Marian Nixon had been an early Wampas Baby star (1924) and had a reasonable film career. Talkies gave her a fresh start as her high pitched voice suited her personality and Fox gave her a contract as a threat to keep rebellious Janet Gaynor in line. She played a tough talking chorus girl in "Scarlet Pages" but she didn't convince and was at her best as "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm" (actually a Gaynor reject). "Sweepstake Annie" seemed tailor made for Nixon - she plays Annie, a secretary, who is at the mercy of meglomaniacal screenwriter Hobart (Ralf Harold) who's hackneyed dialogue causes much mirth ("Are you insinuating that "you dirty rats" is not original"!!) although none of the other workers at the studio are exactly cutting edge.
At home she is the main stay of her free loading family and pals Marge (Inez Courtney) and Bill (Tom Brown) have had enough. There's an underlying theme of "once our ship comes in we will be on easy street" - the ship being the S.S. Sweepstakes!!! Even Annie is not immune, dreaming of the dashing Baron she was introduced to at the studio. She is still disgusted that her shiftless family has spent all the money she has given them on sweepstake tickets!! But the next scene shows commotion in the Foster household - one of them has drawn the winning horse and it turns out to be Annie.
With the winnings comes trouble - Annie tells off her worthless family and decides to spend the money her way - she then reacquaints herself with the Baron!! And with those immortal words "there may be many people who wish to relieve you of your fortune" you know what's coming and with Ivan Lebedeff playing the Baron, it's a sure thing that it is the idle rich and titled that Annie should be wary of. They are scammers who are talking up shares in an non existent diamond mine, Annie is sucked in completely. There is more bad news - at home Annie had walked out leaving the family $25,000 of her winnings, now her dad has come to tell her that the money is gone, spent on clothes, new cars and health treatments and he is so fed up with them he doesn't want to return!!
The best part about this movie is Ralf Harolde's delusional scriptwriter - he was usually more at home with "baddie" roles. Also Wera Engels, an import who didn't fare too well in movies with only one lead in "The Great Jasper" - she was still easy on the eyes.
At home she is the main stay of her free loading family and pals Marge (Inez Courtney) and Bill (Tom Brown) have had enough. There's an underlying theme of "once our ship comes in we will be on easy street" - the ship being the S.S. Sweepstakes!!! Even Annie is not immune, dreaming of the dashing Baron she was introduced to at the studio. She is still disgusted that her shiftless family has spent all the money she has given them on sweepstake tickets!! But the next scene shows commotion in the Foster household - one of them has drawn the winning horse and it turns out to be Annie.
With the winnings comes trouble - Annie tells off her worthless family and decides to spend the money her way - she then reacquaints herself with the Baron!! And with those immortal words "there may be many people who wish to relieve you of your fortune" you know what's coming and with Ivan Lebedeff playing the Baron, it's a sure thing that it is the idle rich and titled that Annie should be wary of. They are scammers who are talking up shares in an non existent diamond mine, Annie is sucked in completely. There is more bad news - at home Annie had walked out leaving the family $25,000 of her winnings, now her dad has come to tell her that the money is gone, spent on clothes, new cars and health treatments and he is so fed up with them he doesn't want to return!!
The best part about this movie is Ralf Harolde's delusional scriptwriter - he was usually more at home with "baddie" roles. Also Wera Engels, an import who didn't fare too well in movies with only one lead in "The Great Jasper" - she was still easy on the eyes.