God's Gift to Women, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1931

God's Gift to Women, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1931. The film is a pre-code musical comedy whose musical numbers were cut and whose humor and suggestive scenes are largely tempered by the tepid presence of star Frank Fay. He plays the Parisian descendant of a Don Juan who vows to stop philandering in order to win the hand of a virtuous young lady with a disapproving father. Louise Brooks plays one of a handful of women irresistibly drawn to Fay's character. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

Film Daily described the film as a "Merry French farce with amusing plot and deft comedy work by Frank Fay, fine feminine support and good direction." Edward Churchill, writing in Motion Picture Herald, stated “Frank Fay is the whole show in this broadly sophisticated story of Parisian love and Parisian life. Fay has all the women in the world after him, so it seems, and they are all good-looking. In fact, some of them are very beautiful, and they seem to like Fay. . . . Jane Hinton hasn’t given the picture much of a story as far as the plot is concerned, but the situations are excellent. Jackson and [Raymond] Griffith have tossed in some rare gags and some excellent dialogue and the costume department at Warners has been busy. . . . Michael Curtiz has built a snappy, laughable and highly entertaining picture around Fay and the preview audience laughed plenty. Photography is good, settings are in perfect keeping with the vehicle and the sound is clear.”

The movie, indeed, belongs to Fay, who was a popular Broadway star of light comedies. Casting the not-quite leading man as a Casanova was a stretch, but his delivery is mildly amusing at times. The plot line is predictable, and there's a twist in the final scenes. The San Francisco Chronicle thought "The picture is a bit of fluff, but it is amusing and is well produced."

Harry Mines of the Los Angeles Daily Illustrated News thought "All the girls in the cast have the opportunity to wear beautiful clothes and look their vampiest. They are Laura LaPlante, Marguerite Livingston, Yola D'Avril, Louise Brooks, Joan Blondell, Ethelyn Claire and the Sisters 'G'." Not surprisingly, Jerry Hoffman of the Los Angeles Examiner considered the film little more than "album of Hollywood's beautiful women." Harry Evans of Life magazine quipped "These few amusing moments are the film's total assets -- unless you haven't seen Louise Brooks, Joan Blondell and Yola D'Avril in their underwear."

All were not so forgiving. Variety called God's Gift to Women "no gift to audiences." Richard Watts Jr. of the New York Herald Tribune called it a "thin farce."  Thonton Delehanty of the New York Post was less generous, "The humor is in the style of the hackneyed French farce, so hackneyed that it is paralyzingly awful."

Unfortunately, the film is nowhere near a star turn for Brooks. And her second consecutive supporting role left some critics surprised. As with her small part in It Pays to Advertise, some including W. Ward Marsh of the Cleveland Plain Dealer could only wish for more.... "Louise Brooks (returning to the screen in a comparatively minor role)...."

Next to Windy Riley Goes Hollywood, God's Gift to Women was one of the least shown films in which Brooks' appeared. Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Canada, England, New Zealand, The Philippines, Sweden, and possibly Brazil and France. In the United States, the film was also promoted under the title O Presente de deus para as Mulheres (Portuguese-language press).

Elsewhere, God’s Gift to Women was shown under the title Dar boha k ženám (Czechoslovakia); Gotten Geschenk au die Frauen (Germany); Bóg dal za duzo kobiet (Poland); and Tantas veo… (Spain). The film was also shown in South Africa and the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales) under the title Too Many Women.

 SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

 -- The film was originally completed as a musical. Due to audience distaste for musicals, however, all the songs were cut in American prints. The complete film was released intact in other countries, where there was no such decline in popularity. Cut from the version released in the United States was a theme song sung by Frank Fay, then a major Broadway star. The theme song, which is heard over the credits, is underscored several times in the film. Also cut was an elaborate dance number by the Sisters "G" which appeared in the film during its nightclub sequence. The complete film was released intact outside the United States, but only the American print is known to have survived.

-- During the film’s April, 1931 showing in New York City, star Frank Fay made a personal appearance at the Strand Theater. (Fay was married at the time to Barbara Stanywck).

--  Leading lady Laura La Plante played Magnolia in the first film version of Show Boat (1929); Charles Winninger, who plays her father in God's Gift to Women, would play Cap'n Andy Hawks in the 1936 version of Show Boat.

-- Fay's character enjoyed a different lover each night of the week. Brooks – “brunette, bad and bold” – was assigned Thursday night.

 -- God's Gift to Women is available on DVD. Get it before it goes out of print. Purchase HERE.

 THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

King of Gamblers, almost featuring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1937

King of Gamblers was released on this day in 1937. The film is a stylish low-budget crime drama about a slot-machine racket and the crusading reporter who uncovers it. Though a "B" picture, this almost noir was given an "A" treatment by director Robert Florey. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

Louise Brooks' role in the film, a minor part, was cut from the production shortly before release.  An opening sequence with "Jim Adams" (Lloyd Nolan) being jilted by "Joyce Beaton" (Louise Brooks) was shot but eliminated from the final cut. Prints of the film which include Brooks' may have been sent overseas, as Brooks is included in advertisements for the film in at least two countries.

Robert Florey with Louise Brooks, Akim Tamiroff & Evelyn Brent

The film was part of an unofficial Paramount series based on crimes and criminals suggested by the J. Edgar Hoover book, Persons in Hiding. Despite its source material, the film's gritty realism shocked some. The Christian Science Monitor stated “Sociological aspects of the theme are quite overshadowed by melodramatics which may prove too violent for the more sensitive.” Fox West Coast Bulletin said the film was “Not wholesome. Waste of time.” Motion Picture Review wrote “Such a picture as this has no constructive social value.” The Kansas City Star added “. . . the subject hardly can be recommended to the attention of the youth and future glory of the land.” While Mae Tinnie, the onomatopoeically named film critic of the Chicago Tribune, suggested “If you like a grisly little programmer, King of Gamblers is that.”

Though considered a mere B-movie (which were typically shown as part of a double bill), the film received very good notices from both exhibitors and the public alike. The manager of the Cory Theater in Winchester, Indiana stated, “I thought when I showed Night Key I had given my patrons the best picture ever made, but this King of Gamblers is even better than that. Played last two days of week to big business.” Other exhibitors agreed: comments published in Motion Picture Herald included “Excellent entertainment in any spot. Well liked by all,” and “Was afraid of this one, but found it packed with suspense and action.”

