In this farcical Technicolor musical, snake oil salesman Georgi (Danny Kaye) is too honest for his own good. After his partner (Walter Slezak) fires him, the simple-minded Georgi wanders into a corrupt town where he is mistaken for a diplomat. As Georgi unknowingly enjoys his false identity, the townspeople make several botched attempts to assassinate him, believing he is a powerful politician. Matters get even more tangled, and amusing, when the real inspector general shows up.