You'll Never Get Rich

You'll Never Get Rich is a 1941 American musical comedy film with a wartime theme directed by Sidney Lanfield and starring Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth, with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The title stems from an old Army song which includes lyrics "You'll never get rich / By digging a ditch / You're in the Army now!" This was Hayworth's first starring role in a big budgeted film from her home studio Columbia Pictures. While the film was in production, Life magazine put her on its cover, and featured inside a photo of Hayworth kneeling on a bed in a nightgown, which soon became one of the most widely distributed pin-ups of all time. Hayworth cooperated enthusiastically with Astaire's intense rehearsal habits, and was later to remark: "I guess the only jewels in my life are the pictures I made with Fred Astaire." The picture was very successful at the box office, turning Hayworth into a major star, and provided a welcome boost to Astaire, who felt his career had flagged since he had parted ways with Ginger Rogers. One of the film's songs, "Since I Kissed My Baby Goodbye", was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Plot Theater owner and womanizer Martin Cortland (Robert Benchley) asks for the help of his choreography manager Robert Curtis (Fred Astaire) to impress beautiful head-strong dancer Sheila (Rita Hayworth) in his classes. Robert is impressed by Sheila's attitude, which one of the dancers, Margo, finds remarkable as Robert is not usually impressed by his dancers so easily. Sheila goes on to visit Martin at his office, where he presents her with a diamond bracelet, which was originally for Martin's wife, for whom Martin bought a back-scratcher for instead. Sheila thanks Mr. Cortland, but leaves the bracelet in the bag. When Mrs. Cortland arrives, she finds the bracelet with a note for Sheila, and accuses her husband of cheating on her. Martin once again asks for Robert's help to pretend he and Sheila are dating and that the bracelet was a present from him to her.