The Screwball Masterpiece That Mocked the Ultra-Rich | My Man Godfrey

What happens when a spoiled heiress finds a "forgotten man" at the city dump and hires him as the family butler? In 1936, it made for one of the sharpest, funniest, and most quietly radical comedies of the Depression era. This week, classic film expert Josh Rozett joins Ben to dig into MY MAN GODFREY (1936), Gregory La Cava's screwball classic starring William Powell as the mysterious Godfrey and Carole Lombard, the reigning queen of screwball, as the madcap Irene who can't stop meddling in his life. We get into what makes the film tick, why it still stings as class satire nearly a century later, and how a movie this funny smuggled in such a pointed message about wealth and inequality. In the cup: Stumptown Ethiopia, brewed in the moka pot, the humble, everyman's coffee maker that makes a bold, honest cup with no fuss and no frills. A fitting brew for a film about what's really hiding under the surface. **Dig deeper:** My Man Godfrey at the Criterion Collection: https://www.criterion.com/films/653-my-man-godfrey "My Man Godfrey: The Right Kind of People" (Criterion essay): https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/5928-my-man-godfrey-the-right-kind-of-people Bialetti Moka Express (Seattle Coffee Gear): https://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/products/bialetti-moka-express-stovetop-espresso-maker The History of the Moka Pot (Sunday Baker): https://sundaybaker.co/the-history-of-the-moka-pot/ **Support the show:** Website: reelbeans.com Listen: reelbeans.com/podcast Merch: reelbeans.com/merch Support Reel Beans: reelbeans.com/support Instagram: @reel\_beans If you enjoy the show, follow, rate, and share it with a fellow film-and-coffee lover. It helps more than you'd think. Available now on all podcast platforms, or visit reelbeans.com/podcast. Sip. Watch. Repeat.