Born Yesterday

Born Yesterday, Garson Kanin’s American screw-ball comedy, is set against the swindling political backdrop of 1945 Washington D.C. Junk tycoon Harry Brock has come to Washington to buy himself a Senator, bringing with him his beautiful but not too bright mistress, Billie Dawn. To reduce Billie’s tendency toward social gaffes, Harry hires reporter Paul Verall to educate her about Washington, but Harry gets more than he bargained for when Paul teaches Billie about democracy and how our government is supposed to work. First produced in 1946 during the post-war flush of optimism, Born Yesterday still speaks to the American ideal that faces even greater challenges today on the slippery slope of political lobbying and questionable campaign financing.