A Girl in Every Port (1952 film)

A Girl in Every Port is a 1952 American comedy film directed by Chester Erskine. The film stars Groucho Marx, Marie Wilson, and William Bendix. It was based on the short story "They Sell Sailors Elephants" by Frederick Hazlitt Brennan.

Plot
Benjamin Franklin 'Benny' Linn and Timothy Aloysius 'Tim' Dunnovan are two sailors assigned to the same ship. Tim spends some inheritance money he received to purchase a race horse named Little Aaron. Tim’s division officer considers that an ill-advised action and orders Ben to go help Tim get his money back. Ben and Tim go ashore to seek a return of Tim's money, but it's not a simple matter, as Tim had already hired a team to train Little Aaron. They also discover that Little Aaron has a history of weak ankles and can't run very well. However, they also learn that Little Aaron has an identical twin, Little Shamrock, who has good ankles and can run fast. Ben and Tim decide they might be able to work things out, so that they can switch the horses and make a lot of money in a horse race. They find themselves trying to juggle the expectations of their division officer, the former owner of Little Aaron, a car hop named Miss Jane, some local mobsters, and their fellow sailors, who all want in on the action. There’s lots of confusion leading up to the horse race, risks to the participants depending on the outcome, and some unexpected results that follow.

Cast
This was Dee Hartford's film debut. It was through her that Groucho Marx met and later married her sister Eden Hartford.
 * Groucho Marx as Benjamin Franklin 'Benny' Linn
 * Marie Wilson as Jane Sweet
 * William Bendix as Timothy Aloysius 'Tim' Dunnovan
 * Don DeFore as Bert Sedgwick
 * Gene Lockhart as 'Doc' Garvey
 * Dee Hartford as Millicent Temple
 * Hanley Stafford as Fleet Admiral Temple
 * Teddy Hart as 'High Life'
 * Percy Helton as Drive-In Manager
 * George E. Stone as Skeezer

Reception
A.W. of The New York Times wrote in his review: "The parlay of Groucho Marx, Marie Wilson, William Bendix, to say nothing of a horse-racing mix-up, the United States Navy and sabotage should have paid off in plenty of laughs. But 'A Girl in Every Port,' which breezed into the Paramount yesterday, brimming with these ingredients, is merely an involved mélange of obvious antics and gags, only one or two of which are likely to generate chuckles."