Taxi Tangle was made about a year before Jack Benny would begin his historic run as one of radio's biggest stars. Of the six or so characters in this short, every one of them is played to perfection. Jack's lead as an arrogant smooth talker makes one wonder why his film career did not go farther than it did. Instead, fate put Jack Benny in radio where he became its biggest star.
The jokes begin with Bill, the driver of Jack's cab, arguing with a police officer at a traffic light. There is a great turnaround in the dialog that makes the interchange pay off. From there we see Jack seduce the young lady in the cab next to his while traffic is stuck. An entire romance with a beginning, middle, and end is played out for the audience. The absurdity of the story and irony at the end are what makes this short sketch memorable.
