Night Club Owner McGee

Originally aired April 12, 1937, this episode of Fibber McGee & Molly finds Fibber diving into a new venture as the proprietor of the glitzy “Club McGee.” From parking snafus to dry martinis that are too dry, Fibber insists he’s running a first-class joint—even if the chef uses veal for chicken à la king and beef for chicken pie. Molly, ever skeptical, warns that the nightclub business is more racket than romance.

The evening features Harry Cool stepping in for Perry Como with “My Last Affair,” while gigolo number seven bungles a dance and Silly Watson struggles with his doorman’s whistle. Horatio K. Boomer, true to form, tries to skip out on a $472 dinner check with only an I.O.U. The real trouble comes when gangster Square Shooter Mulligan muscles in, demanding protection money. In classic McGee fashion, Fibber “gambles” the club’s fate on a loaded pair of dice—and wins by luck.

Complete with hot organ solos, slapstick chaos, and Harlow Wilcox tying in Johnson’s Glow Coat to nightclub polish, this episode sparkles with prohibition-era parody and McGee’s boundless bluster.