In New York City, after the repeal of Prohibition, bootlegger Remy Marko, encouraged by his wife Nora, decides to go straight and sell his beer legally. Unfortunately for Remy, no one will buy his foul-tasting beer and having his three faithful cohorts, Mike, Lefty and Giuseppe, use strong-arm tactics to force sales is not a legitimate business practice. In addition, Remy must now pay taxes, so money is short when the bank calls in his half-million dollar loan. Remy decides to consider his prospects at his Saratoga Springs mansion, but before leaving, his daughter Mary unexpectedly returns from school with boyfriend troubles. Mary tells her parents that her fiancé, wealthy Chance Whitelaw, will not get a job, but Remy is pleased that the romance is faltering after he learns that the Whitelaws have been in law enforcement for generations. Later, the Markos drive to Saratoga Springs, accompanied by Remy's three pals and Donnie Reynolds, an orphan boy from his favorite charitable institution. Unknown to Remy, five gangsters have robbed Sad Sam Callahan, a racetrack bookie, and are hiding out in Remy's house. Just before Remy's group arrives, Innocence, one of the robbers, kills the other four, leaving their corpses in a bedroom. Upon arriving at the mansion, Donnie begins terrorizing the household and finds the robbers' satchel of stolen money, which he hides in a chandelier. Still undiscovered, Innocence tries to get back the satchel and escape, but Donnie repeatedly outwits him. Equally defenseless against Donnie are Remy's three pals, who, having been paid with Remy's IOUs, are surprised to learn that Donnie is the only one among them with money. Meanwhile, Chance shows up in a state trooper uniform, having joined the force to please Mary, and invites her to dine with his socialite mother. Dreaming of a blue-blooded future for Mary, Nora encourages her to go, and arranges for the Whitelaws to return with Mary to the house. Later, Remy tells Nora about the bank loan, and although his pals would happily solve the problem mobster-style, Nora begs Remy to stay legitimate. The discovery of the corpses temporarily distracts Remy from his money worries. Afraid he will be accused of the murders, Remy has the men deliver the bodies to the homes of various people whom they dislike. Later, Remy's pals learn that a reward is being offered for each bandit, dead or alive, and seeing a way to pay off the loan, they retrieve the bodies, but have no opportunity to tell Remy about the reward before Mary and the Whitelaws return from dinner. A party spontaneously erupts when many of the Markos' friends come to call, including Sad Sam, several nightclub bandmembers with their instruments, a shady commissioner and dancing girls. Remy works the crowd, hoping to find someone to help him pay off the loan, and stalls the bank officers, Clyde Post and Cal Ritter, when they show up to demand payment. Despite Nora's attempts to maintain decorum, the haughty Mrs. Whitelaw, appalled by the scene, declares that the engagement is off and tries to leave, but is pulled into a vigorous dance against her will. After being rescued by Nora, she is taken to rest upstairs, where Donnie is still eluding Innocence. When the boy throws some of the stolen money to the floor below, the crowd thinks Remy is giving out expensive party favors, except for Sad Sam, who finds one of his tickets floating down with the money and concludes that Remy has robbed him. Remy, meanwhile, gets the rest of the money from Donnie and uses it to bluff Post and Ritter into granting a loan extension. In the bedroom, Mrs. Whitelaw finds the corpses, and although Remy's men sneak them to a different hiding place before the others see them, she inadvertently stumbles onto them again. As no one else sees or acknowledges the existence of the corpses, she is again urged to rest. Meanwhile, Chance, at Sad Sam's insistence, attempts to arrest Remy for the robbery, but is interrupted by a scream from Mrs. Whitelaw, who has discovered the corpses yet again, this time hanging in a closet. Thinking quickly, Nora exclaims that Mrs. Whitelaw is being harassed by the men who stole their money and sends Remy and Chance upstairs to shoot the burglars. With the help of Remy's guiding hand, Chance shoots at the closet. Although his shots miss their marks completely, he does inadvertently hit Innocence, who is escaping out the window with the money, which he finally retrieved. Remy convinces Chance and other policemen who are called to the scene that Chance heroically killed the robbers. As a result, Chance gets a reward and a promotion, and Mary and Chance proceed with wedding plans. After being convinced to "loosen her corset," Mrs. Whitelaw agrees to help Remy. The Markos decide to adopt Donnie and it appears that Remy will remain a legitimate businessman.
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