Mister 880 **** (1950, Burt Lancaster, Edmund Gwenn, Dorothy McGuire) – Classic Movie Review 9691

Burt Lancaster stars as recently appointed FBI agent Steve Buchanan who teams with attractive UN secretary–translator Ann Winslow (Dorothy McGuire) to investigate aged New Yorker William ‘Skipper’ Miller, aka fake-dollar-bill fraudster Mister 880 (Edmund Gwenn), in director Edmund Goulding’s deliciously likeable 1950 comedy charmer.

Mister 880 is packed with delightful writing and charismatic performances. Outside bis usual comfort zone, Lancaster shows an attractively light touch with comedy.

Tracking down one of the phony dollars, Lancaster meets and falls for McGuire, who happens to live in the same block as Gwenn and ends up with one of his fake bank notes.

The sweet old charmer Gwenn delights in his Best Supporting Actor Oscar-nominated role, as the man who prints his own money when he needs it, which could have been tailor-made for him by screen-writer Robert Riskin, who based his screenplay on a New Yorker article, Old Eight Eighty by St Clair McKelway, about a real case. However, Gwenn inherited the memorable role of Skipper Miller from Walter Huston, who died just as production began. Gwenn did win the Golden Globe as Best Supporting Actor.

It co-stars Millard Mitchell, Minor Watson, Howard St John, Hugh Sanders, and James Millican.

The opening credits appear on dollar bills.

Also in the cast are Howland Chamberlain, Larry Keating, Kathleen Hughes, Norman Field, Helen Hatch, Geraldine Wall, Marvin Williams, Robert B Williams, Ed Max, Frank Wilcox, George Adrian, Mike Lally, Joe McTurk, Minerva Urecal, George Gastine, Ray De Ravenne, Paul Bradley, Arthur Dullac, Curt Furberg, Joan Valerie, Jack Daly, Dick Ryan, William J O’Leary, Billy Gray, Billy Nelson, Bill McKenzie, Herbert Vigran, Mischa Novy, Erik Nielsen, Michael Little, Patrick Miller, Whitey Haupt, Timmie Hawkins, Tommie Mann Menzies, Gary Pagett, Peter Roman, Ronnie Ralph, Rico Alaniz, Eddie Lee, George Lee, Victor Desny, Sherry Hall, John Hiestand (Narrator, voice), Bessie Wade, Polly Bailey, Robert Boon and Dr D W De Roos.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 9691

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