Nothing But the Truth (1929)

This second of three film versions of the durable James Montgomery stage farce Nothing But the Truth was also the first "talkie" version. Richard Dix stars as Robert Bennett, a rising young stockbroker who bets $10,000 that he can go 24 hours without telling a fib. Bennett's prospective father-in-law E.M. Burke (Berton Churchill) stands to lose big-time if our hero wins, thus Burke does everything he can to throw Bennett into embarrassing situations where the truth is not necessarily the best weapon. The day is saved when Burke's scheme to trick Bennett into losing the wager backfires-- but Bennett still has to explain his boorish behavior during the past 24 hours to all the people he's offended. Nothing but the Truth was memorably remade in 1941 with Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard, and in 1997 the basic premise was exhumed for the hilarious Jim Carrey vehicle Liar Liar. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi