At a New York City delicatessen, actor Steve Nichols implores Marty Fields, his agent, to get him an audition for an off-Broadway production of Cyrano de Bergerac instead of a job in another television commercial. When Marty finds out that Steve passed along work to a fellow actor, and he won’t get the commission, he is furious. At his apartment, Steve sees his attractive neighbor, J. Jolene Marsh, fumbling to open her mailbox and makes conversation but she barely pays attention to him. When he rushes to attend a blender in his apartment, she follows and tells him she has a job working on television commercials. He asks her for a date, but she says she is filming a commercial at Sardi’s Restaurant late at night. When he suggests going out another time, she turns him down. Steve, dressed as Captain Avenger, has a job signing autographs in front of the Elmwood Theatre to promote the Captain Avenger movie. After work, he stops at a small grocery store and sees two punks attempt to rob the owners, the Rothbergs. Still in his Avenger costume, Steve fights the robbers and scares them away. The crime fighting exhilarates him and the Rothbergs are extremely grateful. At Sardi’s, Steve finds Jolene during a break in shooting but she insists he leave. Instead, he waits until her work is done, but she declines his invitation to have coffee. Steve watches as the Rothbergs credit Captain Avenger with saving their lives during a television interview. When Steve tries to tell his neighbors that his good deed made the television news, Mrs. Havacheck, his building manager, warns him that his rent is late. At a meeting between Walter Reeves, president of Reeves Public Relations, and mayoral campaign manager Calvin Donnelly, the men discuss the need for a new strategy to reelect New York Mayor John Woodson because he is behind in the polls. Calvin warns Walter it is his job to fix the problem. Walter’s company also handles publicity for the Captain Avenger movie, and he is thrilled to learn that ticket sales of the movie have multiplied since the thwarted robbery. He decides to use the event to create an advantage for the mayor. At the Greenwich Theatre during another autograph session, fans mob Steve in his Captain Avenger costume, and Gloria Preston, a reporter from Channel 6 TV, interviews him, and he explains that Captain Avenger’s fight for justice has given people hope. Later, Steve asks Jolene what she thinks about the New York City – crime fighting Captain Avenger. She thinks it is the work of a publicity-seeking nut, which discourages Steve from revealing his alter ego. At his apartment, Mrs. Havacheck wants the rent, and threatens to evict Steve if she does not receive a check by evening. On the television news, New Yorkers want the real Captain Avenger to step forward. Steve dresses in his Avenger costume, and with the help of a police scanner, his cab rams a weaving car filled with suspects and it flips over. The suspects shoot him in the arm, and shortly thereafter, the police make several arrests. Soon, Steve discovers that Mrs. Havacheck has locked him out of his apartment. Jolene bandages him and he falls asleep on her couch. Walter is on the verge of being fired by Calvin because of Mayor Woodson’s shrinking popularity, but he saves his job by taking credit for masterminding the Avenger’s good deeds. He convinces Calvin that more Captain Avenger publicity opportunities will help the mayor win the election. Meanwhile, Jolene tells Steve that he can stay at her apartment until he mends. When Jolene returns from a date with Milo, her boss, Steve wants to know about the relationship but she evades his questions. The next day, Milo shows up unexpectedly to escort Jolene to a client’s boat. They fight, but Milo won’t leave until Steve emerges from the bathroom dressed in Jolene’s pink robe and orders him to go. Jolene welcomes Steve’s kiss and they make love. Later, Eddie from Reeves Public Relations pays Steve’s rent and knocks on Jolene’s door with a job for the actor. The company offers Steve a publicity opportunity that will wrap up his Avenger career with a bang and offers him a part in a revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof to sweeten the deal, but Steve turns Walter down. Instead, he woos Jolene with Chinese food and a bouquet of roses, but she tells him she doesn’t want to be in a relationship at the moment. Back in his apartment, he listens to the television and hears Dr. Joyce Brothers say that Captain Avenger brings hope to the city. Soon, Steve appears in his Captain Avenger costume on a train to break up a robbery, as passengers cheer him on, but the crime has been staged by Reeves Public Relations. Later, Steve tells Walter he is not interested in perpetuating a hoax and wants to quit. When Walter says the mayor wants to hold a Captain Avenger Day, Steve vows that will be the last time he plays the comic book hero. Soon, Gloria suspects that Avenger’s latest exploits are phony. On Captain Avenger Day, the crowd cheers relentlessly as Steve tells them that the things Avenger stands for -- justice, loyalty, courage, and caring for people – are the things that matter. After Mayor Woodson gives Steve the key to the city, Gloria broadcasts live, accusing Steve of phony heroics and working for the mayor’s reelection. The crowd turns on Steve and steals his key. Meanwhile, reporters corner Jolene in front of the apartment and she vigorously defends Steve’s honor. When the reporters leave, Steve packs a suitcase while Jolene tells him not to run away or forget his career. As he walks away, he comes upon a burning building where firemen have rescued a woman, but Johnny, her son, is still trapped inside. Steve climbs to the roof of the burning building in his Avenger costume after Chief Palmer has ordered his men to stay out. Steve finds Johnny and drops the boy into a fireman’s net below. Before Steve can jump, he is caught in an explosion and disappears from view. Two bystander heroes and the chief run into the building and save him. Away from the flames, Jolene hugs Steve and tells him she loves him. Arm in arm, they return to their apartment building.