Three of a Kind (1936) Plot Summary Explained

Barbara's father, F. Thorndyke Penfield, cuts her off after she pleads with him to invest in a business venture proposed by her sweetheart Rodney Randall. Penfield refuses because he believes Randall is a fortune hunter who is only interested in Barbara for her money. In retaliation, he stops her allowance and freezes her bank account, forcing Barbara to find alternative ways to fund Randall's venture.

Foreshadowing: The opening confrontation establishes the financial desperation that drives Barbara to trade her car.

• Barbara Penfield
• F. Thorndyke Penfield
• Rodney Randall
• allowance
• bank account
• fortune hunter

While Barbara is out on a test drive with a salesman at the car yard, the con man Con Cornelius orchestrates a fraudulent sale of her vehicle. He manages to sell the car to Jerry Bassett, a Penfield Company laundry worker who has just quit after winning a best employee award and $1,000. The sale happens while Barbara is distracted during the test drive, setting off the chain of mistaken identities.

Foreshadowing: Barbara's decision to trade her expensive car for a cheaper model creates the opportunity for the fraud.

• Con Cornelius
• car fraud
• test drive
• Jerry Bassett
• car yard
• swindle

Bassett is wrongly arrested for stealing the car because he purchased the vehicle from Con Cornelius without knowing it had been fraudulently sold. When the true ownership of the car comes into question during the investigations at Royal Valley, the police assume Bassett is the thief rather than an innocent buyer. His connection to the Penfield Company and his possession of Barbara's original car make him the primary suspect.

Foreshadowing: The investigation into the fraudulent sale accelerates once all characters converge at Royal Valley.

• Jerry Bassett
• arrested
• car theft
• Police Sgt. Cogarty
• Royal Valley
• fraud investigation

Barbara uses the false name Beatrice Payne because she has been cut off financially by her father and does not want her true identity revealed while she pursues her plans with Rodney Randall at Royal Valley. She is hitchhiking to meet Randall at the resort and needs to maintain her disguise to avoid detection by her father or his associates who might try to stop her.

Foreshadowing: Barbara's false identity creates the initial confusion when she meets Bassett, who is unknowingly driving her own car.

• Barbara Penfield
• Beatrice Payne
• false name
• disguise
• Royal Valley
• hitchhiking

Penfield opposes Barbara's relationship with Randall because he believes Randall is a fortune hunter interested only in Barbara's inheritance rather than genuine affection. This belief is strong enough that Penfield refuses to invest in Randall's business venture and retaliates financially against Barbara when she continues to pursue the relationship. Penfield's presence at Royal Valley is specifically to stop any negotiations between Barbara and Randall.

Foreshadowing: Penfield's conviction about Randall's motives drives his harsh financial retaliation against Barbara.

• F. Thorndyke Penfield
• Rodney Randall
• fortune hunter
• business venture
• opposition
• inheritance

Con Cornelius is the professional con man who orchestrates the fraudulent sale of Barbara's car at the car yard. He arranges the sale while Barbara is occupied with a test drive, selling the vehicle to Jerry Bassett without Barbara's knowledge or consent. Cornelius later arrives at Royal Valley with his daughter Prudence, adding to the tangle of deceiving characters at the resort.

Foreshadowing: Cogarty's investigation identifies Cornelius as an ex-convict and one of the swindlers involved.

• Con Cornelius
• con man
• fraud
• swindler
• Prudence Cornelius
• ex-convict

Jerry Bassett quits his job at the Penfield Company after winning the best employee award and receiving a $1,000 prize. This windfall gives him the financial means to purchase a car and set out for Royal Valley holiday resort, where he encounters Barbara (posing as Beatrice Payne) hitchhiking on the road.

Foreshadowing: Bassett's sudden financial windfall and departure create the timing for him to encounter Barbara.

• Jerry Bassett
• Penfield Company
• best employee award
• $1000
• quit job
• Royal Valley

Rodney Randall marries Prudence Cornelius, the daughter of Con Cornelius, as part of the resolution of the tangled relationships at Royal Valley. Despite his previous involvement with Barbara Penfield, the marriage to Prudence occurs after the mistaken identities are sorted out and represents one of the two marriages that conclude the film's happy ending.

Foreshadowing: The convergence of all characters at Royal Valley creates opportunities for various romantic pairings to resolve.

• Rodney Randall
• Prudence Cornelius
• marriage
• wedding
• Royal Valley
• resolution

After the mistaken identities are untangled, Barbara and Bassett announce their engagement and reveal plans to manage the Penfield business together once the aging F. Thorndyke Penfield retires. This resolves not only the romantic complications but also the future of the Penfield Company, as Barbara (the daughter) and Bassett (a former employee) will become partners in running the business.

Foreshadowing: The resolution brings together the romantic and business plots that were intertwined throughout the film.

• Penfield Company
• Barbara Penfield
• Jerry Bassett
• business
• retirement
• partnership
• future

At Royal Valley, multiple characters mistake each other for being wealthy when they are not. Bassett believes Beatrice (Barbara) is genuinely wealthy, while everyone suspects others of being affluent based on false assumptions about the car and other circumstances. The arrival of Con Cornelius and his criminal background, along with Penfield's attempt to stop Barbara and Randall, creates a chaotic mix of wrong perceptions that drive the comedy.

Foreshadowing: The separate check-ins under different names and the presence of multiple deceptive characters set the stage for misunderstandings.

• mistaken identities
• Royal Valley
• confusion
• wealthy
• deception
• comedy of errors