A Day at the Races is a 1937 American comedy film, and the seventh film starring the Marx Brothers (Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx and Chico Marx), with Allan Jones, Maureen O'Sullivan and Margaret Dumont. Like their previous Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer feature A Night at the Opera, this film was a major hit.

Plot

The Standish Sanitarium, owned by Judy Standish, has fallen on hard times. Banker J.D. Morgan, who owns a nearby race track, hotel and nightclub, holds the mortgage on the sanitarium and is attempting to foreclose on it in order to convert the building into a casino. Tony, Judy's faithful employee, suggests asking financial help from the wealthy patient Mrs. Emily Upjohn, who is a hypochondriac, living at the sanitarium. After being pronounced healthy by the sanitarium's doctors, Mrs. Upjohn threatens to leave for treatment by Dr. Hugo Z. Hackenbush. Tony overhears her praise of Hackenbush, who is, unknown to her, a horse doctor. When Tony lies to Mrs. Upjohn, telling her that Hackenbush has been hired to run the Sanitarium, she is elated and informs Judy she will consider helping her financially. Tony contacts Hackenbush in Florida by telegram and when the Doctor arrives he immediately insults the Sanitarium's business manager Mr. Whitmore. Whitmore, being Morgan's stooge, is suspicious of Hackenbush's medical background.