In reviewing the film's New York City opening, Irene Thirer of the New York Post wrote “Criterion goers are clutching their chairs these days, because this is probably the most blood-thirsty picture in several seasons. . . . Supporting the principals (and Lloyd Nolan’s job as the reporter is corking), are Larry Crabbe, the late Helen Burgess (who strangely met her untimely death immediately after she had died in this picture via script requirements), Porter Hall, Harvey Stephens, a couple of walloping shots of the capable Evelyn Brent, and others. Robert Florey directed – which accounts for the picture’s unusual camera angles.” 

The Washington Post had a similar sentiment. “The cold chills and icy thrills of King of Gamblers make the Metropolitan air-conditioning quite superfluous. If you are one for hard-boiled homicides mixed in with your entertainment, this show will give you a good time and a half.”

The film reunited Brooks with Evelyn Brent. The two actresses had first appeared together in Love ‘Em and Leave ‘Em (1926), when each were emerging stars. For the then two fading stars, King of Gamblers was seen as a comeback opportunity. And indeed, studio publicity promoted their appearance as such. Around the time of the film’s release, the Los Angeles Times ran a picture of Brooks and Brent under the headline, “Two actresses resume screen career.” The caption noted their “return to the silver sheet.”

Remarkably, Brooks name is included in the cast listing in the studio's campaign book, which suggests she was cut from the film only at the last minute. 

Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia (including Tasmania), Bermuda, Canada, China, Dutch Guiana (Surinam), Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, The Philippines, and the United Kingdom (including England, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, and Scotland). On a few occasions, the film was shown in the United States under the title Czar of the Slot Machines. In the United States, the film was also promoted about under the title El Rey de los Jugadores (Spanish-language press).

Elsewhere, King of Gamblers was shown under the title L’homme qui terrorisait New-York (Algeria); O Amor é como Jogo (Brazil); El Rey de los jugadores (Cuba); Král hazardních hrácu (Czechoslovakia); Storbyens sjakaler (Denmark); El Rey de los Jugadores (Dominican Republic); L’homme qui terrorisait New-York (France); O tromokratis tis Neas Yorkis (Greece); Rándyr stórborgarinnar (Iceland); 犯罪王 or Hanzai-ō (Japan); L’homme qui terrorisait New-York (Morocco); Król graczy (Poland); El Rey de los jugadores (Spain); L’homme qui terrorisait New York and Der König der Spieler (Switzerland); NewYorku' Titreten Adam (Turkey); and El Rey de los jugadores (Uruguay).

*The film was banned in Sweden.

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

-- The working titles for the film were The Kid from Paradise and King of the Gamblers. The film's alternate title (and sometimes subtitle) was Czar of the Slot-Machines.

-- Director Robert Florey had hoped to use Louise Brooks in an earlier film, Hollywood Boulevard (1936), but it didn't work out.

-- Helen Burgess, a promising 18 year old actress who had the second female lead in the film, died shortly after its completion on April 7, 1937 (and just five days before this film's preview). Discovered by Cecil B. De Mille, the demure actress was cast by the famous director in his epic western The Plainsman (1936). While working on her fourth film, Night of Mystery (1937), Burgess caught a chill that resulted in a serious cold, which in turn developed into pneumonia. An article at the time of her death noted that the Hollywood High School graduate had recently been picked for stardom by a vote of the Paramount film editors.

-- The film was previewed at the Alexander theater in Glendale, California. This first ever showing took place on April 12, 1937. King of Gamblers was paired with Swing High, Swing Low - a romantic drama starring Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray. Advertisements in the local paper noted stars of the unnamed preview film would be in attendance. Motion Picture Herald reported “The audience, which had been watching Swing High, Swing Low, found in the added attraction a contrast that caused it to pay strict attention. Several times it broke into applause.”

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Overland Stage Raiders, with Louise Brooks, to screen in Syracuse, NY

Overland Stage Raiders, starring John Wayne and Louise Brooks, will be shown at the Spaghetti Warehouse in Syracuse, New York on Monday, April 15th as part of a Western double bill.  This rare public screening of Brooks' last film is sponsored by the Syracuse Cinephile Society. More information about this event can be found HERE.

To learn more about the film, be sure and check out the Overland Stage Raiders page on the Louise Brooks Society website. Otherwise, here is some information from the Syracuse Cinephile Society website:

4/15   “OLD MEETS NEW” WESTERN DOUBLE FEATURE. Two fun and offbeat western features from Republic in which Old West settings encounter more modern inventions like automobiles, radios, phonographs, airplanes and more:

THE OLD BARN DANCE (1938).  Cast: Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Joan Valerie, Sammy McKim, Ivan Miller, the Maple City Four.  Director: Joseph Kane. Gene and Smiley are horse sellers who are forced to tangle with some slick characters trying to convince the local townspeople to buy and use tractors instead.  This musical western is an unusual but entertaining mix of cowboys, radio broadcasting and a few surprises.  

OVERLAND STAGE RAIDERS (1938).  Cast: The Three Mesquiteers (John Wayne, Ray “Crash” Corrigan, Max Terhune), Louise Brooks, Anthony Marsh, John Archer, Gordon Hart.  Director: George Sherman. To prevent gold shipments from being hijacked by stage bandits, the Mesquiteers buy an airplane to safely fly the gold to its destination…but the crooks don’t give up so easily!  An exciting entry in this popular series. 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Restoration of Pandora's Box screens in Los Angeles TODAY

The recently released restoration of Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, will be shown in the Ted Mann Theater at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (6067 Wilshire Blvd.) in Los Angeles TODAY at 7:30 pm. This screening marks the "Los Angeles Restoration Premiere." The film is being shown as part of the Academy's series, "The Sewing Circle: Sapphic Icons of Early Hollywood." More information about the event can be found HERE. 

According to the Academy website, "Pandora’s Box chronicles the life and ultimate downfall of the charming and amoral Lulu (Louise Brooks), whose somewhat impish behavior and alluring sensuality leads to the misfortune of those who love her. The film is noted to feature one of the first depictions of a lesbian character in Countess Augusta Geschwitz (Alice Roberts). Brooks considered herself to be sexually liberated, eschewing labels; she reveled in encouraging speculation about her sexual inclinations, choosing to surround herself with notable sapphic figures of the time."

