Spite Marriage (1929)

An unimpressive but well intending man is given the chance to marry a popular actress, of whom he has been a hopeless fan. But what he doesn't realize is that he is being used to make the actress' old flame jealous.

Director:

Edward Sedgwick

Writers:

Lew Lipton (story), Ernest Pagano (adaptation),

Stars:

Buster Keaton, Dorothy Sebastian, Edward Earle

Cast

Cast overview:
Buster Keaton	...	Elmer
Dorothy Sebastian	...	Trilby Drew
Edward Earle	...	Lionel Benmore
Leila Hyams	...	Ethyl Norcrosse
William Bechtel	...	Nussbaum
Jack Byron	...	Scarzi (as John Byron)

Storyline

Elmer is a dry cleaner. He is madly in love with stage star Trilby Drew; for each of her 35 performances, he dons someone else's tuxedo and races to the theatre. When Trilby's co-star boyfriend gets engaged to a socialite, she marries Elmer to get even, assuming Elmer is a millionaire (since his clothes are so snazzy.) But she's clearly still in love with her scoundrelous co-star, and her manager makes her leave Elmer, trying to pay him off so the papers don't hear about her marriage to a "cheap pants presser." Can Elmer win her love? Maybe a sea voyage will help.

---

Plot Keywords:

pants presser | marriage | actor | yacht | theater

---

Genres:

Comedy

---

Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 April 1929 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die unvollkommene Ehe

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Joseph M. Schenck Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min 76 min (Turner library print)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Buster Keaton wanted this film to be a full talkie, but MGM released it with only a musical score and sound effects.

---

Goofs

In the dressing-room scene while attempting to trim the hair for his false beard, Elmer accidentally severs the left-hand shoulder strap of his vest and has no time to repair it. When we see him hurriedly changing back into his smart clothes after the performance, both straps are still whole.

---

Connections

Featured in Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow (1987)

User Reviews

Buster Keaton and Dorothy Sebastian

Slow to start, but Spite Marriage (Keaton's final silent film) builds to an exciting and funny finale.

Buster plays a pants presser who falls for a local stage actress (Dorothy Sebastian). He sees the play so many times he has it memorized and gets a chance to replace an actor who is wanted by the cops. Many funny bits as Buster makes a shambles of the play.

To get even with her leading man (Edward Earle) who is seeing a snappy blonde (Leila Hyams), Sebastian marries Buster. They run into the actor and his new bride and Sebastian gets soused and thrown out of the restaurant. Back in their room Buster has a hard time getting Dorothy up on the bed (hilarious scene).

Through a series of plot twists Buster ends up on a yacht (with Sebastian) and runs into all manner of comedy situations.

Keaton is in top form and Dorothy Sebastian has what is probably her most memorable film role. They make quite a pair (and yes they were lovers at this point).