''Madame Peacock'' is a 1920 American silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

written, produced by, and starring

Alla Nazimova Alla Nazimova (Russian: Алла Назимова; born Marem-Ides Leventon, Russian: Марем-Идес Левентон; June 3 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._May_22.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>O ...

in a dual role. Distributed by

Metro Pictures Metro Pictures Corporation was a Film, motion picture production company founded in early 1915 in Jacksonville, Florida. It was a forerunner of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The company produced its films in New York, Los Angeles, and sometimes at leas ...

, copies of the film exist in several collections including the

Cinematheque Royale de Belgique CINEMATEK (Dutch: Koninklijk Belgisch Filmarchief; French: Cinémathèque royale de Belgique; English: Royal Belgian Film Archive) is a film archive in Brussels, Belgium. The archive was established in 1938 under the name Royal Belgian Film Arch ...

, Brussels.

Plot

As described in a

film magazine Film periodicals combine discussion of individual films, genres and directors with in-depth considerations of the medium and the conditions of its production and reception. Their articles contrast with film reviewing in newspapers and magazines whi ...

, the idol of New York City's theater going public Jane Goring (Nazimova), after returning to her apartment after the run of ''Madame Peacock'', finds not the newspaper man she thought was going to interview her but instead her husband Robert McNaughton (Probert) who is wracked with a cough. Living the life of sham, she thrusts him aside, forgetting to even ask about her daughter. As he leaves he tells her that someday she will need friends and love only to find that she has thrown them all away for sham. Four years later, at the height of her career, Jane prepares to appear in a new piece. Cold, cruel, uncompromising, thoughtless, she keeps the theater company waiting for hours, and then proceeds to break the heart of the playwright, humiliate her fellow players, and exasperate her manager beyond all endurance. In the company is Gloria Cromwell (Nazimova), the antithesis of Jane Goring. She tells the star her pleasure in being in her company. Eventually the play opens, and after the final curtain the audience shouts for Gloria Cromwell, Jane is obliged to relinquish the stage to her. Jane returns to her dressing room and flies into a rage, telling her manager Rudolph Cleeberg (Steppling) that either she or Gloria must go. Cleeburg allows Gloria to depart and when she reaches home she realizes how her selfishness has lost her husband, daughter, and now her success. While she is recalling these events Robert McNaughton accompanies Gloria Cromwell into Jane's apartment. There Jane's mother recognizes Gloria, and she is sent to Jane who, looking into the eyes of her own daughter, is purified in the moment of sorrow and joy.

Cast

as Jane Goring / Gloria Cromwell * George Probert as Robert McNaughton * John Steppling as Rudolph Cleeberg *

William Orlamond William Anderson Orlamond (1 August 1867 – 23 April 1957) was a Danish-American film actor. Orlamond appeared in more than 80 films between 1912 and 1938. Partial filmography * ''A Rogue's Romance'' (1919) * ''Elmo the Mighty'' (1919) ...

as Lewis *

Rex Cherryman Rexford Raymond "Rex" Cherryman (October 30, 1896 – August 10, 1928) was an American actor of the stage and screen whose career was most prolific during the 1920s. Biography Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Rex Cherryman attended Colgate Unive ...

as Thorne *Albert R. Cody as Harrison Burke *

Gertrude Claire Gertrude Claire (July 16, 1852 – April 28, 1928) was an actress of the American stage and Hollywood silent motion pictures. Biography Claire was born in Chicago, Illinois, and began appearing onstage at the age of 16. She played minor roles ...

as Character Lady *Georgia Woodthorpe as Mrs. Goring

References

External links

* *
1920: Alla Nazimova on the set of ''Madame Peacock''
at the Alla Nazimova Society website * 1920 films American silent feature films 1920 drama films Silent American drama films American black-and-white films Metro Pictures films Films directed by Ray Smallwood 1920s American films {{1920s-silent-drama-film-stub