My Man Godfrey (1936) is about a bum, a "forgotten man" who becomes a butler for a wildly rich and stir-crazy household. The film still serves as a benchmark for screwball comedies as well as a social commentary on the impact of The Great Depression on America. The real-life divorced couple of Carole Lombard and William Powell made for great chemistry, while the supporting cast was filled with wonderful character actors who became fixtures in other '30s and '40s comedies: Eugene Pallette, the bullfrog-voiced, long-suffering paterfamilias, Alice Brady as his scatterbrained wife, Gail Patrick as Lombard's scheming sister and the hilariously bug-eyed Mischa Auer, who found his stride as the pouty "mascot" of the household (his imitation of a gorilla is one of the film's comic highpoints). My Man Godfrey became a runaway hit, earning huge profits and six Oscar nominations, although it surprisingly didn't win in any category. Nevertheless, it confirmed William Powell's status as a leading man (he followed this with Libeled Lady [1936] starring Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow) and director Gregory La Cava subsequently made the popular backstage comedy Stage Door (1937). In the part of the ditzy heiress, Carole Lombard finally revealed her full potential as a comedienne and actress. She also won a Best Actress nomination for her performance. In addition, My Man Godfrey garnered nominations for Best Actor (Powell), Best Supporting Actor (Mischa Auer), Best Supporting Actress (Alice Brady), Best Director and Best Screenplay. In 1957, Universal-International remade My Man Godfrey with June Allyson and David Niven in the lead roles but it was a pale imitation of the original film.