"DIRECTED BY: G.W. Pabst. WRITTEN BY: Ladislaus Vajda. WITH: Louise Brooks, Fritz Kortner, Francis Lederer, Carl Goetz. 1929. 141 min. USA. B&W. Silent. English intertitles. DCP. Restored in 2K from the best surviving 35mm elements at Haghefilm Conservation under the supervision of the Deutsche Kinemathek with the cooperation of George Eastman Museum, the Cinémathèque Française, Cineteca di Bologna, Národní filmový archiv, and Gosfilmofond."

Academy Museum film programming generously funded by the Richard Roth Foundation. I couldn't find any information on any musical accompaniment, which suggests there will be none.

Although this screening marks the first showing of the recently released 2009 restoration, it does not mark the first screening of Pandora's Box in Los Angeles. Of course not.... In fact, the 1929 film was first shown in Los Angeles only in 1962, some 33 years after it was first released in Germany. That screening took place on June 29, when Pandora’s Box was screened as part of a series of five “psychological masterpieces” sponsored by the UCLA Committee on Fine Art Production. The print screened then was brought to Hollywood by James Card, of the Eastman House, who possessed one of the few -- if not the only -- print of the film in the United States. Pauline Kael hoped to bring Brooks to Los Angeles for this screening, but Kael's plans fell through. 

A couple of months later, at the beginning of August, Pandora’s Box was screened at Monterey Peninsula College in Monterey, California as part of the Peninsula Film Seminar, which was organized by Philip Chamberlin. Card once again supplied the print of the film. Also in attendance at the Monteray screening -- the first for the film in Northern California -- was film critic Pauline Kael, film curator Tom Luddy, and San Francisco poet Jack Hirschman, among others.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

A newly acquired treasure in the Louise Brooks Society archive, and a dream

Speaking of lost films.... Here is a newly acquired treasure now held in the Louise Brooks Society archive at the Louise Brooks Society website. It is movie herald (a give-away flier) for The American Venus from Argentina! 

This Paramount special was first released in the United States on January 31, 1926. The film is a romantic comedy set against the backdrop of a beauty pageant, namely the actual 1925 Miss America contest in Atlantic City. The film is the second in which Louise Brooks appeared, and the first for which she received screen credit. In fact, Brooks received fifth billing. The film starred Esther Ralston, and featured Fay Lanphier, the actual 1925 Miss America. In support was veteran character actor Ford Sterling. All of these actors, including Brooks, can be seen in the selection of interior images.

According to the reverse of the herald, the film was shown at the Grand Splendid Theatre on a Saturday that fell on the 25th of the month. Also indicated is that the film was shown "Tarde y Noche", which translates as "Afternoon and Evening" -- which suggests either two showings, or a continuous showing. Assuming this screening of the film took place in 1926, the date turns out to be either April 25, 1926 (which is a little early, as there was often a delay in the release of films in other countries) or July 25, 1926. It could also be December 25, 1926, Christmas Day. I would bet on July 25, 1926. But I could be wrong, and it could turn out to be 1927. I will need to triangulate the date by searching through Argentian newspapers.

The Grand Splendid Theatre is located in Buenos Aires. It is an historic venue which first opened in 1919 with seating for more than 1000 people. According to its Wikipedia entry, this ornate, eclecticist building features ceiling frescoes painted by the Italian artist Nazareno Orlandi and caryatids sculpted by Troiano Troiani. It hosted tango performances, and once was home to its own radio station, Radio Splendid. The Grand Splendid began showing films in the late to mid 1920s, and in 1929 showed the first sound films presented in Argentina.

Today, the Grand Splendid Theatre is a bookstore -- but not just any bookstore. In 2019, it was named the "world's most beautiful bookstore" by National Geographic magazine. As a bookstore, it has been the subject of many articles and is now considered a major tourist attraction. Reportedly, the store sells hundreds of thousands of books per year and more than one million people pass through its doors on an annual basis.

It is fitting that Grand Splendid Theatre became a bookstore. Louise Brooks loved books and was a great reader. And so did one of her admirers, the Argentinian writer Adolfo Bioy Casares, who was famously smitten with Louise Brooks -- so much so he was inspired by his memory of the actress to write his 1940 novella The Invention of Morel. I wonder if Bioy Casares and his close friend, the even more famous Argentinian writer Jorge Borges, went to see this film. I wouldn't be surprised.

I am dreaming.... I wonder if the bookstore carries this edition of Adolfo Bioy Casares book. I wonder if this very herald passed through the hands of Casares or Borges or someone sitting near one or the other writer.... And now, through time and space, it has found its way to me.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Lost Louise Brooks films to be released on DVD

What is better than one? How about four!

The Louise Brooks Society has learned that four Louise Brooks films previously thought lost will be released on DVD sometime within the coming year. Wow! Wow! Wow! and Wow!

When I first became interested in Louise Brooks ever so long ago, I sometimes thought I would never see some of her more obscure films, let alone films which were once thought lost. But, miracles happen, dreams come true, and wishes are fulfilled .... I can't say more. Stay tuned to this blog and the Louise Brooks Society website for further information.

It is always a thrill to see images of Louise Brooks that you haven't seen before. Now imagine seeing moving images of the actress that haven't been seen in nearly 100 years!

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

A Social Celebrity, featuring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1926

A Social Celebrity, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1926. The film is a romantic comedy about a small town barber who follows his heart and heads to the big city where he hopes to join high society. Louise Brooks plays the barber’s love interest, a small town manicurist who also heads to the big city to become a dancer. The film is the third in which Brooks appeared, the second for which she received a screen credit, and the first in which she had a starring role. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society filmography page.

The film was originally set to star Greta Nissen, a Norwegian-born dancer. When she quit the film early in its production, Brooks’ part was rewritten and she took on the role of the female lead. It was a huge break for the 19 year old Brooks and a turning point in her career, as the barber, played by Adolphe Menjou, was one of the biggest stars of the time. In reviewing the film, many critics took special note of Brooks, and thereafter she was regarded as a rising star and someone to watch.

