Gaily Gaily (1969)

After runaway Ben Young is robbed and left on his own he is taken in by Lil the head of a Chicago brothel Acting as a surrogate mother for Ben who thinks she runs a boardinghouse Lil gets him a job with Francis Sullivan at the local newspaper As Ben is exposed to the workings of the big city he realizes the extent of government corruption and sets out on the daunting task of reforming Chicago politics finding several allies along the way