Little Giant (1946) Plot Summary Explained

Hazel Temple, Morrison's secret wife, suggested hiring Benny to prevent an accounting scandal. The company had been cooking the books, and firing Benny after the mix-up would have raised questions that could expose their financial misconduct. Hiring him was a way to keep the scandal quiet.

Foreshadowing: The earlier mention of the company cooking the books hints at why they would go to such lengths to cover up the mistake.

• hiring scandal
• accounting fraud
• Hercules Vacuum
• Eddie Morrison

Benny was fired because the company was continuing to hide their accounting fraud. Keeping Benny employed as a salesman would have created more opportunities for the mix-up to be discovered, potentially exposing the cooking of the books. Clarence stepped in and transferred him to the Stockton branch instead.

Foreshadowing: The initial interview chaos established that the company had secrets to protect.

• firing
• accounting scandal
• Hercules company
• job termination

Benny's coworkers at the Stockton branch played a practical joke by convincing him he could read minds. The prank gave Benny false confidence, which made him more persuasive and successful as a salesman. His newfound belief in himself inadvertently boosted his actual sales performance, leading to his Salesman of the Year award.

Foreshadowing: The prank was set up by his coworkers simply to amuse themselves at his expense.

• mind reading prank
• Stockton branch
• confidence
• Salesman of the Year

Hazel took Benny to her apartment to extract more information about his so-called mind-reading abilities. When Benny became ill after smoking a cigar, Hazel tried to give him a sedative but accidentally took it herself, falling asleep. This created the awkward situation where Morrison came home and found them both asleep together.

Foreshadowing: Hazel's interest in Benny's abilities suggested she was trying to gather information for her husband.

• sedative
• Hazel Temple
• apartment
• cigar
• Morrison

At the awards ceremony, Benny learned that the mind-reading ability was a complete sham, a prank played by his coworkers. He also overheard Morrison speaking unkindly about him, confirming that people had been laughing at him rather than respecting his talents. This double revelation convinced him to leave the company.

Foreshadowing: The tension between Benny and Morrison had been building throughout his time in Los Angeles.

• awards ceremony
• mind reading truth
• Morrison betrayal
• discovery

Benny decided to return to Cucamonga after discovering two truths: the mind-reading was a joke, and Morrison had been speaking badly about him. Feeling betrayed and disillusioned with the corporate world in Los Angeles, he chose to go home where his mother and girlfriend Martha were waiting.

Foreshadowing: Benny's earlier scenes showed his strong connection to his mother and hometown.

• Cucamonga
• return home
• disappointment
• mother Ma Miller
• Martha Hill

After Benny returned to Cucamonga, it was revealed that Eddie Morrison had been fired from Hercules. Tom Chandler, who ran the Stockton branch, was promoted to replace Morrison. Benny was then named the new sales manager for the Cucamonga district, marking his rise from naive newcomer to leadership position.

Foreshadowing: Bennett's earlier success as Salesman of the Year had established his potential.

• promotion
• sales manager
• Cucamonga
• Tom Chandler
• Morrison fired

Eddie Morrison was fired from the Hercules Vacuum Cleaner Company. His secret marriage to Hazel was revealed, his accounting fraud was exposed, and he lost his position as sales manager. Tom Chandler took over his role, and Benny was promoted to lead the Cucamonga district.

Foreshadowing: Morrison's secret bank account and dishonest behavior had been building negative consequences throughout the story.

• Eddie Morrison fired
• consequences
• company leadership
• accounting scandal