Here’s a most enjoyable pre-code item that I’d never heard of called ‘Air Hostess’ (1933), starring Evalyn Knapp and James Murray. Knapp was a popular actress of the day with two deficits; she couldn’t act, and she didn’t know how to spell her first name. But the real stars of the 67 minute flicker are a series of wonderful old aircraft, with an especially detailed look at the Ford Tri-Motor, America’s first passenger plane. There’s even an interior scene set in the cabin that looks to me like the real thing and not an on-set recreation. (The camera is tightly packed facing the back and no other angles are made in the scene). Aside from the flying scenes, the picture’s worth a scrub-through for another reason; Thelma Todd plays the wealthy femme fatale and holy Jesus is she hot. She doesn’t make her first appearence until thirty-one minutes in. At thirty-eight minutes she wears a black sleeveless/backless number that truly defines pre-code costuming. The actual climax of the film–a bi-plane chasing a train, trying to head it off before it attempts to cross a bridge that’s unsafe–features some very impressive stunt photography. All in all, a worthy way to kill half-an-hour–unless you’re truly a pre-code junkie in which case you’ll sit through the Knapp/Murray scenes–a feat I was unable to accomplish.