I'm No Angel (1933) | |
Plot Synopsis (continued)
Just then, Slick comes in (a familiar shakedown tactic to extract money from the Chump), breaks in on his "wife" to threaten the suitor and call the cops. But she is upset with Slick:
And the Chump refuses to be taken for a sucker:
Slick knocks him out with a bottle after he resists. Tira refuses to take the blame for what Slick has done, although Slick understands her motives:
He forces a kiss from her. Unconcerned and coldhearted about the stiff body on the floor, Slick robs the Chump of his expensive diamond ring before the two of them leave. Soon after, Slick is caught on the circus grounds with the stolen ring, identified by the Chump, and arrested/jailed for theft and beating. Tira calls long-distance for lawyer friend Benny Pinkowitz (Gregory Ratoff) to help out. Big Bill Barton thinks Pinkowitz is a shyster and wonders how she got mixed up in the incident with Slick. "Like an olive in a dry martini," she replies. Pinkowitz agrees to help but demands money to cover court costs: "A nice piece of change to square up everything." Tira asks Big Bill a favor for "some dough right away." She explains her alternatives:
To help raise money to help Slick and cover his defense, Tira proposes a crowd-pleasing act for Barton - she will even stick her head in the big cat's mouth. Bill is unconvinced until the circus barker persuades Bill to go through with her crazy proposal. They rush to Tira's quarters:
They suggest a business proposition to her, to become the star attraction of Barton's new show that would play to large audiences, beginning in New York:
But Tira is already skeptical and fearful: "What good will clothes do me without a head?" But she is soon convinced by the promise of stardom, fame, and money:
Tira is advanced $2,000: a "couple of grand." She immediately prepares her whip and pistol, and walks to the lion's cage. She consults with the lion in the cage:
At the Big Show playing for two weeks in New York City, Tira is the star of the new sensational lion-tamer act, the "million-dollar beauty." She enters the ring astride an elephant, wearing a white sequined uniform with a whip in her hand. The climax of her act is the death-defying act of placing her head in the jaws of the king of beasts. A sailor in the audience tells his pal: "Say, if them lions don't show some sense, I'm going down and bite her myself." Following the show, Tira tells her black maid Beulah Thorndyke (Gertrude Howard):
Back stage, she is introduced to "silk hats" (high-society people), including rich playboy Kirk Lawrence (Kent Taylor) and his fiancee, an upper class snob named Alicia Hatton (Gertrude Michael). Alicia believes that Tira is beneath her and leaves immediately. The group of "silk hats" tells her how impressed they are with her daring lion act and request autographs. As Kirk leaves, he personally tells her:
Speaking loudly outside Tira's door so that Tira can hear, Alicia feels Tira only appeals to the men because "they all have low minds and she's certainly low enough to appeal to them...I think she's crude in a very ill-bred person." Not willing to let the insult pass, Tira humiliates the woman by tossing her glass of water out the door, soaking society girl Alicia's bare back. Kirk returns to retrieve his cane, deliberately left so he can speak privately to Tira and make a play for her: "You're wonderful. You're dazzling. You're beautiful. You're gorgeous...Let's get better acquainted." She finally accepts his dinner invitation for the next day, and expresses her admiration for Kirk by offering one of her typical interchanges to the males in her life:
In a montage of images, Kirk drops his fiancee and the next day purchases expensive presents for Tira - duly impressed with her courageous act with the lion. One present has a note attached: "To Tira - Who can tame more than lions. Kirk." While receiving a pedicure, a manicure, and hair-styling from three black maids, her coterie is very impressed by her appeal to gentlemen:
In a visual gag, Tira places photographs of her male admirers next to porcelain animals. Kirk's photograph is next to a stag, Barton's is beside a skunk. Kirk's jealous fiancee Alicia Hatton appears at Tira's door, and is let in to complain:
Alicia accuses Tira of taking an interest in Kirk's wealth. Tira defends herself but Alicia calls her a liar:
Tira refuses a bribe to stay away from Kirk, and then shoves Alicia out the door. Turning back and striding across the room, she instructs Beulah in one of her most famous lines:
Kirk's cousin, millionaire leading man Jack Clayton (Cary Grant) is concerned about Kirk's passion for Tira and suggests that Kirk drop Tira before she ruins his life:
Meanwhile, Slick is released from jail and compliments Tira on her penthouse and lifestyle:
She does promise to help him get a place in the circus if he gives up pickpocketing. |