The Crystal Ball (film)

The Crystal Ball is a 1943 film directed by Elliott Nugent. It stars Ray Milland and Paulette Goddard.^[1]

Plot

A maid, in cahoots with Madame Zenobia (Gladys George), a fake psychic, fools Jo Ainsly (Virginia Field) into believing Zenobia to be a gifted fortune teller.

Jo helps a young beauty queen, Toni Gerard (Paulette Goddard), find a job with Pop Tibbots (Cecil Kellaway) in an arcade. Toni ends up conspiring with Madame Zenobia to fool Jo's handsome attorney, Brad Cavanaugh (Ray Milland), into buying a piece of land.

The plan backfires when the land purchase gets Brad in trouble with the government. Toni, who has fallen for Brad, tries to persuade Zenobia to reveal her deceit, but Zenobia locks her in a closet and flees. Toni has to convince Brad that her love for him is real.

The storyline is harmless froth but the film is made watchable, and at times, enjoyable, by engaging performances by the excellent cast, not only the lead actors but also the supporting cast led by William Bendix, as Ray Milland's valet. The film has some amusing scenes and, for some unexplained reason, has wealthy lawyer Milland driving around in an odd micro car.

Cast

• Ray Milland as Brad Cavanaugh
• Paulette Goddard as Toni Gerard
• Gladys George as Madame Zenobia
• Virginia Field as Jo Ainsly
• Cecil Kellaway as Pop Tibbots
• William Bendix as Biff Carter

References

External links

• The Crystal Ball at the Internet Movie Database
• The Crystal Ball at the American Film Institute Catalog
• The Crystal Ball is available for free download at the Internet Archive
• The Crystal Ball at AllMovie
• The Crystal Ball at the TCM Movie Database