Clevercell Very disappointing...

Limerculer A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Caryl It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Bill Slocum Can a reckless playboy be redeemed by true love? Will a mean capitalist father stop his son from marrying the daughter of a generous-hearted parson? How many cast members will be left after Reginald Barlow's Mr. Wallace goes on another firing bender?These are the questions in play in "His Private Secretary," a light comedy which fits in two stories within its one-hour running time. In the first half, we see Dick Wallace (John Wayne) put in a rare day of work only to discover himself smitten by that parson's daughter, Marion (Evalyn Knapp). In the second, Marion works to reconcile Dick and his father by taking a job as Daddy Wallace's personal secretary.Daddy doesn't know who Marion really is, and she won't tell him. This sets up much of the second-half comedy that gives the film its title and much of its interest."Never marry a rich man's worthless son," Daddy tells her. "You'll regret it."On the surface a pleasant curio for fans of John Wayne interested in his pre-"Stagecoach" career, "His Private Secretary" is something of a curiosity upon closer inspection. Like "Stagecoach," he's billed second behind an actress. Unlike "Stagecoach," the actress actually deserves top billing. Knapp's a pleasure to watch, and makes the most of this program-filler.Knapp actually had recently co-starred in successful films with the likes of Cagney, Edward G. Robinson, and Joe E. Brown, so it makes sense this cheapo production would tout her services over those of Wayne, who in 1934 had been reduced to Poverty Row titles like this after the abject commercial failure of his early starring vehicle "The Big Trail." It's an adjustment watching Wayne settle into his gadabout role here, and he seems only adequate, smirking to himself as he checks out various ankles and dickers with Daddy. Knapp is what sells the film, with her cat eyes and contagious exuberance.One special scene doesn't involve Wayne at all. In it, we see Marion help a heretofore unpleasant office manager who has gotten the whack from Daddy Wallace. With a gentleness that's hard to imagine in movies today, she first manages to smooth over the boss, who has come to respect Marion in a way he does no one else, and then glides up to the office manager to tell him as obliquely as possible that he still has his job. The scene is so well acted and shot, office workers straining to listen in the background while the manager in stark close-up struggles to keep his composure, that your heart almost aches in gratitude, as silly as that may read. As good as the scene plays now, it must have been riveting in the midst of the Great Depression.But the rest of the film, while not chaff entirely, is not nearly as fine. Director Philip H. Whitman for the most part plays this in strict by-the-numbers style, with few cuts and a lot of plot jumps. Characters and subplots are quickly introduced and abandoned after getting a chuckle or two. The last five minutes is a clear rush to get the story resolved under the wire, and really wrecks a lot of the good will established.It's just not a good movie, but it's not really bad at all. A light tone predominates, along with a simple message of finding forgiveness and human decency that makes the experience of watching it hard to dislike. Certainly people who, like me, force themselves to watch every Wayne film they can will be somewhat impressed, if not on account of Wayne. I think I may try to watch another Knapp film before my next Wayne.

kidboots Before John Wayne found his true genre calling he played a variety of college boys, bored young men about town etc - all like a fish out of water. Just before he began his famous Lone Star series that really put him on the map, he played Dick Wallace, an idle rich kid going to the dogs whose father (Reginald Barlow, who was more at home playing butlers and servants) puts him to work in his office in "His Private Secretary".In exasperation, he sends Dick to Somerville to recover a debt (a round trip of 200 miles) hoping to keep him out of temptation's way but resourceful Dick is able to mix business with pleasure when he gives pretty Marion Hall (Evalyn Knapp) a lift to her grandfathers after telling her the bus has broken down. Unfortunately, it is the grandfather, the Rev. Hall (Alec B. Francis) who he is chasing for a bad debt - the Rev. has given the money that he owes to feed the sick and needy. This is a really nice little movie - of course Dick waives the debt which has the old man fuming and giving him the sack but Dick has already decided to stay in the sleepy little town and trades his up to the minute roadster in exchange for the town's only garage, knowing he will have to meet up with Marian sometime. I know it sounds silly but it is a fun rainy day type of movie.Back in the city and now married, Dick and Marian run into opposition from Dick's dad who thinks she has only married Dick for his money. He has never met her of course but when Marian goes to the office to have it out with him, she comes out with a job - as his private secretary!!!Evalyn Knapp started out as a dewy eyed blonde but when she did have the lead in a talked about picture, "Sinner's Holiday", the only stars talked about were the supporting cast (James Cagney and Joan Blondell). So it was soon on to programmers and by 1933 she looked efficient enough to have the leads in poverty rowers "Air Hostess" and "His Private Secretary".

zpzjones I first caught a glimpse of this film on a Sunday morning on a local independent station. The film was abruptly pre-empted for a college wrestling match or something. Until recently I was not able to revisit this film in it's entirety, but I remembered one thing that stood out, Evalyn Knapp. She is a mixture of silent actress Bessie Love and talkies Jean Harlow and Barbara Stanwyck. The obvious attraction to this film today is the presence of John Wayne in the male lead. Got to give him credit for doing something other than riding a horse and for trying his hands at something purporting to be drama. Others have complained that this movie was put on DVD and not restored to better condition. Got to understand one thing, this film has been in the public domain for so long it is lucky that it survives in any condition. It is a poverty row film, from something called Showmen's Pictures, sheesh never heard of em. The negative and first generation materials of this movie have probably long since gone out of existence and all that remains is the sub-par 16mm prints floating around in public domain. It was available on several low budget home video labels during the videotape years. Albeit the original print quality probably wasn't all that good to begin with but the picture is what it is. The plot of this movie has been reiterated by some of the other posters so it need not be repeated by me. So I'll get back to the thing that stood out for me before that college game interrupted my original viewing, Evalyn Knapp. She is perhaps the real star of this near 'dog' of a picture and she provides the grasping factor of 'cheesecake'. While she is presented as Wayne's love interest the producer's(and I agree) felt that she could add eye candy value to a hard to sell low budget by wearing slinky form fitting dresses. For being the female lead, we first see her in the film 30 minutes in and she is given nothing more to do than utter several lines and walk in and out of scenes with several tight fitting dresses. Arthur Hoyt(from the silent LOST WORLD)plays a secretary to Wayne's dad and ogles Knapp on several instances and who could blame him. So for many a depression era out of work guy in the audience he would be glad to enjoy a few minutes of Miss Knapp's figure before leaving the theatre back to the miserable reality of the Great Depression. So there's nothing more to be gotten out of this flick but Evalyn Knapp does really save the flick for this viewer and on a historical basis it provides a glimpse into John Wayne's early dramatic abilities.

rhoda-1 As the cast list hints, the budget for this movie wasn't very generous, an impression confirmed with scenes of a "millionaire's" home and office that seem to have been filmed in the writer's apartment and with poor Evelyn Knapp having to wear the same dress again and again. The direction is strictly from hunger too--the actors are often less animated than those figures in really cheap cartoons whose jaws are the only thing to move when they talk. Wayne is extremely pleasing as the work-shy playboy (understandable when the office is dominated by his miserable-without-being funny father), but the rest of the cast is dreary and the plot has holes you could drive a truck through. There is also an odd sense of strain about it--Wayne keeps having to prove himself, then the girl has to prove herself--which seems an implicit acknowledgment of Depression conditions. Yet, if this isn't a film around which to base an evening's entertainment, it has some cute wisecracks and it's satisfyingly moral without being heavily so--a nice enough ironing movie.