When shipbuilder Sam Griggs (Frank Morgan) dies suddenly after suffering a coronary, he's brought to heaven by his late father, Ben (Keenan Wynn), who had died as a young man in a bar fight. There, Sam is given the chance to return to earth to straighten out his financial affairs. Most pressing among them is intervening before his former friend, Tom Carter (Cecil Kellaway), makes off with his life's savings, leaving his poor widow (Audrey Totter) bankrupt.