Ruth Chatterton Movies
Ruth Chatterton was a dignified, sophisticated, brittle, blonde leading lady. At age 12, she debuted on stage in a stock production, reached Broadway by age 18, then triumphed at 20 as the star of Daddy Long Legs. She didn't break into films until her mid-30s, starting with Sins of the Fathers (1928) opposite Emil Jannings. She was subsequently nominated for "Best Actress" Oscars for her work in Madame X (1929) and Sarah and Son (1930), but is perhaps best remembered as Walter Huston's spoiled, selfish wife in Dodsworth (1936), after the making of which she left Hollywood. She went on to appear in two British productions, then retired from the screen. She continued a successful and variety-filled career on the stage, once directing a play but more usually starring in Broadway productions. She authored a Broadway play, Monsieur Brotonneau (1930), as well as several novels in the '50s. Chatterton was also a licensed pilot who flew her own plane cross-country. She was married three times, each time to an actor: Ralph Forbes (1924-32), George Brent (1932-34), and Barry Thomson (1942-his death in 1960). ~ All Movie Guide- 1929
The early Paramount talkie The Dummy represented a collaboration of sorts between screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, who adapted the play on which the film was based, and Mankiewicz' brother Joseph, who wrote the subtitles for the film's silent version. The title character is office-boy Barney, played by Mickey Bennett. Pretending to be a deaf-mute, Barney tries to trump his detective boss Walter Babbing (John Cromwell) by tracking down the person who kidnapped Peggy Meredith (Vondell Darr), the daughter of wealthy Agnes and Trumbull Meredith (Ruth Chatterton, Frederic March). The guilty party turns out to be Rose Gleason, played by ZaSu Pitts in a rare non-comic role. Previously filmed as a silent picture with Jack Pickford (Mary's brother) in the lead, The Dummy suffered from substandard sound reproduction, but like most 1929 "talkers" it was a big success. John Cromwell, the actor who plays "The Dummy's" boss, is better known for his directorial achievements; his son, James Cromwell, would earn an Oscar nomination for his performance in the 1995 fantasy Babe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ruth Chatterton, Fredric March, (more)
- 1929
Alexandre Brisson's weepy 1906 play had already been filmed three times when the 1929 talkie Madame X made its debut. Ruth Chatterton stars as a low-born wife of a socialite, whose aristocratic in-laws kick her out when she gives birth to a baby boy of dubious parentage. The boy, who has been led to believe his mother is dead, grows up to become a renowned attorney (Raymond Hackett). Mama Chatterton takes to the streets, but proudly monitors her son's progress from afar. When Chatterton is accused of murder, her defense attorney is none other than her son. She refuses to tell him the truth about their relationship, even though that information may make the difference between execution and exoneration. Madame X would be remade three more times over the next five decades; to avoid confusion with these later versions, the 1929 Madame X has been retitled Absinthe for its TV showings. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ruth Chatterton, Lewis Stone, (more)
- 1929
The Doctor's Secret was adapted by director William C. DeMille from James M. Barrie's play Half an Hour. After marrying wealthy Richard Garson (H.B. Warner) for his money and prestige, Lillian Garson (Ruth Chatterton) grows weary of her stuffed-shirt husband and decides to run off with another man. While disembarking from a cab to meet Lillian, her lover is struck down and killed by a hit-and-run driver. On the scene of the accident is Dr. Brodie (Robert Edeson), who happens to be an old friend of Garson's. That evening, at a cocktail party held by Garson, Dr. Brodie begins relating the story of the unfortunate accident victim and his beautiful paramour. As the story unfolds, Garson begins to suspect that Lillian, who is late for the party, is the "woman in the case." When Lillian finally shows up, her husband confronts her with his suspicions. But Dr. Brodie saves the day by lying like a gentlemen, denying that he and the errant wife have ever met before. Doctor's Secret was one of the first Hollywood talkies to be simultaneously filmed in foreign-language versions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ruth Chatterton, H.B. Warner, (more)
- 1928
The great German actor Emil Jannings closed out the American phase of his film career with the Paramount part-talkie Sins of the Fathers. Jannings is cast as Wilhelm Spangler, who works as a head waiter to provide for his pregnant wife (ZaSu Pitts). As their family grows and grows, Spangler becomes more and more successful in his chosen profession, eventually putting enough money together to buy his own restaurant. The now-prosperous Spangler begins playing the filed with other women, including temptress Gretta (Ruth Chatterton). Upon learning about her husband's infidelities, Mother Spangler goes into a catatonic shock, which eventually leads to her death. With no "guiding force" at home, Spangler embarks upon a life of crime as a Prohibition bootlegger. The sins of the fathers are visited upon the sons at last when Spangler's beloved son Tom (Barry Norton) is blinded after drinking some of his dad's bootleg hootch. Later on, Spangler is thrown in jail, prompting the far-from-faithful Gretta to walk out on him. After serving his term, Spangler starts life all over again from the bottom as a waiter. An unhappy ending is averted when Spangler is tearfully reunited with son Tom, whose sight has been restored. Outside of a bizarre sequence in which Emil Jannings sings in a whiskey baritone, Sins of the Fathers was distinguished by the presence of Ruth Chatterton, whose first film this was. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emil Jannings, ZaSu Pitts, (more)