The critic for Exhibitor’s Herald noticed the actress. “Louise Brooks is the third person in the cast. This odd young person who worked with Ford Sterling in that screaming interlude of The American Venus is a positive quantity. She may become a sensational success or a sensational flop, but she is not the kind of player who simply goes along. She’s a manicure girl in this one, later a night club dancer, and she’s unfailingly colorful. I have a personal wager with another member of the staff that she goes up instead of down, both of us agreeing that she’s a moving personality but differing as to direction.” Mae Tinee of the Chicago Tribune also noticed the actress, “Louise Brooks, who plays the small town sweetheart who want to make a peacock out of her razor-bill, is a delightful young person with a lovely, direct gaze, an engaging seriousness, and a sudden, flashing smile that is disarming and winsome. A slim and lissome child, with personality and talent.”

The critic for the Boston Evening Transcript echoed those comments. “In this instance the manicure is no less provocative a morsel than Miss Louise Brooks, remembered for her bit in that specious puff-pastry, The American Venus. Miss Brooks has anything but a rewarding task in A Social Celebrity. Yet it would be ungracious not to comment on the fetching qualities of her screen presence. She affects a straight-line bang across the forehead with distressingly piquant cow-licks over either ear. Her eyes are quick, dark, lustrous. Her nose and mouth share a suspicion of gaminerie. Her gestures are deft and alert — perhaps still a shade self-conscious. In body she is more supple than facial play and her genuflectory exertions in the Charleston might well repay the careful study of amateurs in that delicate exercise.”

A Social Celebrity received many positive reviews, though a few critics thought it too similar to Menjou’s earlier efforts. At it’s New York City premiere, the film proved popular at the 2000 seat Rivoli theater, where it brought it nearly $30,000 during its one week run. (This was at a time when most tickets would have been priced at less than a dollar.) The film critic for the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported the line for tickets “began at the ticket office and extended to a spot somewhere in the middle of 7th Ave. and 49th St.”

Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia (including Tasmania), Bermuda, British Malaysia (Singapore), Canada, China, Hong Kong, Ireland, Jamaica, Japan, New Zealand, Panama, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, Trinidad, and the United Kingdom (England, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland,  Scotland, and Wales). The film was also promoted under the title The Social Celebrity (China & India), and A Sociál Celebrity (Czechoslovakia). In the United States, the film was reviewed as Una Celebridad Social (Spanish-language press).

Elsewhere, A Social Celebrity was shown under the title Au suivant de ces messieurs (Algeria); Figaro en sociedad (Argentina); Der Bubikopfkünstler (Austria); Au suivant de ces Messieurs (Belgium, French) and Aan de Volgende Dezer Heeren (Belgium, Dutch); Desfrutando a alta sociedade (Brazil); Figaro en sociedad (Chile); Un Figaro de Sociedad (Cuba); Sociální osobnost (Czechoslovakia); I laante fjer and Storfyrstinden og hendes kammertjener (Denmark); Au suivant de ces messieurs (Egypt); Parturi frakissa and Frakkipukuinen parturi and Barberaren i frack  (Finland); Au suivant de ces messieurs (France); A Szalon Figáró (Hungary); Un barbiere di qualità (Italy); 三日伯爵 (Japan); Der Liebling der Gesellschaft (Latvia); Der Schaum-Cavalier (Luxembourg); Figaro en sociedad (Mexico); De Dameskapper (Netherlands); Shingle-eksperten (Norway); Disfrutando a Alta Societade (Portugal); Figaro en sociedad (Spain); En Sparv i tranedans (Sweden); Au suivant de ces messieurs (Switzerland); and Au suivant de ces messieurs (French Indochina / present day Vietnam).

 SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

— Early on, Paramount promised the up-and-coming Nissen equal billing with Menjou in A Social Celebrity. However, “The temperamental Greta insisted on arriving at the studio one hour late every day,” according to the Brooklyn Norgesposten. Menjou, a major star, was forced to wait for the young actress and complained to director St. Clair. Soon enough, Nissen quit and returned to Broadway to resume her career as a dancer. (The friction caused by Nissen’s departure didn’t seem to spoil a budding romance between the dancer and director — at least not in the short-term. The Brooklyn Norgesposten reported that the couple were frequenting New York’s artists’ clubs. And in early May a Broadway gossip columnist hinted that Nissen might wed the Paramount director.)

— Early scenes set in were actually shot on Long Island in the village of . The exterior of Spontowiz’s Barber Shop on Main Street, the local trolley line — the Delphi, Indiana, and other aspects of the historic Long Island community were featured in the film. (According to press reports from the time, the film’s director and star spent the better part of two weeks touring Long Island looking for a stand-in for Delphi.)

— To lend verisimilitude, Fred Graff, hairdresser and barber-in-chief at the Paramount Long Island studios, was cast in the film. He can be seen “manipulating the sheers” in scenes shot at the Terminal Barber Shop (located at Broadway and Forty-second Street) in Manhattan.

— Also appearing in a bit part was Agnes Griffith, who won a contest sponsored by Famous Players Lasky and the New York Daily News. This was the first film role for Griffith, a diminutive brunette with a short bob. She later appeared in New York (1927).

— While A Social Celebrity was playing at the Rivoli, Menjou appeared on WGBS, the Gimbel Brothers radio station in NYC. According to newspaper reports, Menjou spoke about the film and the scenes shot locally on Long Island. (If he were to have mentioned his co-star, this broadcast would likely mark the first time Brooks name was mentioned on the radio.)

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, to be shown in Saugerties, New York

Lulu sure gets around.... There has been a flurry of screenings of Pandora's Box of late, with the latest announced for just a few days from now. 

The recently released restoration of Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, will be shown at the Orpheum Theater in Saugerties, New York beginning on March 29 and continuing through March 31. For those not familiar, Saugerties is a town in the northeastern corner of Ulster County in New York state. It is about a 110 mile, two hour drive north from New York City. More about this screening can be found HERE.

