused by Middleton decides to trip up one of his cons by getting a job at Charters's bakery, but Charters mistakes him for someone else and hires him as an efficiency expert. You have to love some of Cantor's brilliant ideas like sawing the corners of Charters's desk so that folks would not be tempted to linger awhile sitting on said corners and taking up his time.Eddie also hooks up with Amazonian physical culturist Charlotte Greenwood who is always a delight. The two worked well together, they should have done more joint films. Charlotte also has the first musical number in the film Bend Down Sister or exercising with the Goldwyn Girls. Busby Berkeley did the choreography and while he hadn't really reached the creative heights as he did with Warner Brothers his style is unmistakable.Cantor gets two numbers My Baby Said Yes Yes and There's Nothing Too Good For My Baby. Both are delivered in his quick tempo style, Michael Jackson had nothing on Eddie Cantor when it came to moving about on stage.Of course Middleton is down, but not out. Cantor and Greenwood have a hilarious climax with Middleton and his two torpedoes Harry Woods and George Raft in the bakery. This was one of Raft's earliest films and he barely gets any dialog, but casting him as a gangster was definitely something he could always handle.Palmy Days holds up well after more than 80 years, it's classic comedy is timeless and the film is great introduction to one of the funniest men of the last century Eddie Cantor.

How can you NOT like Eddie Cantor? Even after all those years, his charisma is absolutely intact. You look at those big dark sad eyes once and you fall in love with that very generous and charismatic performer. He was a dynamo. And so cute! He spares nothing to please you and it is very effective. He's not that good a singer, though. He had a too high-pitched voice.And what about the great Charlotte Greenwood! How do I adore that strong performer with her high kicks, her almost frightening physical stamina and energy, her generosity! She's old-school all right and very, very entertaining. She never fails to give you a very great time. She's a scene stealer too. But we love her even more for it! See it if only for her as well as all the other movies she's in! As for the plot, well, it is a pure slapstick comedy. You have to like the genre but if you do as I do, you'll like the movie.Interesting to see a glimpse of Betty Grable as a teenager. Try to find her! Haha! One wishes she would have at least one scene with Eddie Cantor.See it, it's good.