Cyril Ritchard played Monty Gravenhurst; he and Alice Pearce were the spongers of the title, imposing on the good graces of a kind hearted retired man (Ernest Truex). When Truex's son Murray Hamilton comes to NY and learns these people have been living with his father for 10 months, he does everything he can to oust them, finally resorting to consulting with an elderly relative who keeps tabs on the family tree. When he discovers the spongers are not second cousins, which they claimed, Truex finally tosses them out, but then a bad storm happens, and he worries about them. Luckily, the Gravenhursts have made it no farther than the canopy in front of the building, before Cyril's character pretends to collapse, and Truex gladly welcomes them back, glad of the company and to have someone to look after. A good lesson in not interfering with the lives of your family. This showed up on the Decades channel on September 15, 2017. The best part of this may have been the little dance Cyril and Alice Pearce did, unfortunately behind a scrim, so seen only in silhouette.
Review of The Spongers