According to the UpstateFilms.org website:

"Louise Brooks smolders as Lulu in this era-defining, hyper-stylized German silent film wherein a beautiful showgirl’s indulgence brings about her ruin… but how lovely that downfall looks! Lesbians, killers, and modern dance all weave through Lulu’s adventures on her way down the rabbit hole of depravity. Originally received as scornful and debaucherous, the film is now seen as a landmark of cinema. (dir. G. W. Pabst, Germany, 1929, 141 min)"

“There are few tragic heroines more alluring than Lulu, the heartbeat of Georg Wilhelm Pabst’s Pandora’s Box, brought to life by a performer whose image—the winsome, mischievous eyes, the glossy, art-deco bob—remains a symbol of sexual charisma and freedom….To watch her today is to become her prisoner all over again. She’s as dismissible as a moonbeam.” – Time

The Orpheum Theater (at 154 Main Street) is an historic venue. It opened in 1908 as a vaudeville house, before changing over to movies in the 1920s. As newspapers from the period have not been digitized, I have not been able to determine if any of Louise Brooks films were shown there in the 1920s.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Evening Clothes, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1927

Evening Clothes, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1927. The film is a romantic comedy about a gentleman farmer who — spurned by his bride, goes to the big city to loose his rustic ways and win back his new wife. A stanza printed in advertisements for the film put it this way, “He was a French hick / Who didn’t please her / So he went to Paris and / Became a Boulevardier.” Louise Brooks plays a character called Fox Trot, a hot-to-trot Parisian who some described as a lady of the evening. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society filmography page.

Adolphe Menjou, Louise Brooks, and Noah Beery Sr.

The making of the film coincided with Paramount’s transition from its East Coast facilities to the West Coast. Evening Clothes was the first film Brooks made in Hollywood (see this earlier LBS post), and at Paramount’s suggestion, the first in which she did not wear her signature bob hairstyle.

Evening Clothes was made to order for its star, Adolphe Menjou. And as with his similarly-themed prior films A Social Celebrity, Ace of Cads, The Sorrows of Satan, and Blonde or Brunette — Evening Clothes proved popular with moviegoers, though less so with critics. The New York Daily News stated “There are a couple of really subtle spots, however, which brighten up the film tremendously, raising it right out of the mediocre class,” while adding “Louise Brooks is a perfect knockout as a good-natured lady of the evening.” The New York Morning Telegraph quipped, ” . . . as it stands, this latest Menjou vehicle offers entertainment value equivalent to the Paramount admission charge.” Other New York papers were more positive. The New York Telegram called the film “a delightful little comedy,” while the New York Journal described it as “an entertaining comedy, with some good situations.” All-in-all, the film received a cool critical response, though it performed very well at the box office.

Thin story-line aside, many reviewers focused on the actors as well as Brooks’ new hairstyle. Among them was Regina Cannon of the New York American, “Louise Brooks is again cast as a ‘lady of the evening’ and makes her role pert and amusing. You won’t recognize Miss Brooks at first, for she is wearing her hair curled over her head. This is too bad, for it makes her look just like a thousand other attractive girls. Louise achieved distinction with her straight-banged bob.”

Louella Parsons of the Los Angeles Examiner added, “When you see the show girl, Louise Brooks, cavorting about with a frizzled top you will see why Famous Players Lasky is grooming her for bigger and better things. She fares much better than either Miss Tashman or Mr. Beery, who only appear at long intervals.” Welford Beaton of Film Spectator echoed Parson’s remarks, “There are three girls who do very well in Evening Clothes — Virginia Valli, Louise Brooks and Lilyan Tashman. . . . I was glad to see further evidence of Paramount’s dawning consciousness that Louise Brooks is not composed solely of legs. They work her from the knees up in this picture and it begins to look as if she were headed for a high place.”

Herbert Cruikshank, who wasn’t enthused about the film, nevertheless liked Brooks. He wrote in the New York Morning Telegraph, “It seems to me that Louise Brooks deserves first place. She is charmingly piquant as a chic little gold-digger who turns out to be a pretty good fellow after all — as many of the maligned sisterhood do. While her part is merely a filler, she seems to have built it up materially, and holds center stage in whatever scenes she has.”

And front-and-center is where Brooks’ next film placed her. Rolled Stockings — which featured Brooks in the lead — went into production just as Evening Clothes was opening around the United States.

Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia, British Malaysia (Singapore), Canada*, China, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Japan, New Zealand, Panama, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, and the United Kingdom (England, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In the United States, the film was also presented under the title El Traje de Etiqueta (Spanish-language press) and Roupas Noturnas (Portuguese-language press).

Elsewhere, Evening Clothes was shown under the title Un Homme en Habit (Algeria); El hombre del frac (Argentina); Eine Pariser ehe (Austria); Un homme en habit (Belgium, French) and Een Man in Habijt and Een Man in een Habijt (Belgium, Dutch); De Casaca e Luva Branca (Brazil); Las que no aman (Chile); El traje de etiqueta (Costa Rica); El Traje de Etiqueta (Cuba); Vecerní odev and Muž ve Fraku (Czechoslovakia); Ein Frack Ein Claque Ein Madel (Danzig); I kjole og hvidt (Denmark); In Rok (Dutch East Indies); El Marques de la Moda (Dominican Republic); Un Homme en Habit (Egypt); Mõistueaubielu and Mõistueaubielu abielu and Vernunftehe (Estonia); Frakkipukuinen herra and Parisin yökahviloissa (Finland); Un Homme en Habit (France); Ein Frack ein Claque ein Mädel (Germany); Estélyruha and Frakk És Klakk (Hungary); Il signore della notte and Signore della notte (Italy); 夜会服 or Yakai-fuku (Japan); Aprehķina laulības and Der Liebling der Gesellschaft (Latvia); Un Homme en Habit – Ein Frack, Ein Claque, Ein Madel! (Luxembourg); El traje de etiqueta (Mexico); In Rok (The Netherlands**); I Kjole og Hvitt (Norway); Szkoła Paryska (Poland); De Casaca e Luva Branca (Portugal); El Traje de etiqueta and El vestido de etiqueta and Vestido de etiqueta (Spain); En herre i frack (Sweden); L’homme en habit and Un homme en habit (Switzerland); and Un Homme en Habit (Vietnam).

* The film was banned in Quebec, Canada because of “concubinage” – the suggestion of interpersonal or sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple are not or cannot be married.

** When the film was shown in The Netherlands in 1929, a cut was made to the film and screenings were restricted to those 18 and over.

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

—  Evening Clothes is based on a French play L’homme en habit by Andre Picard and Yves Mirande which debuted in Paris on March 25, 1920. The Man in Evening Clothes, an English-language version of the play translated by the noted actress Ruth Chatterton, had a brief Broadway run at the Henry Miller Theatre beginning on December 5, 1924.

