Twentieth Century (1934)

Director:

Howard Hawks

Writers:

Charles Bruce Millholland (play)
Ben Hecht (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

11 May 1934 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Plot:

A flamboyant Broadway impresario who has fallen on hard times tries to get his former lover, now a Hollywood diva, to return and resurrect his failing career.

Plot Keywords:

Broadway | Train | Impresario | Actress | Lunatic

Cast

John Barrymore	...	Oscar Jaffe
Carole Lombard	...	Lily Garland
Walter Connolly	...	Oliver Webb
Roscoe Karns	...	Owen O'Malley
Ralph Forbes	...	George Smith
Charles Lane	...	Max Jacobs (as Charles Levison)
Etienne Girardot	...	Mathew J. Clark
Dale Fuller	...	Sadie
Edgar Kennedy	...	Oscar McGonigle
Billie Seward	...	Anita

Also Known As:

20th Century (USA) (poster title)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #4312-R, 11 May 1938 for re-release)

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Howard Hawks was concerned when Carole Lombard could not perform the kicking scene very well. Hawks took her out for a walk and recalls, "I asked her how much money she was getting for this picture. She told me and I said, 'What would you say if I told you you'd earned your whole salary this morning and didn't have to act anymore?' And she was stunned. So I said, 'Now forget about the scene. What would you do if someone said such and such to you?' And she said, 'I'd kick him in the balls.' And I said, 'Well, he (John Barrymore) said something like that - why don't you kick him?' She said, 'Are you kidding?' And I said, 'No.'" Hawks ended the conversation with, "Now we're going back in and make this scene and you kick, and you do any damn thing that comes into your mind that's natural, and quit acting. If you don't quit, I'm going to fire you this afternoon." Hawks' white lies did the trick, and the scene was filmed. In addition, Hawks claimed that after that, Lombard never began another movie without sending him a telegram that read, "I'm gonna start kicking him."

Goofs:

Plot holes: When Jaffe takes over direction, he addresses Lily by her new name and she responds, even though she hasn't heard it before. This gap was caused by the deletion of a brief scene in which O'Malley informs her that Jaffe has changed her name.

Quotes:

Lily Garland, aka Mildred Plotka: What is it this time - the big drama about Hairpin Annie, the pride of the gashouse?

Movie Connections:

References Rain (1932)

Soundtrack:

Happy Days Are Here Again

Barrymore, Lombard, and Hawks Are Outstanding

John Barrymore is in rare form in Twentieth Century (1934), Howard Hawks's hilarious, fast-paced screwball comedy. He plays flamboyant Broadway director-producer Oscar Jaffe, a man for whom the whole world is truly a stage. The always enchanting Carole Lombard co-stars as Mildred Plotka/Lily Garland. (Oscar demanded the name change because Mildred Plotka isn't nearly as glamorous sounding as Lily Garland.) Mildred, an aspiring Broadway actress, is remade by Oscar into a star of the New York stage. For three years he directs her plays, guides her career, and is her lover. But after they have a big disagreement, she takes off for Hollywood. Her career soars; his plummets. Time passes and then on board the Twentieth Century heading for Grand Central Station, they meet again. As usual in a Hawks film, the supporting cast is outstanding; and Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's screenplay is one of their finest.