Editing Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (section)

==Plot==
Longfellow Deeds is the co-owner of a tallow works, part-time greeting card poet, and tuba-playing inhabitant of the hamlet of Mandrake Falls, [[Vermont]]. During the [[Great Depression]] he inherits 20 million dollars from his uncle, Martin Semple. Semple's scheming attorney, John Cedar, locates Deeds and brings him to [[New York City]]. Cedar gives his cynical troubleshooter, ex-newspaperman Cornelius Cobb, the task of keeping reporters away from Deeds.

Cobb is outfoxed by star reporter Louise "Babe" Bennett, who appeals to Deeds' romantic fantasy of rescuing a damsel in distress by masquerading as a poor worker named Mary Dawson. She pretends to faint from exhaustion after "walking all day to find a job" and worms her way into his confidence. Bennett proceeds to write a series of enormously popular newspaper articles on Longfellow, portraying him as a madcap [[yokel]] who has suddenly inherited riches, giving him the nickname "Cinderella Man".

Cedar tries to get Deeds' [[power of attorney]] in order to keep his own financial misdeeds secret. Deeds, however, proves to be a shrewd judge of character, easily fending off Cedar and other greedy opportunists. He wins Cobb's wholehearted respect and eventually Babe's love, falling for her himself and proposing in a poem. She quits her job in shame, but before she can tell Deeds the truth about herself, Cobb finds out and tells Deeds. Deeds is left heartbroken and decides to return to Mandrake Falls.

After he has packed and is about to leave, a dispossessed farmer stomps into his mansion and threatens him with a gun. He expresses his scorn for the seemingly heartless, ultra-rich man, who feeds doughnuts to horses but will not lift a finger to help the multitudes of desperate poor. After the intruder comes to his senses, Deeds realizes that he can put his troublesome fortune to good use. He decides to provide 2,000 fully equipped {{convert|10|acre|adj=on|0|abbr=off|lk=on}} farms free to homeless families if they will work the land for three years.

Cedar joins forces with Deeds' only other relative, Semple, and his shrewish wife, in an attempt to have Deeds declared [[Competence (law)|mentally incompetent]]. A sanity hearing is scheduled to determine who should control the fortune. During the hearing, Cedar calls an expert who diagnoses Deeds with [[bipolar disorder|manic depression]] based on Babe's articles and witnesses to his recent behavior. As he has since been taken into custody, Deeds continues to refuse to speak.

Babe speaks up passionately on his behalf, blaming herself for what she did to him. When he realizes that she truly loves him, he begins speaking, systematically punching holes in Cedar's case and then punching Cedar in the face. The judge declares him to be not only sane, but "the sanest man who ever walked into this courtroom." Victorious, Deeds and Babe embrace and kiss, Deeds sweeping her up into his arms and carrying her off.