It's a Wonderful World

It's a Wonderful World is a 1939 American screwball comedy starring Claudette Colbert and James Stewart, and directed by W. S. Van Dyke. Plot Private detective Guy Johnson (James Stewart) is well paid to watch over Willie Heyward (Ernest Truex), a wealthy man who likes to drink a bit too much and gets into trouble as a result. However, when Heyward's recent ex-girlfriend Dolores Gonzalez (Cecilia Callejo) makes a public nuisance of herself over their relationship, a drunk Heyward goes to see her, not knowing it is a setup. Dolores is being held at gunpoint by a man, so when Heyward enters her apartment, the mystery man kills Dolores and frames Heyward for the murder. The only clue is half of a dime incorporated into a piece of jewelry that the victim managed to snatch from her assailant. Guy hurries to the scene soon after and hides his client so he can catch the real killer, but both of them are nabbed by the police, tried, convicted and sentenced: Guy to prison for a year, Heyward to be executed. It is revealed to the audience that Heyward's new wife Vivian (Frances Drake) and her lover, Al Mallon (Sidney Blackmer), are behind the whole thing. She stands to inherit Heyward's millions. In addition to her lover, the unfaithful woman discovers that her husband Ned Brown (George Meeker), an actor who she thought was dead, is still alive. Brown unexpectedly arrives from Australia and begins blackmailing her. On the way to prison, Guy comes across a clue: a newspaper personal ad from "Half a Dime" asking to be contacted at a certain location. Guy jumps from the moving train into a river, taking along the bumbling policeman handcuffed to him, Sergeant Fred Koretz (Nat Pendleton). His struggle with Koretz is witnessed by noted poet Edwina Corday (Claudette Colbert), who happens to be strolling near the river. After knocking Koretz out and freeing himself from the handcuffs, he has no choice but to kidnap Edwina to prevent her from sounding the alarm. At first, she believes him to be a dangerous criminal, but she soon discovers he is telling the truth about his mission. She then insists on sticking with him, much to his annoyance, as he conveys his low opinion regarding the intelligence of women. The trail eventually leads to a small theater group run by Madame Chambers (Cecil Cunningham) in Saugerties, New York. Guy gets himself hired as an actor to figure out who knows about the half dime.