—  Evening Clothes had its world premiere at the Metropolitan theater in Los Angeles, California on March 4, 1927. Adolphe Menjou was in attendance at the special event, as was the noted poet and then current French ambassador to the United States, . Each were introduced from the stage. It’s now known if Brooks was in attendance at the premiere.

— Arnold Kent (billed as Lido Manetti) had a small role in the film. He began his film career in Italy after having started as a stage actor. (Among his Italian credits were Quo Vadis and a few diva films directed by Augusto Genini.) In the mid-1920s, he moved to Hollywood and worked as a contract player at Universal and later at Paramount. He died in Hollywood in 1928 from injuries sustained in an automobile accident.

—  In 1931, Paramount produced two sound versions of the play at their studios in Joinville, France. A Spanish-language version, Un caballero de frac, was directed y Roger Capellani and Carlos San Martín and starred Roberto Rey and Gloria Guzmán. And a French-language version, Un home de habit, directed by René Guissart and Robert Bossis, starred Fernand Gravey and Suzy Vernon. Only the Spanish-language film was released in the United States. Additionally, in 1938, Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder outlined a treatment of the play, but nothing seems to have come of an American remake.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Happy St. Patrick's Day from the Louise Brooks Society

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, a rare clipping of Louise Brooks from the Irish Sketch, circa 1926. The caption beneath the portrait reads, "One of Paramount's best known stars, whose dark Spanish type of beauty makes her a striking figure in the various pictures in which she has appeared."

I don't know why, but I don't have many other interesting clipping about Brooks from Ireland, except for this bit from January, 1931. It notes, "In the later days of the silent films a young artiste who showed considerable promise was Louise Brooks....

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

A follow up to Louise Brooks and Los Angeles: Getting the facts straight about London and Paris

In the previous post, Louise Brooks and Los Angeles: Getting the facts straight, I pointed out one of a few  factual errors found on the Louise Brooks Wikipedia page.

As I note, the Wikipedia page on the actress states, "Brooks began her entertainment career as a dancer, joining the Denishawn School of Dancing and Related Arts modern dance company in Los Angeles at the age of 15 in 1922." I pointed out that this statement is INCORRECT. In my post, I point out that Brooks went to New York City (not Los Angeles) to study at and then join Denishawn. History records as much, and Brooks herself said so in Lulu in Hollywood, one the sources incorrectly cited to support the incorrect Wiki statement. 

I am writing this post to point out yet another incorrect statement on the Louise Brooks Wikipedia page. The two sentences which follow the incorrect statement reads: "The company included founders Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn, as well as a young Martha Graham. As a member of the globe-trotting troupe, Brooks spent a season abroad in London and in Paris." The first sentence, regarding who else were in the company, is correct. However, the second sentence is NOT. This sentence is supported by a reference to the same piece cited by the previous incorrect sentence, "Just a Prairie Flower," a 1926 Picture-Play article by Malcolm H. Oettinger.

The paragraph in "Just a Prairie Flower" which, apparently, is being cited reads, "One learned that the Brooks career had been given over generously to glob trotting. There had been a season in London at the Kit-Kat, and in Paris at the Casino, as a member of the Ruth St. Denis troupe." All I can say is ... don't believe everything you read, especially in a fan magazine. 

During Brooks' two seasons with Denishawn, the only globe trotting the troupe did was to perform in a few of the bigger cities in Canada, like Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, Kingston, and London, Ontario. (The Louise Brooks Society website features a short history of Louise Brooks and Denishawn, as well as the complete itineraries of her two seasons with the company.) While Brooks was in Denishawn, the dance company never went to Europe. And there was never a season in London and Paris.

After Brooks left Denishawn, she joined the George White Scandals, a Ziegfeld Follies like review in New York City. She was with them for just a few months when Brooks and her then best friend, Barbara Bennett, decided to take off for Europe. Brooks would spend about three weeks in Paris before heading for London, where a job for her was waiting not at the Kit-Kat club, but at the Cafe de Paris. A detailed account of this European adventure (mostly spent on her own, as Bennett soon returned home) can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website on the page titled, Louise Brooks at the Cafe de Paris in London. It contains some never before seen material, including the only known clipping from a London newspaper mentioning Brooks' appearance at the Cafe de Paris.

(In my research into Brooks' time in Europe at the end of 1924, I have never found that she was employed or worked while in Paris -- likely she had little money and was hanging out in hotel lobbies hoping someone might come along and help her -- which is what happened.)

Why did Malcolm H. Oettinger (a furniture salesman and sometime free-lance writer) state in 1926 that Brooks had spent "a season in London at the Kit-Kat, and in Paris at the Casino, as a member of the Ruth St. Denis troupe." He likely got his facts mixed up, or thought it sounded a bit more glamorous then Brooks' actual account. 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Louise Brooks and Los Angeles: Getting the facts straight

I want to address, yet again, a factual error that's making the rounds....

The other day, I was listening to a podcast. On March 11, the podcasters known as 5282 dropped their "Louise Brooks Special" episode. This podcast, which focuses on popular and fringe culture, originates in the UK. The Brooks' episode is a talk through her career with the three 5282 hosts, highlighting films such as Beggars of Life and Pandora's Box. At the end of the podcast, one of the hosts gave a shout-out to the Louise Brooks Society as a source for information.

However, in the course of the 5282 podcast, one of the three hosts repeated something about Louise Brooks and Los Angeles that they didn't get from the Louise Brooks Society website. That something is this ... that Brooks left home at age 15 to join the Denishawn Dance Company in Los Angeles. WRONG. WRONG. WRONG.

If I were a betting man, I would guess that the 5282 podcaster who repeated this "fact" likely got it from Wikipedia. The Wiki page on the actress states, "Brooks began her entertainment career as a dancer, joining the Denishawn School of Dancing and Related Arts modern dance company in Los Angeles at the age of 15 in 1922." In support, this sentence is twice footnoted, once to a 1926 Picture-Play article, "Just a Prairie Flower," and once to Brooks' own 1982 book, Lulu in Hollywood. In the first cited source, Brooks' joining Denishawn is not explicitly mentioned (it is only stated that Brooks danced with Ruth St. Denis), and in the second cited source, Brooks herself says she went to join Denishawn in New York City.

