Funloving Pearl White, working in a garment sweatshop, gets her big chance when she "opens" for a delayed Shakespeare play...with a comic vaudeville performance. Her brief stage career ... See full summary »
Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends.
If your account is linked with Facebook and you have turned on sharing, this will show up in your activity feed. If not, you can turn on sharing
here
.
Funloving Pearl White, working in a garment sweatshop, gets her big chance when she "opens" for a delayed Shakespeare play...with a comic vaudeville performance. Her brief stage career leads her into those "horrible" moving pictures, where she comes to love the chaotic world of silent movies, becoming queen of the serials. But the consequences of movie stardom may be more than her leading man can take Written by
Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu>
In real life, Pearl White was married and divorced twice; her second husband committed suicide in 1928, 7 years after their 1921 divorce. In the film, she never marries, although a forthcoming marriage to the fictitious Michael Farrington is implied at the finale, which takes sometime in the mid-1920's. See more »
Pearl White was a serial queen of the B films of the silent period and this is a take on her life--a humorous one, tailored of course to suit Betty Hutton's style of clowning.
The story begins with Hutton working in a sweat shop and doing one of her frantic song routines before she lands a part with a traveling repertory company where she falls for conceited leading actor John Lund. Lund plays straight man for Hutton's mugging and one scene in particular will have you laughing out loud as Hutton--drenched from the rain--attempts to recite her next line without sneezing. He proves an excellent co-star.
Adding to the merriment is Constance Collier as a wise, veteran stage actress who attempts to teach Pearl the tricks of the trade. Billy de Wolfe and William Demarest add to the fun and there are some nice tunes by Frank Loesser.
Definitely one of Betty Hutton's better pictures, tuneful, brightly technicolored and a good showcase for her talent.
13 of 14 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful to you?
Pearl White was a serial queen of the B films of the silent period and this is a take on her life--a humorous one, tailored of course to suit Betty Hutton's style of clowning.
The story begins with Hutton working in a sweat shop and doing one of her frantic song routines before she lands a part with a traveling repertory company where she falls for conceited leading actor John Lund. Lund plays straight man for Hutton's mugging and one scene in particular will have you laughing out loud as Hutton--drenched from the rain--attempts to recite her next line without sneezing. He proves an excellent co-star.
Adding to the merriment is Constance Collier as a wise, veteran stage actress who attempts to teach Pearl the tricks of the trade. Billy de Wolfe and William Demarest add to the fun and there are some nice tunes by Frank Loesser.
Definitely one of Betty Hutton's better pictures, tuneful, brightly technicolored and a good showcase for her talent.