
Rubber-legged comedian Leon Errol made his talkie starring bow in Paramount's Only Saps Work. Based on a play by Owen Davis Sr., the film casts Errol as James Wilson, a kleptomaniac who starts with picking pockets and ends up robbing a bank. Wilson's friend Lawrence Payne (Richard Arlen) inadvertently aids our hero during one of his heists, ending up in deep doo-doo with the law. Before Wilson is able to extricate Payne from his dilemma for the sake of heroine Barbara Tanner (Mary Brian), he pauses long enough to pose as a private eye -- and even gives bellboy Oscar (Stu Erwin) tips on how to spot a crook! If only all of Leon Errol's feature films had been as consistently hilarious as Only Saps Work.
Cast

Leon Errol
James Wilson

Richard Arlen
Larry Payne

Mary Brian
Barbara Tanner

Stuart Erwin
Oscar

Anderson Lawler
Horace Baldwin

Charley Grapewin
Simeon Tanner

Clarence Burton
Sergeant Burns (uncredited)

Nora Cecil
Mrs. Partridge (uncredited)

George Chandler
Elevator Operator (uncredited)

G. Pat Collins
Rafferty (uncredited)

Clifford Dempsey
Detective Smith (uncredited)

Charles Giblyn
Dr. Jasper (uncredited)

Charlie Hall
Waiter (uncredited)

George Irving
Dr. White (uncredited)

Fred Kelsey
Murphy (uncredited)

Jack Richardson
Chef (uncredited)
Crew
Cyril Gardner
Director

Edwin H. Knopf
Director
Sam Mintz
Adaptation, Screenplay
Percy Heath
Adaptation, Screenplay

Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Adaptation, Screenplay

Edward Dmytryk
Editor
Rex Wimpy
Director of Photography
Earl S. Hayman
Sound Engineer, Sound
Leo Reisman
Music Director
Ballard MacDonald
Songs
Dave Dreyer
Songs

Adolph Zukor
Presenter

Owen Davis
Theatre Play
Recommendations
view all
Bill Burr Presents: Friends Who Kill

Dr Terror's House of Horrors

Police Academy: Mission to Moscow

Je Tu Il Elle

Hellraiser: Revelations

Friday the 13th Part III

The Marriage of Maria Braun

Highlander II: The Quickening

Hellraiser: Hellworld

Destroy All Monsters

Two Evil Eyes

Beethoven's 5th

Lucky Girl

Skypemare

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan

Ebirah, Horror of the Deep

The 2019 Rose Parade with Cord & Tish

Drunken Angel

Black Narcissus

Bill Cunningham New York