William Clemens directed Accidents Will Happen, a American drama written by George Bricker and Anthony Coldeway, starring Ronald Reagan, Gloria Blondell, Dick Purcell, Sheila Bromle.
Eric Gregg (Reagan) is an insurance investigator married to avaricious wife Nona (Bromley). After solving a case, he is promised a raise and Nona buys a fur coat on credit. However, she misses a payment and concocts a fraud with the help of Thurston, the loan company’s boss.
Eric loses his job after a rival named Dawson, exposes the fraud. As a result, Eric and a cigarette girl, Patricia Carmody, begin pulling insurance scams of their own.
Nona marries Thurston, but leaves him. When the law comes after them, it turns out Eric and Patricia have been working undercover, so Nona and Thurston go off to jail while Eric gets back his old job, plus a raise.
A modest, B-level melodrama that places the tale of a materialistic woman and a marriage on the rocks against the setting of the Depression, conveying a moral message that fit the zeitgeist of the times.
Reagan renders a likable performance as a young insurance adjustor who is slowly working his way up the ladder but not fast enough for his high priced wife
Cast
Ronald Reagan as Eric Gregg
Gloria Blondell as Patricia Carmody
Dick Purcell as Jim Faber
Sheila Bromley as Nona Gregg
Addison Richards as Blair Thurston
Hugh O’Connell as John Oldham
Janet Shaw as Mary Tarlton
Elliott Sullivan as Burley Thorne