They Got Me Covered (1942), starring Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour, Donald MacBride
Synopsis of They Got Me Covered
Editorial review of They Got Me Covered courtesy of Amazon.com
Everybody does his or her bit for the war effort in this comedy thriller released in 1943, smack in the middle of World War II. Bob Hope stars as bumbling war correspondent Robert Kittredge, a man so inept that he misses the German invasion of Russia. “I wouldn’t even trust you to cover a hole in the carpet!” screams his editor in chief, Mason (Donald MacBride, with the requisite steam coming out of his ears). Then, of course, Kittredge stumbles onto an evil Axis plot and ends up saving the world.
Dorothy Lamour — Hope and Bing Crosby’s glamorous love interest in seven Road pictures–appears here sans sarong, playing an intrepid Lois Lane type. But Hope doesn’t have to fight Crosby for her affections; “Der Bingle” makes only one brief vocal appearance, via a music box. Subtlety is not this movie’s strong suit, and goofy gags abound from the start, with Hope skulking through a Russian hotel disguised as a Cossack to escape creditors. The Axis characters–Germans, Italians, and Japanese–are stereotypical villains all. An uncanny Mussolini look-alike has a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo in an airplane scene, and acclaimed director Otto Preminger proves he’s a good sport with his portrayal of a wicked Nazi ringleader. It’s all a fun romp, and an interesting look back at the kind of propaganda Hollywood once churned out to help keep the world safe for democracy. –Laura Mirsky
Cast of characters
- Bob Hope (The Ghost Breakers; The Facts of Life) … Robert Kittredge
- Dorothy Lamour (Road to Morocco; My Favorite Brunette) … Christina Hill
- Lenore Aubert (Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff; Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein) … Mrs. Vanescu
- Otto Preminger (Stalag 17) … Fauscheim
- Eduardo Ciannelli (The Mummy’s Hand) … Baldanacco
- Marion Martin (The Big Street) … Gloria
- Donald Meek (You Can’t Take It With You; State Fair) … Little Old Man
- Phyllis Ruth (Caught in the Draft) … Sally
- Philip Ahn (The Left Hand of God) … Nichimuro
- Donald MacBride (Blondie Takes a Vacation; Room Service) … Mason
- Mary Treen (It’s a Wonderful Life) … Helen
- Bettye Avery (The Pride of the Yankees) … Mildred
- Margaret Hayes (Sullivan’s Travels) … Lucille
- Mary Byrne … Laura
- William Yetter Sr. (Sergeant York) … Holtz
- Henry Guttman (Houdini) … Faber
- Florence Bates (Rebecca) … Gypsy Woman
- Walter Catlett (Mr. Deeds Goes to Town) … Hotel Manager
- John Abbott (Who’s Minding the Store?) … Vanescu
- Frank Sully (A Girl a Guy and a Gob) … Red
