Three Men on a Horse

Three Men on a Horse (1935), a farce by John Cecil Holm and George Abbott. [Playhouse, 835 perf.] Having had a tiff with his wife, Audrey (Joyce Arling), the meek‐mannered greeting‐card writer Erwin Trowbridge (William Lynn) finds solace at a bar, where he happens to mention that, while he does not bet, he invariably picks winners at the races. Three small‐time racketeers latch on to him and win one race after another. Since Erwin's inspiration comes only when riding on a bus, this means they do a lot of traveling. But after they become doubtful of one of his choices and force him to place a bet, his inspiration deserts him. So do the racketeers. He returns to his wife and to writing corny couplets. Robert Benchley said the play was “distinctly low in tone, broad in method, and ostensibly mad in design, but there is an underlying comic truth running through it, even in minor roles, which made it consistently funny to me, and sometimes more than funny.” One of the best modern American farces, often revived in all venues, it was also the basis for two musicals, Banjo Eyes (1941) and Let It Ride! (1961). John Cecil HOLM (1904–81) was a Philadelphia‐born actor, director, and playwright. His biggest success, apart from this play, was his book for the musical Best Foot Forward (1941).