''Stolen Holiday'' is a 1937 film directed by
Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz ( ; born Manó Kaminer; since 1905 Mihály Kertész; hu, Kertész Mihály; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed cla ...
and starring
Kay Francis
Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...
,
Claude Rains
William Claude Rains (10 November 188930 May 1967) was a British actor whose career spanned almost seven decades. After his American film debut as Dr. Jack Griffin in ''The Invisible Man'' (1933), he appeared in such highly regarded films as '' ...
and
Ian Hunter. It is loosely based on the
Stavisky Affair, a French political scandal. A Russian con artist worms his way into the upper reaches of French society, but is finally exposed, with tragic consequences.
Plot
In 1931
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, Nicole Picot (
Kay Francis
Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...
), a model for a fashionable dress shop, is hired by nearly-penniless Stefan Orloff (
Claude Rains
William Claude Rains (10 November 188930 May 1967) was a British actor whose career spanned almost seven decades. After his American film debut as Dr. Jack Griffin in ''The Invisible Man'' (1933), he appeared in such highly regarded films as '' ...
) to help persuade a financier to fund his ambitious plans. By 1934, Stefan has established an investment bank; in gratitude, he provides the capital that Nicole needs to set up her own business and become a successful dress designer (though she insists on paying him back).
British diplomat Anthony Wayne (
Ian Hunter) romances Nicole and wins her heart. However, when Stefan's crooked schemes start to unravel, he asks Nicole to marry him without divulging his main motive: the attendance of her influential friends at the well-publicized ceremony would bolster public confidence in him and buy him time. She agrees, out of friendship alone, much to the distress of her friend and assistant, Suzanne (
Alison Skipworth
Alison Skipworth (born Alison Mary Elliott Margaret Groom; 25 July 18635 July 1952) was an English stage and screen actress.
Early years
Skipworth was born in London. She was the daughter of Dr. Richard Ebenezer Groom and Elizabeth Rodgers, an ...
). It is too late. At their wedding, Stefan's closest confederate, Francis Chalon (
Walter Kingsford
Walter Kingsford (born Walter Pearce; 20 September 1882 – 7 February 1958) was an English stage, film and television actor.
Early years
Kingsford was born in Redhill, Surrey, England.
Career
Kingsford began his acting career on the Lo ...
), is taken away by the police for questioning, and the other guests hastily depart.
Knowing that Chalon can incriminate him, Stefan goes into hiding at a remote chateau. However, he makes a mistake, sending a letter to Nicole asking her to join him. She does so, despite Anthony's protests. Nicole gets Stefan to admit the truth, though he insists he does love her. When he sees that the police have followed Nicole and have surrounded the chateau, he excuses himself. To spare her from being dragged down with him, he goes outside. As he expected, he is shot and killed, though it is staged to look like a suicide to avoid causing further embarrassment to the government.
Afterward, Anthony persists and finally gets Nicole to agree to marry him.
Cast
*
Kay Francis
Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...
as Nicole Picot
*
Claude Rains
William Claude Rains (10 November 188930 May 1967) was a British actor whose career spanned almost seven decades. After his American film debut as Dr. Jack Griffin in ''The Invisible Man'' (1933), he appeared in such highly regarded films as '' ...
as Stefan Orloff
*
Ian Hunter as Anthony Wayne
*
Alison Skipworth
Alison Skipworth (born Alison Mary Elliott Margaret Groom; 25 July 18635 July 1952) was an English stage and screen actress.
Early years
Skipworth was born in London. She was the daughter of Dr. Richard Ebenezer Groom and Elizabeth Rodgers, an ...
as Suzanne
*
Alexander D'Arcy
Alexander D'Arcy ( ar, ألكسندر دارسي;
10 August 1908 – 20 April 1996) was an Egyptian stage, television and film actor with an international film repertoire.
Career
Born Alexander Sarruf in Cairo, Egypt, D'Arcy, variously credited ...
as Leon Anatole
*
Betty Lawford
Betty Lawford (February 1, 1912 – November 20, 1960) was a United States-based English film and stage actress.
Her parents, Ernest Lawford and Janet Slater Lawford, were also actors, and she was a cousin of the actor and socialite Peter Lawfo ...
as Helen Tuttle
*
Walter Kingsford
Walter Kingsford (born Walter Pearce; 20 September 1882 – 7 February 1958) was an English stage, film and television actor.
Early years
Kingsford was born in Redhill, Surrey, England.
Career
Kingsford began his acting career on the Lo ...
as Francis Chalon
*
Charles Halton
Charles Halton (March 16, 1876 – April 16, 1959) was an American character actor who appeared in over 180 films.
Life and career
Halton trained at the New York Academy of Dramatic Arts. He made his Broadway debut in 1901, after which he ...
as LeGrande
*
Frank Reicher
Frank Reicher (born Franz Reicher; December 2, 1875 – January 19, 1965) was a German-born American actor, director and producer. He is best known for playing Captain Englehorn in the 1933 film ''King Kong''.
Early life
Reicher was born in Mu ...
as Charles Ranier
*
Frank Conroy as Dupont
*
Egon Brecher
Egon Brecher (18 February 1880 – 12 August 1946) was an Austria-Hungary-born actor and director, who also served as the chief director of Vienna's Stadttheater, before entering the motion picture industry.
Early years
The son of a professor, ...
as Bergery
*
Wedgwood Nowell
Wedgwood Nowell (born Harry Wedgwood Nowell; January 24, 1878 – June 17, 1957) was an American stage and film actor, director, producer, and musician. He produced 144 plays during his stage career, which began around 1901. Later, while w ...
as M. Borel
Preservation
In addition to being held by Warner Bros., the film is preserved in the Library of Congress collection.
[''Catalog of Holdings The American Film Institute Collection and The United Artists Collection at the Library of Congress'', p.175 c.1978 by The American Film Institute]
References
External links
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{{Michael Curtiz , state=collapsed
1937 romantic drama films
1937 films
American romantic drama films
American black-and-white films
Drama films based on actual events
1930s English-language films
Films directed by Michael Curtiz
Films scored by Heinz Roemheld
Films set in Paris
Films à clef
Warner Bros. films
1930s American films