Albert Sordi is the son who travels to America to visit his father in New York. The two are to be reunited for the first time in 30 years on a television program. His father (Vittorio De Sica) takes advantage of the fabulous prizes offered by the show in hopes of paying off his gambling debts. The faithful son has quit his job as a gas-station attendant outside Rome to visit his opportunistic father, who uses his son to collect the gifts. The father talks his son into laying down a bet at the Derby while father travels to Mississippi in his newly won luxury sedan. Instead of sharing in his father's winnings, the son once again ends up pumping gas in a service station while the police go after the felonious father. Sordi also produced and wrote this effort.