And anyways, anyone who has read or seen The Chaperone, the PBS film which depicts Brooks leaving home to join Denishawn -- will know that Brooks did so in New York City -- not Los Angeles. (I know The Chaperone is fiction, but it is based on fact.) Besides Brooks' own account, as found in Lulu in Hollywood, the facts around Brooks first venture to LA can be found in the definitive biography of the actress by Barry Paris. In it, Paris notes that Brooks went to Los Angeles for the very first time in 1927, when her studio, Paramount, had her move from their East Coast production facility to their West Coast studio in Hollywood. 

Part of the confusion regarding Brooks, Denishawn and Los Angeles likely stems from the fact that the dance company had two "headquarters," one in NYC and one in LA. (They also had a summer retreat in Mariarden in Peterborough, New Hampshire.) But still, that doesn't change the fact that Brooks joined Denishawn in New York. Let me also add that I have done considerable research on Brooks' two seasons with the dance company. I have tracked the Denishawn tours city by city, and can state that the furthest west the company ever got while Brooks was a member of Denishawn was Colorado.

I mention all this because not only did an incorrect, but not insignificant, fact make its way from Wikipedia to an UK podcast, but it can also be found on a key, authoritative site like Janus Films, the company behind the theatrical release of the latest restoration of Pandora's Box. Back on January 27 of this year, I posted a blog about the Pandora's Box restoration, and pointed to the handful of factual errors and sloppy writing found on the Janus press release. At the time I stated, "The Louise Brooks Biography included in the Press Notes, for example, is riddled with factual errors. I count five or six. Here is one: Louise Brooks did NOT join the Denishawn Dance Company in Los Angeles, as the biography states. She went to New York City, as stated in the Barry Paris biography and as depicted in The Chaperone. Likewise, the Production History essay makes a few questionable (read inaccurate) conclusions...." I sent an email to Janus, but never heard back.

Let me end with an image. It is scanned from the Barry Paris biography and depicts Brooks' arrival in Los Angeles for the first time in 1927. The caption reads "Louise Brooks greeted by Eddie Sutherland's friend Monte Brice upon her arrival in Hollywood, January 6, 1927."

The note on the reverse of the original of this Paramount publicity image, in Brooks' own hand, states, "First arrival in Hollywood, Jan 1927."

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, screens in Houston, Texas on March 24th

Lulu continues to get around.... The newly released digital restoration of the sensational 1929 silent film, Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks as Lulu, will be shown on Sunday, March 24th at 5:00 pm in the Brown Auditorium Theater at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas. This screening of the digital restoration includes a musical soundtrack by the late composer Peer Raben. More information about this event can be found HERE.

And here is what the event venue says:

Early German cinema master G. W. Pabst cast Ziegfeld girl Louise Brooks, whose legend was defined by this stylish and controversial melodrama. One of silent cinema’s great masterworks and a testament to Brooks’s dazzling individuality, Pandora’s Box follows the downward spiral of the fiery, brash, yet innocent showgirl Lulu, whose sexual vivacity has a devastating effect on everyone she meets. Digital restoration includes a musical soundtrack by the late composer Peer Raben (2046; Querelle).

Digital restoration from best surviving 35mm material (1952, 1964, and 1970 duplicate elements) by Haghefilm Conservation, with archival sponsorship and FIAF coordination by the George Eastman House and the collaboration of the Cinémathèque Française, Cineteca del comune di Bologna, Národní filmový archiv, and Gosfilmofond of Russia. Restoration conceived and supervised by Martin Koerber and funded by Hugh M. Hefner.

Want to lean more? A big, newly updated page about Pandora's Box can be found on the newly improved Louise Brooks Society website. Click on the film title to access the LBS filmography page devoted to the movie.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Be sure and get a Louise Brooks calendar from Flicker Alley

Even though we are a few days into March, it's not too late to get a copy of the 2024 Flicker Alley calendar. This adorable 6 inch by 6 inch square calendar is available for free with the purchase of a non-mod DVD or Blu-ray. And what's more, the front and back covers feature the one and only Louise Brooks.

To get my copy, I ordered the 2023 Flicker Alley release of restoration of the Erich von Stroheim film Foolish Wives. I have long loved this director's films, and am proud to have once put on an event with the great von Stroheim biographer Arthur Lenning. Louise Brooks also had an interest in his films, and, she even once met the famed director at a Hollywood party. Later on, Brooks carried on a long time  correspondence with another noted von Stroheim biographer, Herman G. Weinberg.

Foolish Wives, and von Stroheim's The Merry Widow, are two of my favorite silent films. I have seen each a handful of times, either at home or on the BIG screen. Greed is also great -- but who would claim it as a favorite? Be sure and check out the Flicker Alley page on this deluxe release of this silent era masterpiece. Wow, what a package!

Well, anyways, here is the back cover of the calendar, which features another image (both were supplied by yours truly) of Louise Brooks from the 1926 film, The American Venus. 

I know it is a journalistic principal to not bury the lead, but rewards come to those who read through to the end. The inside back cover of the 2024 calendar depicts a bunch of the recent and not-so recent Flicker Alley releases. It also states, "Lots of exciting new releases are in store from Flicker Alley in 2024! Be on the lookout for a follow-up collection of shorts from a beloved comedy duo, amazing and still-timely works from an African American film pioneer and pioneer of anti-fascist documentary, rare noir titles both international and domestic, and much more! (Including a big clue on this calendar's cover page.)"

Along with KINO and Milestone, Flicker Alley is one of the leading companies releasing silent and classic cinema. If you aren't already, be sure and get on their mailing list. You won't want to miss out.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, screens March 12th with live musical accompaniment by Ben Model

Lulu sure does get around.... Pandora's Box, the sensational 1929 (not 1933) film starring Louise Brooks, will be shown on Tuesday, March 12th at 7:30 PM at the Cinema Arts Centre on Long Island in Huntington, New York. And what's more, this special event will feature live musical accompaniment by Ben Model. More information about this screening can be found HERE.

Here is what the venue says about this just announced event.  

PANDORA’S BOX (1933) - starring Louise Brooks - new restoration, with live score by Ben Model!

