''Their Mad Moment'' is a 1931 American
pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...
comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
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 ...
directed by
Chandler Sprague
Chandler Sprague (died November 15, 1955) was an American veteran, screenwriter, reporter, and columnist. He served in World War I (for which he received the Distinguished Service Cross (United States), Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Sta ...
and starring
Dorothy Mackaill
Dorothy Mackaill (March 4, 1903 – August 12, 1990) was a British-American actress, most active during the silent-film era and into the pre-Code era of the early 1930s.
Early life
Born in Sculcoates, Kingston upon Hull in 1903 (although she l ...
,
Warner Baxter
Warner Leroy Baxter (March 29, 1889 – May 7, 1951) was an American film actor from the 1910s to the 1940s. Baxter is known for his role as the Cisco Kid in the 1928 film ''In Old Arizona'', for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at ...
and
ZaSu Pitts
Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...
. An uncredited
Hamilton MacFadden
Hamilton MacFadden (April 26, 1901 – January 1, 1977) was an American actor, screenwriter and film director.
MacFadden's parents were Rev. Robert A. MacFadden and Edith Hamilton MacFadden. His father died in 1909, leaving his mother to suppor ...
also directed some scenes. It is based on the 1927 novel ''Basquerie'' by
Eleanor Mercein Kelly.
[Goble, Alan. "Their Mad Moment", The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. London: Bowker-Saur, 1999.] A Spanish-language version ''Mi último amor'' was also produced.
Synopsis
American Suzanne Stanley, short of money, takes her stepdaughter Emily to
Biarritz
Biarritz ( , , , ; Basque also ; oc, Biàrritz ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. ...
in order to find her a wealthy husband. She pushes her towards the dull Englishman Sir Harry Congers, but Emily is drawn instead to a poor
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
boatman Esteban. She agrees to go with him to the mountains to meet his family, intending to live romantically for a few days to compensate for a lifetime with Sir Harry. She knows she cannot cope with the harsh,
peasant
A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...
life in the mountains, and slips away to Biarritz. He reappears on the day of the wedding and takes her away on a
yacht
A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...
for
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, revealing that he has made a fortune in America.
Cast
*
Dorothy Mackaill
Dorothy Mackaill (March 4, 1903 – August 12, 1990) was a British-American actress, most active during the silent-film era and into the pre-Code era of the early 1930s.
Early life
Born in Sculcoates, Kingston upon Hull in 1903 (although she l ...
as Emily Stanley
*
Warner Baxter
Warner Leroy Baxter (March 29, 1889 – May 7, 1951) was an American film actor from the 1910s to the 1940s. Baxter is known for his role as the Cisco Kid in the 1928 film ''In Old Arizona'', for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at ...
as Esteban Cristera
*
ZaSu Pitts
Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...
as Miss Dibbs
*
Nance O'Neil
Gertrude Lamson (October 8, 1874 – February 7, 1965), known professionally as Nance O'Neil or Nancy O'Neil, was an American stage and film actress who performed in plays in various theaters around the world but worked predominantly in the Unite ...
as Grand Mere
*
Lawrence Grant
Percy Reginald Lawrence-Grant (30 October 1870 in Bournemouth, Hampshire, England – 19 February 1952 in Santa Barbara, California, USA) was an English actor known for supporting roles in films such as ''The Living Ghost'', '' I'll Tell ...
as Sir Harry Congers
*
Leon Janney
Leon Janney (April 1, 1917 – October 28, 1980) was an American actor and radio personality from 1920 to 1980.
Career
Leon Elbert Janney was born in Ogden, Utah, to Nathan Haines Janney and Bernice Rebecca Kohn. The names of his parents are co ...
as Narcio
*
John St. Polis
John M. St. Polis (born John Marie Sainpolis; November 24, 1873 – October 8, 1946) was an American actor.
Biography
St. Polis was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Before starting his film career, he made a name for himself on the Broadway ...
as Hotel Manager
*
Nella Walker
Nella Walker (March 6, 1886 – March 22, 1971) was an American actress and vaudeville performer of the 1920s through the 1950s.
Biography
The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Walker, she was born and raised in Chicago. In 1910, she marrie ...
as Suzanne Stanley
*
Mary Doran
Mary Doran (September 8, 1910 – September 6, 1995) was an American actress. She appeared in more than 80 films from 1927 to 1944.
Biography
Doran was born in New York and attended public schools there before graduating and going to Colum ...
as Stancia
References
External links
*
1931 films
American black-and-white films
Fox Film films
American comedy films
1931 comedy films
Films directed by Hamilton MacFadden
Films set in France
Films based on American novels
1930s English-language films
1930s American films
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