Affair in Reno

Bill Carter, a public relations man hired by millionaire J. B. Del Monte to prevent his fickle daughter Gloria from marrying fortune hunter Tony Lamarr, flies from New York to Reno where Gloria is currently awaiting her divorce so that she can wed Lamarr. J. B. has instructed Bill to try to reason with Gloria before paying Lamarr the $100,000 he has demanded for calling off the wedding, and for safekeeping, Bill sews the cash into the shoulder pads of his suit jacket. Once the plane lands, Bill hails a taxi, after which a man climbs into the cab, pulls a gun and orders Bill to hand over the cash. When Bill refuses, the taxi driver, who is in league with the gunman, drives into an alley and tries to seize Bill's briefcase. Bill hurls the case into a fire alarm, setting off a siren that frightens away the thieves. Upon learning of the attempted robbery, J. B. decides to send a bodyguard to protect Bill. The next morning, Bill is surprised when a woman knocks on the door of his hotel room and introduces herself as Nora Ballard, his new bodyguard. Skeptical about the ability of a female bodyguard, Bill leaves Nora behind when he goes to see Gloria's lawyer, H. L. Denham, to inquire where he can find Gloria. Demurring that it would be unethical to reveal the location of a client, Denham offers to have Gloria contact Bill. As Bill waits for the elevator outside Denham's office, he is threatened by the two thugs from the taxicab. Once the elevator arrives, the door opens, revealing Nora, who is posing as the elevator operator. When they reach the ground floor, the thugs force Bill to leave with them. Running after them, Nora calls to a police officer, sending the thugs fleeing. Nora then informs Bill that Denham will not be very helpful because he is employed by Lamarr. Stating that Gloria will probably be at Lamarr's casino, named the Flower Club, that night, Nora offers to take Bill there. When Gloria enters the club, Nora follows her into the ladies' lounge where, posing as a reporter, she tells Gloria that she has been elected as "one of the three loveliest young ladies in America." When Nora asks to do a story about her, Gloria eagerly gives her the name of the hotel at which she is staying. Meanwhile, Lamarr introduces himself to Bill, and when Bill accuses him of hiring the thugs who tried to rob him, Lamarr throws him out of the club. Nora then drives Bill to Gloria's hotel, and using a set of stolen passkeys, they break into her room to await her return. As soon as Gloria arrives, Bill informs her of Lamarr's extortion attempt. Just then, Lamarr enters the room and claims that Gloria's father offered him money to leave her, but he refused. The next morning while Nora is showering, Gloria phones and invites Bill for a drive. As they reach the outskirts of town, the two thugs pull up in their car. When Bill states that the men work for Lamarr, Gloria contends that she, not Lamarr, hired the men to put Bill on a plane back to New York, then leaves Bill behind in the company of the thugs. After Gloria is out of sight, the thugs demand the money and, when Bill refuses, proceed to beat him up. In the fray, they tug at his jacket, causing the seams to rip, exposing the cash. Knocking Bill out, the thugs take the jacket and drive off. Upon reviving, Bill begins to hitchhike back to town and is picked up by Nora, who smugly informs him that as he was sleeping the night before, she removed the cash and replaced it with bundles of one dollar bills wrapped in a hundred dollar bill, worth a total of $1,000. Upon returning to their hotel, they find Lamarr waiting there, threatening to marry Gloria unless Bill turns over the money. He then instructs Bill to go to the club at 9 p.m. and lose all the cash at the roulette table. Warning Bill that Lamarr will kill him once he gets what he wants, Nora returns the money to him and quits in disgust. As Bill steadily loses at the roulette table that night, Nora goes to see Gloria and informs her that the thugs beat up Bill rather than taking him to the airport as promised. Explaining that Lamarr ordered Bill to lose $99,000 at the roulette table, Nora convinces Gloria to accompany her to the club to see for herself. They arrive as Bill is down to his last $1,000, prompting Lamarr to tell Gloria that he has changed his mind and will not be marrying her. When Bill wins the final spin of the wheel, Gloria insists that they continue playing until they have won back the entire sum. Once they have reclaimed Bill's losses, Bill, Gloria and Nora go to Lamarr's office to cash in their chips. Lamarr opens his safe door and is about to reach for his revolver when Nora slams the door on his hand, then tosses him over her shoulder, rendering him unconscious. Stuffing the cash into Gloria's bag, they speed off with the now-revived Lamarr and his thugs in pursuit. Gloria directs Bill to drive along a narrow, winding road, and when the thug driving Lamarr's car swerves to avoid some parked cars, he loses control of the vehicle, sending it plunging into the lake. Upon reaching the airport, Bill is stopped for speeding and given a ticket. Gloria hurriedly jumps out of the car to board a plane home, leaving behind her cash-filled bag. Because it is Friday night, Nora insists on protecting Bill and the money for the weekend, and they kiss.