classicsoncall Bob Hope plays a dual role in this comedy spy flick, one as his usual character throwing out humorous one liners, and the other as an international spy who Peanuts White (Hope) is asked to imitate in order to secure a valuable piece of film for the government. Hope actually looked a bit scary as the villain Eric Augustine, and it made me wonder if he could have pulled off a dramatic role in a non comedy vehicle.This was my first glimpse of Hedy Lamarr, and I wasn't too impressed with her looks when she first appeared on screen. But then, it seemed like she got better looking as the movie progressed. By the time of the film's finale and that wild hook and ladder ride, the zaniness of the scene seemed to bring out a naturalness to her personality that seemed suppressed in the early going. Actually, that scene had elements of Abbott and Costello and the Keystone Kops going for it, and was a lot more physical than any other Hope characterization I've seen.As usual, some of Hope's best zingers are of the self deprecatory kind; when one of the detectives removes his clown rubber nose in the early going, Hope's character replies - "Hey, that's not all putty"! You have to be quick when he does the gag about Bing Crosby, never mentioning him by name, but remarking how a skull he's looking at resembles a 'singer I know'. Modern audiences and non-Hope fans would never give it a second thought, but it's one of the fun things about watching these era films when you're old enough to be in on the joke.Hey, I know it's just for laughs, but there was a goof in that scene when the phone started ringing inside the suitcase. When Peanuts/Hope finally gets it out, the receiver is off the hook!"My Favorite Spy" seems to get mixed reviews, and though I enjoyed it myself, I thought about it being re-done as "Road to Tangier" with Crosby and Lamour along for the ride. Say, did you catch it when Peanuts White's real name was revealed? - it was Cecil Longwood.

blanche-2 1951's "My Favorite Spy" stars Bob Hope, Hedy Lamarr, Francis L. Sulllivan and Mike Mazurki. Hope plays Peanuts White, a burlesque comedian, who bears a strong resemblance to a spy, Eric Augustine. When Augustine is injured, the government gets Peanuts to go in his place to Tangier with $1 million to collect some microfilm. Peanuts, like Hope's other characters, is a bona fide coward, but he goes after Harry Truman talks with him on the phone. ("Oh, she's out on tour?" Hope asks, referring to Truman's daughter Margaret, who at that time was pursuing a singing career.) When Peanuts arrives in Tangier, he meets the woman with whom Eric was previously involved, the beautiful nightclub singer Lily Dalbray. She's under orders from the other side to get the microfilm, so she acts as if she's ready to resume things with Eric. Unfortunately, the real Eric escapes from the hospital and makes his way to Tangier, causing the situation to become even more confusing as everyone chases everyone else.Hope is very funny in this and does indeed create a second role in Eric Augustine, who has a much darker persona than Peanuts. There are some great laughs, my favorite scene being Hedy and Peanuts dancing in the hotel while his contact tries to get his attention. The part where Lamarr drives a fire engine while Hope hangs onto the ladder is funny as well.Hedy Lamarr was 36 or so at the time of the filming and looks glorious, particularly in the form-fitting white sequined gown she wears during her nightclub act. It's so unfortunate that in Hollywood, once a woman turned 30, lead roles became so difficult to get. Lamarr was one of the most beautiful and glamorous women in film - at any age. She's basically straight man to Hope here and holds her own in what is a Dorothy Lamour part, right down to the nightclub act. She contributes to the foreign flavor of the film.This isn't Hope's best film, but it's still very good with some great bits and laughs.

Neil Doyle HEDY LAMARR may have been one of BOB HOPE's most glamorous co-stars, but she lacks the sort of comic timing needed for any female who plays opposite the hyper-active Hope. She never loses her poise no matter how ridiculous the situations are, but she never looks at home in this kind of spy story that even has her doing a nightclub act--singing the kind of sultry song that Dorothy Lamour could always put over. It's in the nightclub scene that she looks most uncomfortable as a performer, obviously dubbed by a real singer.The story itself is the kind of mistaken identity thing that either Hope or Danny Kaye had done many times before and there's nothing new in the way of original material. It's a pleasant enough spoof of spy stories about a cowardly impostor (Hope) assigned by the government to obtain a top secret microfilm from spies in Tangier. Hope is his usual cowardly self and has to be prodded by the contact man (ARNOLD MOSS) to carry out the assignment, which he is more than willing to do once he meets the alluring Lamarr.This was part of Hedy's deal with Paramount to give them another film after SAMSON AND DELILAH--and there's even a bit of Victor Young's "Samson and Delilah" theme played by the orchestra in the nightclub scene. Hope, who has all the best lines, plays the impostor with his usual comic finesse and gets away with varying amounts of mugging whenever the script isn't funny enough. Hedy tries valiantly to keep up with him, but she's just a little too restrained to make her efforts seem casual and effortless--as they should.The screwball slapstick for the finale keeps things rushing along toward the predictable conclusion, but it's the sort of average entertainment that pleased Hope's fans who enjoyed his comic energy in this sort of espionage romp from time to time.

Harri85274 I read somewhere here in this forum a readers take on the Bob-Hedy friction. Let me settle this once and for all. Hedy was always Bob favorite...look at some of the old war newsreels with the stars getting involved in the war, in their own way. There's a clip where Bob is surprisingly sharing a bed with his crony, Bing Crosby and in his dreams, he keeps calling out for Hedy. Hedy was an MGM player, so odds were against them making a movie together, each under contract to different studios. It turned out that some of Hedy's best funny scenes were cut, because the studio head at Paramount, didn't want anyone to be more funnier than their bread and butter comedian. She resented it, after all she was in the midst of making a comeback, as they called it in those days, after her terrific success in Samson and Delilah for that same studio a year before. Its odd that in 1951, Bob and Hedy made a comedy radio stint on top of a U.S.Navy flattop, in front of the sailors, in San Diego port. They even made jokes about appearing together in that movie. So, if there was friction, it was short lived. As far as her role, she was suppose to be playing it straight to Bob's antics. To me,the funniest scenes involved Hedy, mainly because I was surprised at how well she did handle comedy. Her hitting Bob like a wildcat, after he 'punched' her. Her double take upon seeing "both" Bob's was priceless...and that ending, with her driving the fire truck.