God’s Gift to Women 1931

Toto Duryea is a wealthy French playboy who is irresistible to women, but is in love with none of them. According to Mons. Rancour, every woman is like a new dish to be tasted.

every woman is like a new dish to be tasted.

When he meets American Diane Churchill, he is instantly smitten, yet he struggles to prove to her and her father that his feelings are real. He finally convinces Diane that he is sincere, but Mr. Churchill lays down a strict test: Toto must abandon his life of flirtation and carousing and stay away from Diane for six months to prove he has reformed. The father also insists that Toto undergo a medical examination, setting the stage for a dramatic reveal.

Dr. Louis Dumont, Dr. Louis Dumont, delivers troubling news: Toto’s heart is so weak that even the thrill of a kiss could be fatal. Toto retreats to his bed, while three of his girlfriends—Fifi, Florine, and Dagmar—vow to nurse him back to health. Their well-intentioned care becomes a comic and chaotic spectacle as they converge on Toto’s room and discover each other, sparking a three-way catfight that blends humor with jealousy and charm.

Amid the uproar, an outraged husband arrives with violence in mind. Dr. Dumont intervenes and reveals Toto’s supposed peril, sending the intruders scurrying away. Diane then appears, and before she leaves for America with her father, she insists on spending an hour of passion with Toto. Unable to resist, he kisses her, and for a moment the fragile prognosis seems to be overturned.

The stunned Toto then confronts Dr. Dumont, questioning the accuracy of the diagnosis. It’s at this turning point that Mr. Churchill explains the entire ruse: Dumont had faked the medical verdict as a test of Toto’s love, testing whether his devotion to Diane could exceed life itself. Faced with the truth, Toto is moved and reassured by the breadth of his feelings for Diane.

With the test resolved, Diane Churchill returns to Toto, and the couple’s future is finally cleared for marriage. Mr. Churchill erases the doubts that nearly shattered the relationship, and Toto earns the father’s blessing to wed Diane. The story closes on a note of tempered wit and renewed commitment, underscoring that love, when proven beyond pretense, can endure even the most theatrical of challenges.