Shy bank clerk Norman B. Good comes into a big inheritance and uses it to realise his ambition to be a theatre impresario. Falling for chorus girl April Dawne, he invests most of his money in an expensive show designed to make her a star. When the production is a disaster, Norman takes to the stage in a desperate bid to improve the play by playing the lead. His monocle and toothy grin win him raves as a comic genius (despite the fact that he was playing the role straight), and the show becomes a hit as a comedy.