While on his way to Tangier to purchase a microfilm containing important war secrets, foreign spy Eric Augustine (Bob Hope) is wounded and captured by the authorities. Burlesque comedian Peanuts White (Also, Bob Hope); a dead ringer for Augustine is recruited by the government to take over Augustine’s mission. He’s briefed in the role of the suave and romantic Augustine, dressed to look exactly like him and is thrust into the world of espionage and international intrigue. In Tangiers, he meets Lily Dalbray (Hedy Lamarr), Augustine’s sweetheart, a beautiful spy working with Karl Brubaker (Francis L. Sullivan) mastermind of the spy ring. All of Bob Hope’s “My Favorite” films (My Favorite Blonde, My Favorite Brunette, My Favorite Spy) were parodies of classic genre films. Directed by Norman Z. McLeod (Topper, Secret Life of Walter Mitty).

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In the comedy My Favorite Spy (1951), Bob Hope plays a dual role as a third-rate comic named Peanuts and an international spy named Eric Augustine. When federal agents discover Peanuts' resemblance to Augustine, they convince him to go to Europe and pose as the spy in order to retrieve some valuable microfilm. Hedy Lamarr co-stars as Augustine's girlfriend, and comic hijinks ensue.

Though she had recently scored a big hit in Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah (1949), Lamarr was at the beginning of a career decline from which she would not recover. She was still gorgeous, and perhaps, she thought, Hope's star wattage would rub off a little. In her ghost-written "autobiography" Ecstasy and Me, Hope is presented as quite aggressively wooing her to play the role, showering her with gifts and attention. Lamarr was worried about being too inexperienced in comedy to play opposite him, but Hope reassured her, "No one's going to laugh at you. You play it straight. You're perfect for the part."

Lamarr was also, at this point, anxious about the direction of her career and her personal life; she wanted another husband (she'd already married and divorced three times). As she is quoted, "I was beginning to get tired. Really physically tired. The emotional strain, plus the hours and the pressures, were taking their toll. I still looked good because I had the bone structure, especially facial; but I had to confess I wasn't a kid anymore. My ambitions were as strong as ever, but the strength to push them wasn't.

Excerpt from TCM located HERE