Jimmy Kane is the star of a circus high-diving act. His wife, Betty, is always there to encourage him. But when the carnival closes, Betty is forced to get a job as a nightclub singer to support her now-destitute husband. The girl's good looks attracts the advances of John Hammond, a womanizing playboy. After catching the two of them in an embrace, Jimmy goes mad with jealousy. He concocts a risky stunt to get back his old job...and his wife. But Jimmy is not the man he once was, and his biggest stunt may also be his last...
A long-lost melodrama from short-lived studio Tower Productions, Big Time or Bust is at its most "pre-Code" in the scenes set at the carnival. Surprises include sideshow performers that rival Freaks for shock value, and a beauty contest with models wearing incredibly revealing bathing suits for 1933. Workhouse director Sam Newfield's career dated back to the silent era. The Terror of Tiny Town (1938), The Mad Monster (1942) and Lost Continent (1951) are just three of the over 250 features he made. Leading man Regis Toomey was no slouch either, appearing in over 180 motion pictures, including They Died With Their Boots On (1941), The Big Sleep (1946) and Mighty Joe Young (1949). Hs romantic rival in Big Time or Bust, Walter Byron, had starred opposite Gloria Swanson in Queen Kelly (1929). Supporting player Edwin Maxwell is instantly recognizable for his parts in Oscar-winning films such as All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), Grand Hotel (1932), The Great Ziegfeld (1936) and You Can't Take It With You (1938). He had a rare starring role that same year in Night of Terror (1933), a Columbia horror picture with Bela Lugosi.