Character Relationship Map: Everybody's Doing It

Characters

• Bruce Keene (played by Preston Foster) — protagonist

  Bruce Keene works in the advertising department of Beyers and Company, where his heavy drinking interferes with his work. With his fiancée Penny Wilton, he develops a cereal-box pictogram contest that...

• Penny Wilton (played by Sally Eilers) — supporting

  Penny Wilton works in the advertising department of Beyers and Company and is engaged to Bruce Keene. She shares his idea for a cereal-box pictogram contest and, worried when his drinking threatens hi...

• Willy Beyers (played by William Brisbane) — supporting

  Willy Beyers is the president of Beyers and Company, which produces cereal. When Bruce Keene and Penny Wilton propose boosting sales with a 30-week pictogram contest printed on cereal boxes, Willy agr...

• Steve Devers (played by Richard Lane) — supporting

  Steve Devers is a gangster who wants to manipulate the cereal-box contest to win its $100,000 prize. Softy Blane works for him and brings the kidnapped Bruce Keene to his hideout after double-crossing...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Penny Wilton → Willy Beyers (Professional Coworker) — They are connected through the company's advertising operation.

  Penny works in Beyers and Company's advertising department, and Willy Beyers approves the contest concept developed by the advertising staff.

• Bruce Keene → Willy Beyers (Professional Employee) — Bruce is part of Willy's company and contributes to its advertising campaign.

  Bruce works in Beyers and Company's advertising department, while Willy Beyers is the company president.

• Bruce Keene → Penny Wilton (Romantic Fiancé) — Their engagement and eventual marriage form the central personal relationship.

  The plot identifies Penny Wilton as Bruce Keene's fiancée, and they are reunited and married after his rescue.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Steve Devers → Willy Beyers (Conflict Contest Manipulator) — Steve's criminal objective threatens Willy's commercial contest.

  Steve Devers takes an interest in manipulating the cereal contest in order to win its $100,000 prize, which belongs to the contest launched by Willy's...

• Steve Devers → Penny Wilton (Conflict Adversary) — Steve's criminal operation places Penny in opposition to him.

  The kidnapping arranged by Penny is redirected into a real kidnapping connected to Steve's hideout, forcing Penny to trace and confront the scheme.

• Steve Devers → Bruce Keene (Conflict Kidnapper) — Steve becomes the principal human threat to Bruce.

  Steve Devers takes an interest in manipulating the contest, and Bruce is kidnapped and taken to Devers' hideout.

Story Analysis

A troubled advertising artist, a determined fiancée, and a criminal scheme become entangled through a highly successful cereal contest.

Plot Progression

1. A Contest Takes Shape — Bruce and Penny work in advertising and develop a cereal-box pictogram contest. Willy approves the idea, and the company launches it with a $100,000 prize.
2. Success And Strain — The contest becomes very successful, but Bruce grows tired of producing pictograms near its end. His heavy drinking resumes and threatens his work and future.
3. A Rescue Plan Unravels — Penny arranges a false kidnapping to make Bruce finish the pictograms in the countryside. The plan is transformed into a genuine kidnapping connected to Steve Devers.
4. Messages From Captivity — Bruce is held at Devers' hideout but uses pictograms to communicate his situation. The messages reach Beyers, allowing Penny to understand that he needs help.
5. The Hideout Confrontation — Penny traces Bruce's clues and leads the police to the hideout. A shootout ends with Bruce's rescue, followed by his promise to reform and his marriage to Penny.