Anything But Silent
PANDORA’S BOX
Tuesday, March 12th at 7:30 PM
With live accompaniment by Ben Model

G. W. Pabst’s sensationally modern and controversial melodrama, Pandora’s Box, defined the legendary persona of star Louise Brooks, solidifying her as ‘the' icon of the Jazz Age, and propelling her to international acclaim. The film, from one of the masters of early German cinema, follows the downward spiral of the brash, yet innocent showgirl Lulu, whose sexual vivacity has a devastating effect on everyone she meets. Daring and stylish, Pandora's Box is one of silent cinema's great masterworks and a testament to Brooks' dazzling individuality. (1929, 133 mins)

Presented courtesy of Janus Films. Restored from the best surviving 35mm elements at Haghefilm Conservation under the supervision of the Deutsche Kinemathek with the cooperation of George Eastman Museum, the Cinémathèque Française, Cineteca di Bologna, Národní filmový archiv, and Gosfilmofond. 

 

Want to lean more? A big, newly updated page about Pandora's Box can be found on the newly improved Louise Brooks Society website. Click on the film title to access the LBS filmography page devoted to the movie.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

It Pays to Advertise, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1931

It Pays to Advertise, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1931. The film is a farce about rival soap companies, an advertising agency, and a ne’er do-well playboy who attempts to make good. Louise Brooks plays Thelma Temple, a dancer appearing in a musical titled Girlies Don’t Tell. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society filmography page. 

Production on the film took place in and around Los Angeles in late 1930. Brooks’ part in the film, done to fulfill her contract with Paramount, amounted to little more than a cameo. The Hollywood Reporter wrote “Louise Brooks flashes in and out of the opening scenes and looks like a good bet for bigger roles.” Due to tepid reviews and negative publicity, It Pays to Advertise did poorly at the box office. At best, most exhibitors reported only fair business. In Los Angeles, according to one report, the film “set a new low.” The film also failed to do much for Brooks’ sputtering career.

It Pays to Advertise was based on a popular stage play from 1914. In 1931, reviewers commented that the story was old-fashioned – despite the fact that Paramount attempted to update its scenario through the use of new scenes, art deco sets, snappy dialogue, and a fast-moving script.

The film received few positive reviews. Photoplay wrote that it has “plenty of speed and lots of laughs”, while praising the “perfect cast”. Variety wrote “Subject to the limitation of all screen farces, this revamped stage frolic makes good enough program material with only moderate prospects at the box office.” New York’s The World, however, called it “pretty dreary.” The New Yorker stated “Among the dull pictures of the week we might list that old relic, It Pays to Advertise, which is full of smart-aleck cracks and is altogether a bore.”

The film starred Norman Foster, then husband of Claudette Colbert, and Carol Lombard, who was at the beginning of her film career. The gravel-voiced Eugene Pallette played the soap king; he had also played a supporting role in Brooks’ previous American film, The Canary Murder Case. The fast talking Skeets Gallagher played the wisecracking publicist – then called press agents. Brooks received fifth billing, and was largely left off promotional materials supplied by the studio.

Few publications mentioned Brooks, except to mention her brief appearance. Some publications noted that the role represented a comeback. The Kansas City Star commented, “Carole Lombard is pretty as the Mary Grayson in the cast, but Louise Brooks, who used to be quite a name in the photoplay world, is more attractive as the actress who does the airplane fall and is not seen thereafter.” Harry Evans, writing in Life magazine, stated “Louise Brooks, whom we have not seen on the screen since her momentary appearance in The Canary Murder Case (in which a voice double was used to speak her lines), seems to have been studying, as she gets away with her bit in this one creditably. Her real purpose in the film, however, is to show her legs, and in this phase of stage-craft she certainly needs no double.”

Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia (including Tasmania), British Malaysia (Singapore), Canada, China, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Jamaica, The Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom (including England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland). In the United States, the film was also promoted under the title Vale a Pena Anunciar (Portuguese-language press). Elsewhere, It Pays to Advertise was shown under the title To platí, aby inzeroval (Czechoslovakia). 

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

— It Pays to Advertise was based on the play of the same name by Roi Cooper Megrue and Walter C. Hackett. It was first presented on the Broadway stage on September 8, 1914 at the Cohan Theatre, and ran for nearly a year. Thelma Temple, the character played by Louise Brooks, does not appear in the original play.

—  Set in the advertising and business world, It Pays to Advertise referenced a number of actual products and their slogans. As a result, one trade journal took exception to the practice. Harrison’s Reports, which billed itself “a reviewing service free from the influence of film advertising,” objected to product placement in film — be it verbal or visual. Over the course of four months (in articles titled “The Facts About Concealed Advertisements in Paramount Pictures,” “This Paper’s Further Efforts Against ‘Sponsored’ Screen Advertisements,” and “Other Papers That Have Joined the Harrison Crusade Against Unlabelled Screen Advertising”) editor P. S. Harrison railed against the business world farce in particular and product placement in films in general. “The Paramount picture, It Pays to Advertise, is nothing but a billboard of immense size. I have not been able to count all of the nationally advertised articles that are spoken of by the characters.” In the next issue, Harrison stated “In last week’s issue the disclosure was made that in It Pays to Advertise there are more than fifteen advertisements in addition to the main advertisement, ’13 Soap Unlucky for Dirt,’ which Paramount is accused of having created as a brand for the purpose of selling it.”  Taking the high moral ground, Harrison’s Reports spurred a campaign against “sponsored moving pictures – meaning pictures which contain concealed or open advertising of some one’s product.” Harrison wrote to the studios – and Harrison’s Reports noted that a handful responded with pledges to not include verbal or visual product placement. The crusading editor also wrote to more than 2,000 newspapers, and a number published articles and editorials decrying the practice. Among those papers that joined Harrison’s cause were four of the New York dailies, the Gannett chain, and scores of small town papers, as well as the Denver Post, Detroit Free Press, St. Louis Globe-Democrat, and Tulsa Tribune. The Christian Science Monitor added to the chorus of complaint when it remarked, “Paramount should have been well paid for the large slices of publicity for trade-marked products that are spread all through this artificial story.”

— The play has been made into a film on four occasions: there was a silent film in 1919, directed by Donald Crisp; the talkie in 1931, directed by Frank Tuttle; and a Swedish adaptation in 1936, directed by Anders Henrikson. In 1932, Paramount produced French language version of the 1931 film: Paramount remade the film at their studio at Joinville, France under the title Criez-le sur les toits, directed by Karl Anton and starring Saint-Granier and Robert Burnier.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.