''The Clinging Vine'' is a 1926 American silent

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

produced by

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...

and Paul Slone and directed by Sloane. It was distributed by DeMille's

Producers Distributing Corporation Producers Distributing Corporation was a short-lived Hollywood film distribution company, organized in 1924 and dissolved in March 1927. In its brief heyday, film director Cecil B. DeMille was its primary shareholder and major talent. Corporat ...

.Progressive Silent Film List: ''The Clinging Vine''
at silentera.com The film is based on a 1922 Broadway play of the same name by

Zelda Sears Zelda Sears (née Paldi; January 21, 1873 – February 19, 1935) was an American actress, screenwriter, novelist and businesswoman. Early life and background She was born as Zelda Paldi near Brockway Township, St. Clair County, Michigan, into ...

. The film was a starring vehicle for

Leatrice Joy Leatrice Joy (born Leatrice Johanna Zeidler; November 7, 1893 – May 13, 1985) was an American actress most prolific during the silent film era. Early life Joy was born in New Orleans, Louisiana to dentist Edward Joseph Zeidler, who was o ...

who left

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

along with DeMille when he formed his own distributing company PDC.

Plot

Business woman Antoinette Allen (Joy), known only as "A.B.", works for T.M. Bancroft (Edeson) and runs the company for him and the male board of directors, and uses masculine manners, clothes, and hairstyle, but is unhappy. When at a business retreat she overhears the boss's son Jimmy (Moore) call her an

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

, she allows Grandma Bancroft (Claude) to give her a makeover to be more feminine by wearing a young woman's attire, plucking her eyebrows, curl her hair, and bat her eyelashes. Grandma teaches A.B. that men do not want brains but a clinging vine, and explains that all she needs to say to any man is "Do go on!" and "Aren't you wonderful!" She is introduced to Grandma's guests in an exaggerated white outfit with ruffles and bows, and all the men are smitten with her, including Jimmy, whom she decides to marry. Despite her guise, A.B. saves the men and Jimmy from a con man, and saves the company from ruin. In time, A.B. is able to combine elements from her former business persona and the flirtatious feminine ideal that the men desire. In the end, Jimmy tells her, "I think you're wonderful", and A.B. replies "Oh, do go on!" just before they kiss.

Cast

as Antoinette 'A.B.' Allen * Tom Moore as Jimmie Bancroft *

Robert Edeson Robert Edeson (June 3, 1868 – March 24, 1931) was an American film and stage actor of the silent era and a vaudeville performer. Life and career Edeson was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of manager and actor George R. Edeson. Afte ...

as T.M. Bancroft *

Snitz Edwards Snitz Edwards (born Edward Neumann, 1 January 1868 – 1 May 1937) was a stage and character actor of the early years of the silent film era into the 1930s. Biography Born into a Jewish household on New Year's Day 1868 in Budapest, Hungary ( ...

as Dr. A. 'Tut' Tutweiler *

Toby Claude Toby Claude (born Harriette Mary Kavanagh; January 29, 1877 – October 27, 1962) was an Irish actress and singer in vaudeville, on the Broadway stage, and in silent films. Early life Harriette Mary Kavanagh was born in Dublin. Her father Ric ...

as Grandma Bancroft *

Dell Henderson George Delbert "Dell" Henderson (July 5, 1877 – December 2, 1956) was a Canadian-American actor, director, and writer. He began his long and prolific film career in the early days of silent film. Biography Born in the Southwestern Ontario city ...

as B. Harvey Doolittle ''unbilled'' *

Wilson Benge George Frederick "Wilson" Benge (1 March 1875 – 1 July 1955) was an English actor who mostly featured in American films from the silent days. He appeared in over 200 films between 1922 and 1955. Along with actors Charles Coleman and Rob ...

as Grandma's Butler *

Isabelle Keith Isabelle Keith (born Isobel Keep; May 27, 1898 – July 20, 1979) was an American actress. Keith was born Isobel Keep on May 27, 1898, in Nebraska. She initially was billed under her birth name, but she changed her professional name to Isabell ...

as House Guest *

Louis Natheaux Louis Natheaux (born ''Louis F. Natho''; December 10, 1894 – August 23, 1942) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than eighty films between 1919 and 1942. Born in Danville, Illinois, Natheaux performed in vaudeville and in a C ...

as House Guest * John Roche as House Guest

Production

Leatrice Joy had impulsively cut her hair short in 1926, and

, whom Joy had followed when he set up PDC, was publicly angry as it prevented her from portraying traditional feminine roles. The studio developed projects with roles suitable for her "Leatrice Joy

bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places * Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname ...

", and ''The Clinging Vine'' was the third of five films before she regrew her hair. Despite this, a professional dispute would end the Joy / Demille partnership in 1928.

Reception

The reviews did not favor the film. While ''

Motion Picture Magazine ''Motion Picture'' was an American monthly fan magazine about film, published from 1911 to 1977.Fuller, Kathryn H. “Motion Picture Story Magazine and the Gendered Construction of the Movie Fan.” ''At the Picture Show: Small-Town Audiences a ...

'' (Oct. 1926) thought the stage version of ''The Clinging Vine'' was a creditable success, they asked what would make PDC or Joy "go in for this brand of stuff." '' Picture Play Magazine'' (Oct. 1926) said Joy was not "fare well" and called the character's transformation in the film "sad", and ''

Photoplay ''Photoplay'' was one of the first American film (another name for ''photoplay'') fan magazines. It was founded in 1911 in Chicago, the same year that J. Stuart Blackton founded '' Motion Picture Story,'' a magazine also directed at fans. For mo ...

'' (Sep. 1926) called the plot "goofy" and the film "trite and tedious".

Critical review

The film version presented A.B. (the only name she is called) as a much more androgynous character than the Antoinette of the stage play, and satirizes the conventions of the professional or business woman makeover film by absurdly exaggerating its comic changes. Furthermore, when A.B. is alone after her makeover, she returns to using masculine mannerisms. The introductory shot of Joy shows her from behind signing documents and directing employees, creating such a strong mannish impression (possible only in a silent film) that some have described the later feminine transformation as being like that of a female impersonator. Lastly, while much of the comedy comes with the difficulty in which A.B. transforms into the overly exaggerated feminine ideal, the greatest parody is how well it works on the men of the film.

Preservation

A copy of ''The Clinging Vine'' is preserved at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

and the

UCLA Film and Television Archive The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the archiv ...

,Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Database: ''The Clinging Vine''
/ref> and it has been released on DVD.

References

External links

* * *

' at silentsaregolden.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Clinging Vine, The 1926 films American silent feature films American films based on plays Silent American comedy films American black-and-white films Producers Distributing Corporation films 1926 comedy films Films directed by Paul Sloane 1920s American films