Topper Takes a Trip

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Ranked #1,984 in Movies & TV, #56,527 overall

Topper Takes a Trip (1938)

In the first of two sequels to the original film, wealthy banker Cosmo Topper's life is once again complicated by ghosts. Topper Takes a Trip opens in divorce court, where Clara Topper has accused her husband of infidelity. Topper attempts to explain to the court that 'the other woman' is actually the ghost of the recently departed Marion Kerby. The judge is not amused, and throws the case out of court. Meanwhile, Clara's meddling friend, Mrs. Parkhurst, convinces Clara to sail to France and get a divorce.

When Marion Kerby learns of her old friend Toppy's plight, she returns to earth to help him save his marriage. In France, Marion finds that Clara is under the spell of a phony Baron who only seeks to obtain Clara's vast fortune. With the help of a ghostly canine companion, Marion does everything within her power to reunite Cosmo and Clara. Other than Cary Grant, who appears only in flashback scenes, the rest of the cast returns to reprise their roles, including Roland Young as Cosmo Topper, Constance Bennett as Marion Kerby, Billie Burke as Clara Topper, and Alan Mowbray as Wilkins the Butler. Fans of The Thin Man series will surely recognize the famous wire-hair terrier, Asta, who plays Marion's sidekick, Mr. Atlas.

Topper Takes a Trip is based on Thorne Smith's novel of the same name, though there is very little similarity between the two. In the novel, Marion and George returned together to help their friend Topper. It's easy to understand why the producers chose not to replace Cary Grant, settling instead for eight minutes of footage from the original film to fill in the gaps. For fans of silver screen comedies, Topper Takes a Trip remains a crowd pleaser.

Topper Takes a Trip (1938) 

A Few Facts Courtesy of Wikipedia

Topper Takes a Trip is a film sequel of Topper (1937). Constance Bennett, Roland Young, Billie Burke and Alan Mowbray reprised their roles from the earlier movie; only Cary Grant was missing (other than in a few shots taken from Topper).

A ghost tries to reunite a couple who she had a hand in splitting up in the prior film. It was followed by another sequel, Topper Returns (1941).

Topper Takes a Trip

Cosmo, Wilkins & Clara

Topper Takes a Trip Facts & Trivia 

Hal Roach Studios, Inc.

Topper Takes a Trip
Constance Bennett as Marion Kerby

  • Producers: Milton H. Bren and Hal Roach (Uncredited)
  • Director: Norman Z. McLeod
  • Writers: Thorne Smith (Novel) - Jack Jevne, Eddie Moran, and Corey Ford (Screenplay)
  • Release Date: January 12, 1939 (USA)
  • Genres: Comedy - Fantasy - Romance
  • Oscar Nomination for Best Effects, Special Effects: Roy Seawright (Photographic)
  • Grateful Acknowledgment: Mr. Cary Grant appears in scenes from "Topper."

Topper Takes a Trip 

Available on VHS

Topper Takes a Trip [VHS]

Amazon Price: (as of 12/17/2009)Buy Now

"Topper Takes a Trip" is a follow-up to the original "Topper." The trick photographic effects, while certainly cheesy by today's standards, were pretty amazing for their time and earned Roy Seawright an Academy Award nomination. I have this VHS in my collection and have yet to find the original black & white version on any format. This version, released by Video Treasures, is colorized; run time: 85 minutes.

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Cosmo Topper:

Cosmo and Cosmos they are pretty similar ... order and Cosmo hand in hand!

Starring Asta as Mr. Atlas

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Constance Bennett as Marion Kerby

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Topper Takes a Trip 

Original Movie Trailer (1939)

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Lensmaster KimGiancaterino has been a member since October 30 2006, has rated 8,320 lenses, favorited 4,066, and has created 291 lenses from scratch. Kim Giancaterino donates their royalties to Asante Africa Foundation. This member's top-ranked page is "Diary of a Squid Angel (2009)". See all my lenses

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Topper Takes a Trip
Producer Hal Roach brought Thorne Smith's zany characters to life in three films: Topper, Topper Takes a Trip and Topper Returns.


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