More Than a Secretary

Plot

Secretary Carol Baldwin (Jean Arthur) is in love with her boss, health-magazine publisher Fred Gilbert (George Brent). So what else is new? Well, for starters, Carol isn't terribly attractive, so Fred pays but little attention to her. Gee, nothing new here, come to think of it. Well, how about this: Carol undergoes a glamour treatment and wins Fred away from his dumb-blonde tootsie Maizie West (Dorothea Kent). Suffice to say that this cookie-cutter romantic comedy rises and falls on the appeal of its two talented stars. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Review

More Than a Secretary is one of those so predictable comedies that one imagines the screenwriters simply opened a "how to" book on creating romantic comedies (workplace division) and copied out all the information therein. In other words, don't look for surprises with Secretary or you're bound to be disappointed. Of course, plot isn't everything. A run-of-the-mill story can be saved by an imaginative approach to characters or by dialogue that pops and sparkles and fizzes. Neither of these could be said to be Secretary's strong point either, I'm afraid. It's not that the screenplay is bad, mind you: just terribly ordinary. Matters are not helped by the presence of George Brent as the object of far too many girls' affections. Brent doesn't come across with the requisite personality that this kind of character requires and he doesn't lend a natural comic flair to the proceedings. Fortunately, he is more than made up for by Jean Arthur and Dorothea Kent. Arthur is always a pleasure, and even in a routine comedy, she manages to trick you into thinking there's something fresh going on. Kent wonderfully plays her rival, a ditzy in most affairs but smart in her career moves dame who is a welcome addition. Alfred E. Green's direction is serviceable. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

Cast

• Jean Arthur - Carol Baldwin
• George Brent - Fred Gilbert
• Lionel Stander - Ernest
• Ruth Donnelly - Helen Davis
• Reginald Denny - Bill Houston

Dorothea Kent - Maizie West; Charles Halton - Mr. Crosby; Geraldine Hall - Enid; Josephine McKim - Gladys; Dorothy Short - Ann; Charles Irwin - Mounted Policeman; George Hickman - Office Boy; Nick Copeland; Myra Marsh - Sour-faced Woman; Ralph McCullough - Department Head; Frances Morris - Clerk; Tom Ricketts - Henry; Cyril Ring; Francis Sayles - Waiter; William Wagner - Man; William Bartlett - Contortionist; C.L. Sherwood - Window Washer

Credit

Bernard Newman - Costume Designer, Alfred E. Green - Director, Al Clark - Editor, Henry Freulich - Cinematographer, Everett J. Riskin - Producer, Matt Taylor - Screen Story, Aben Kandel - Screenwriter, Lynn Starling - Screenwriter, Dale Van Every - Screenwriter, Ethel Hill - Screenwriter

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