''The Cardboard Lover'' is a 1928 American
silent romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...
film directed by
Robert Z. Leonard
Robert Zigler Leonard (October 7, 1889 – August 27, 1968) was an American film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter.
Biography
He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to silent star Mae Murray with the two formin ...
and starring
Marion Davies
Marion Davies (born Marion Cecilia Douras; January 3, 1897 – September 22, 1961) was an American actress, producer, screenwriter, and philanthropist. Educated in a religious convent, Davies fled the school to pursue a career as a chorus girl ...
,
Nils Asther
Nils Anton Alfhild Asther (17 January 1897 – 19 October 1981)[Swedi ...](_blank)
and
Jetta Goudal
Jetta Goudal (, born Julie Henriette Goudeket; July 12, 1891 – January 14, 1985) was a Netherlands, Dutch-American actress, successful in Hollywood films of the silent film era.
Early life
Goudal was born on July 12, 1891, the daughter of ...
. It was produced by
Cosmopolitan Productions Cosmopolitan Productions, also often referred to as Cosmopolitan Pictures, was an American film company based in New York City from 1918 to 1923 and Hollywood until 1938.
History
Newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst formed Cosmopolitan in co ...
and distributed by
Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
.
The film is based on the 1926 play ''Dans sa candeur naive'' by
Jacques Deval, with the genders of the main characters switched for this adaptation.
In London,
Tallulah Bankhead played the female lead. On Broadway,
Jeanne Eagels
Jeanne Eagels (born Eugenia Eagles; June 26, 1890 – October 3, 1929) was an American stage and film actress. A former Ziegfeld Girl, Eagels went on to greater fame on Broadway and in the emerging medium of sound films. She was posthumously no ...
played the female lead.
The film survives at the
Library of Congress and in the Turner library.
[ It was remade as '']The Passionate Plumber
''The Passionate Plumber'' is a 1932 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Edward Sedgwick, and starring Buster Keaton, Jimmy Durante, and Irene Purcell. The screenplay by Laurence E. Johnson and Ralph Spence is based on the 1926 play ''Da ...
'' in 1932 and ''Her Cardboard Lover
''Her Cardboard Lover'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by George Cukor, starring Norma Shearer (in her final screen role), Robert Taylor, and George Sanders. The screenplay by Jacques Deval, John Collier, Anthony Veiller, and William ...
'' in 1942.
Plot
A group of American coeds/ flappers arrives at the Hotel Venitien on the French Riviera
The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...
. In the hotel lobby, Sally Baxter encounters Monsieur de Segurola, "the famous baritone
A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...
", and asks him to write something in her autograph album
An autograph book is a book for collecting the autographs of others. Traditionally they were exchanged among friends, colleagues, and classmates to fill with poems, drawings, personal messages, small pieces of verse, and other mementos. Their ...
. However, when she reads what he has written, she tears it out. Next, she spots handsome Andre Briault, "the famous tennis champion", and his girlfriend Simone. After Andre drives away, Sally notices Simone and de Sugorola making eye contact. (Albine, Andre's valet, does not approve of Simone either.)
When Andre later telephones Simone, he hears someone singing; Simone claims it is only a phonograph record
A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...
playing, but then de Sugorola coughs. Andre heads over to the hotel to check up on her. She tries to distract him, but Andre spots de Sugorola trying to sneak out of her suite, tosses him out into the hall and breaks up with Simone.
The last part is witnessed by Sally. She chases after Andre to get his autograph, but her pen seems to be out of ink. After he leaves, she finds that there is ink after all; unable to get a taxi, she steals a car and follows him to the casino. There, she inadvertently loses 50,000 francs playing baccarat against him, and is asked to pay. She writes on a check that she has no money to speak of, and Andre good-naturedly tears it up.
Then Andre spots Simone. He is still in love with her, so Sally suggests he pretend to be in love with someone else. He thinks that is an excellent plan; he chooses Sally, telling her that this is how she can pay her gambling debt. He instructs Sally to never let him be alone with Simone and to not let him weaken. When Simone tries to win him back, he introduces her to his "fiancée", Sally.
However, he keeps falling for Simone's enticements. But Sally is extremely persistent, going to outlandish lengths to keep him out of her rival's clutches. Finally, she socks him in the jaw to stop him from chasing after Simone. He reacts by pushing her clear into the next room, knocking her unconscious. This finally makes him realize whom he truly loves.
Cast
*Marion Davies
Marion Davies (born Marion Cecilia Douras; January 3, 1897 – September 22, 1961) was an American actress, producer, screenwriter, and philanthropist. Educated in a religious convent, Davies fled the school to pursue a career as a chorus girl ...
as Sally
*Jetta Goudal
Jetta Goudal (, born Julie Henriette Goudeket; July 12, 1891 – January 14, 1985) was a Netherlands, Dutch-American actress, successful in Hollywood films of the silent film era.
Early life
Goudal was born on July 12, 1891, the daughter of ...
as Simone
*Nils Asther
Nils Anton Alfhild Asther (17 January 1897 – 19 October 1981)[Swedi ...](_blank)
as Andre
* De Segurola as De Segurola
* Tenen Holtz as Albine
* Pepi Lederer as Peppy
* Carrie Daumery as Chaperon (uncredited)
Production
Based on a Broadway play, the story was totally revamped by inserting the character of Sally Baxter into the play's love story between Andre and Simone. Purportedly, Davies' impersonation had audiences refusing to believe it was really Davies. The production also featured Davies' niece Pepi Lederer in a small role as a tourist. Davies recalled that Goudal was a real pill and would only speak French on the set. This was another solid box-office hit for Davies.[ Lorusso, Edward (2017) ''The Silent Films of Marion Davies'', CreateSpace, pp. 155-156.]
References
External links
*
*
Backlots blog: The Cardboard Lover (1928)--A Rare Treasure
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cardboard Lover, The
1928 films
American black-and-white films
American romantic comedy films
American films based on plays
Films based on works by Jacques Deval
Films directed by Robert Z. Leonard
Films set on the French Riviera
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films
American silent feature films
1928 romantic comedy films
Surviving American silent films
Flappers
1920s American films
Silent romantic comedy films
Silent American comedy films