Review of Is My Face Red?

And he is mad when another reporter scoops him over the "almost" obituary! Ricardo Cortes is the aggressively friendly reporter who goes for scandal wherever he can get it. Like Warner Brothers' brilliant "Five Star Final", this is a gossip rag (movies with newspaper surroundings of this time usually were, with the possible exception of "The Front Page" were all National Inquirer type papers), and all of the reporters go for the jugular. Yes, Cortez can be sentimental (the pitch for support for a beloved elderly musical comedy star is quite touching), but for the most part, he's a betrayer, dropping his long-time mistress (Helen Twelvetrees) for a society girl (Jill Esmond) who simply uses him for her own amusement before dropping him. When Cortez gets wind of a mob-style hit, he risks his own life for the story. Future Charlie Chan Sidney Toler is the Italian mobster he goes after which leads into a dramatic conclusion.

This is basically a plethora of little stories under one big tent, and the dialog is fast, furious and filled with wonderful pre-code conversation. There are some great exchanged between Cortez and his world-weary secretary, and a great punishment for the smug Cortez by socialite Esmond. Zasu Pitts gets some great moments as a switchboard operator, but she only talks to her machine rather than interacting with the other characters. The title is uses effectively throughout to describe the anger and embarrassment of Cortez's victims, showing how they feel when they are mentioned in his column, and in the wonderful denouncement, tables are turned.