Dozens of star and character-actor cameos and a message about the Variety Club (a show-business charity) are woven into a framework about two hopeful young ladies who come to Hollywood, exchange identities, and cause comic confusion (with slapstick interludes) throughout the Paramount studio.

A trio of hunters in the Louisiana bayous capture a monster called the Swamp Thing. They take it to New Orleans where (naturally) they display it in a strip joint. When the monster's favorite stripper gets into a fight with another stripper, he breaks loose and starts killing.

Following a live orchestra opening, emcee Eddie Garr greets the audience and tells them about his trip to Los Angeles, where out-of-work actors are always 'acting' while in their service-industry jobs. What follows is a cavalcade of wild and wacky performances.