The Stork Club (1945)

A hat-check girl at the Stork Club (Hutton) saves the life of a drowning man (Fitzgerald). A rich man, he decides to repay her by anonymously giving her a bank account, a luxury apartment and a charge account at a department store. When her boyfriend (DeFore) returns from overseas, he thinks she is a kept woman.

The failure of the original copyright holder to renew the film's copyright resulted in it falling into public domain, meaning that virtually anyone could duplicate and sell a VHS/DVD copy of the film. Therefore, many of the versions of this film available on the market are either severely (and usually badly) edited and/or of extremely poor quality, having been duped from second- or third-generation (or more) copies of the film.

The Stork Club is a 1945 American film directed by Hal Walker.
Plot summary

Judy Peabody saves an old man from drowning. He turns out to be Jerry Bates, "J.B." to his lawyer Curtis, "Pop" to Judy, who mistakenly believes the wealthy old-timer to be poor.
Pop instructs his lawyer to reward Judy with everything her heart desires, anonymously. A hat check girl at New York's popular Stork Club nightclub, Judy's dream is for her bandleader boyfriend Danny to return home from the Marines so she can sing with his band.
A letter from Curtis informs the young lady that she now has a brand new apartment, free of charge, and a line of credit at a fashionable department store, no strings attached. She promptly buys dresses and furs, without knowing the identity of her benefactor.
Pop comes to the Stork Club to keep an eye on her. She lands him a job as a busboy, but that doesn't work out, so she invites Pop to share her apartment. Danny comes home, excited to see her until he sees the apartment, the clothes and the old man. Believing her to be a "kept" woman, he falls out of love with Judy.
Billingsley is invited by Judy to hear the band. Impressed, he gives them a job at the club. Judy finally discovers that Pop is responsible for her new riches and is able to win back Danny's love.
Cast
Betty Hutton as Judy Peabody
Barry Fitzgerald as Jerry B. 'J.B.' / 'Pop' Bates
Don DeFore as Sgt. Danny Wilton
Andy Russell (singer) as Jimmy 'Jim' Jones
Robert Benchley as Tom P. Curtis
Bill Goodwin as Sherman Billingsley
Iris Adrian as Gwen
Mary Young (actress) as Mrs. Edith Bates
Charles Coleman (actor) as MacFiske
Perc Launders as Tom, Saxophone Player
Mikhail Rasumny as Mr. Coretti
Catherine Craig as Louella Parsons
Audrey Young as Jenny