If ever a film cried out for a remake, it’s ‘Don’t Tell My Wife.’ Though its title may lead you to think it’s a mid-60s Bob Hope vehicle with Barbara Rush as the wife, Elke Sommer as the neighbor and Tony Randall as Hope’s gay advertising agency boss, it is in fact an industrial short produced by Piper Aircraft to spread the joy of General Aviation. The plot, such as it is, involves a duplicitous couple who each learn to pilot a plane behind each other’s backs before the wily flight instructor gets the bright idea to…well, leave us not reveal the twist ending which rivals ‘The Sixth Sense’ and ‘No Way Out” in unexpected dramatic impact. The most interesting part of the movie is the compressed time frame in which they go from novices to lisenced pilots. Is it true that you used to be able to take a few lessons, solo and buy a plane in less time than it takes now to buy a car, skipping the multiple tests and checkrides? In 1965 when this film was made, a Cessna cost $6500 dollars, about the same as a new Lincoln or Cadillac which leads me to think that pretty much anything is possible in the wacky world of aviation. The real star of the film, of course, is the Piper PA-28 Cherokee, which looks nifty, spiffy and somewhat flimsy. This is not the case, though. Piper’s are sturdy little buggers, known for having long lives if well maintained. In fact, this particular Piper–November 9050 Whisky–is still in action. It’s registered to a gentleman in Fulton, MO. I have no idea if he’s aware of his plane’s glamorous past. I also called the phone number of the company that sold the airplanes in Illinois when the plane was new (it appears on the opening credits). Unfortunately, the recorded voice of a nice lady told me that my call to 312-741-5182 could not be completed as dialed. Clearly I’m suffering from a tremendous case of work avoidance. Help…