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Listen to how Jane and Irma meet. The ambitious, hard working, and common sense Jane is straight man to Irma’s confusion over such simple things as a telephone call. Though Irma hopes to marry Al someday, Jane sees through the shady character of the out of work con man. Jane, on the other hand has eyes for marrying her rich boss, Richard Rhinelander.
Is Al really as bad as all that? When he appears, decide for yourself when he pitches his plan for a line of pajama pants that uses a rip cord. All he needs is the right breaks… hey… maybe Jane’s rich boyfriend and boss will be the backer he needs. Irma takes it on herself to throw a dinner party, and invite Richard, and let the two gents meet. The Sportsmen sing, Good Night Ladies.
Jane isn’t keen on the idea, but since the party has been arranged, she throws herself into making sure that Irma does things appropriately. Manners, polite conversation, and impressions are the name of the game, and target of joke. Will the whole meeting of the boyfriends only lead to embarrassment for each other, and Jane? Will all her future hopes with Richard be shot? Will the pajama deal fall through? Listen and learn how it all turns out.
PS: After the show had been on the air for 2 years, a movie was made. It launched the careers of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Originally, Jerry was to play Al, but his character just didn’t match the well established radio personality. To keep the chemistry of their night club act, Jerry was written in as a friend of Steve, the character that Dean Martin portrayed. Here’s a few more details:
My Friend Irma, released in 1949.
Featured: Marie Wilson as Irma, and Diana Lynn as Jane.
John Lund as Al, and Don DeFore, as Richard Rhinelander.
Dean Martin, and Jerry Lewis as Steve and Seymore.
The plot: Al discovers Steve and Seymore (Dean and Jerry) and promotes them to be a success. He invites them to stay with the girls, which sets up love triangle situations. Frustrated, Irma wants to end it all, but runs home so she can be present to win the Pot of Gold radio program. She wins, and the money solves all the problems.
The sequel: My Friend Irma Goes West 1950.
The plot: Picks up where the previous movie left off. Al is still promoting Steve and Seymore, and go to Hollywood to make a movie. The producer is found to be a crackpot, so they go to Las Vegas to work in the night clubs. Irma is kidnapped, rescued bySeymore, and a legitimate movie deal is struck, starring Irma and Seymore.
Bonus Tracks:
- Keith tells a little about today’s show, and the movies that were made, and about the need to pull some of the shows off the server. Join the newsletter to stay on top of which shows have gone under the ax.
- Abbott and Costello – Love, Marriage, and Divorce.
- Ripley’s Believe It Or Not ep416 Turned Down a Gold Mine .
