Loretta Young Movies

Still in the Hollywood phase of his career, director Alexander Korda made his talking-picture bow with Warner Bros.' The Squall. Myrna Loy stars as Nubi, a sexy and seductive Hungarian gypsy girl who is caught in a torrential downpour. Taking refuge in a farmhouse, Nubi wreaks havoc on the male occupants, all of whom violently vie for her attentions. In other words, the film's title is both literal and symbolic. Loretta Young appears in the secondary role of Irma, sweetheart of emotional young farmer Paul Lajos (Carrol Nye). The Squall was based on a play by Jean Bart. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Careless Age was based on Diversion, a play by John Van Druten. Douglas Fairbanks Jr. plays Wyn, a headstrong young British aristocrat whose escapades cause no end of headaches for his father Sir John (Holmes Herbert). Although married to Muriel (Loretta Young), Wyn begins courting a gold-digging musical comedy actress named Ray (Carmel Myers). But when our hero is falsely accused of murder, Muriel stands nobly by his side. The film suffers from the usual early-talkie deficiencies, but the performances -- especially from the younger members of the cast -- are vibrant and enthusiastic. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Veteran comedian Charlie Murray plays a serious role in 1928's Head Man. Murray is cast as a senator named Watts, whose political career is ruined when he refuses to suck up to a "machine" boss. After several weeks of self-pity, Watts decides to beat the Machine at its own game. With the support of friends and family, he runs for mayor and soon the bad guys are running from him! Cast as Watts' daughter Carol is 15-year-old Loretta Young, just beginning her long association with First National/Warner Brothers. Also on hand are such surefire supporting players as Lucien Littlefield, Irving Bacon, Harvey Clark, and Dot Farley (who, like Charlie Murray, was an alumnus of the Mack Sennett comedy factory). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In his later interviews, director Allan Dwan seldom had anything to say about his 1928 opus Whip Woman -- and who could blame him? Estelle Taylor, whose tabloid fame as the litigious wife of boxer Jack Dempsey tended to overshadow her acting skills, stars as Sari, a whip-wielding Hungarian peasant girl. After saving Count Michael Ferrenzi from killing himself, Sari becomes the bride of the grateful aristocrat. Ferrenzi's snooty mother (Hedda Hopper) does everything she can to break up the union, but Sari is not a girl to be trifled with. Fifteen-year-old Loretta Young showed up in a small role in Whip Woman, which led to much bigger things when she was spotted by director Herbert Brenon and cast in the Lon Chaney Sr. vehicle Laugh, Clown, Laugh. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the tradition of Colleen Moore's best films, Her Wild Oat is nowhere near as "naughty" as its title. Moore is cast as Mary Brown, the orphaned owner of a tiny lunch wagon. Carefully salting away her money, Mary hopes to escape her tenement surroundings and take a long vacation. She gets the opportunity when she hires an assistant, handsome Philip Latour (Larry Kent), whom she assumes to be even worse off than she. In truth, Philip is quite wealthy, but out of love for Mary he pretends to be his own chauffeur. Checking out his story, Mary visits the hotel where Philip's "boss" is supposedly staying, only to end up being mistaken for the Duchess of Granville. This results in a ticklish situation involving Philip's flirtatious father, not to mention virtually everyone else in the hotel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This romantic costumed adventure is the film that cemented Rudolph Valentino's reputation as a legendary screen lover. Sheik Ahmed Ben Hassan (Valentino) takes Lady Diana Mayo (Agnes Ayers) to his camp when he finds the beauty in the desert. Although drawn to the Sheik, Lady Diana is able to resist his amorous advances. When his former French school chum Raoul de Saint Herbert (Adolphe Menjou) convinces him to let Diana go free, she is kidnapped by the villainous Omair (Walter Long), who promises her a fate worse than death. The heroic Sheik and his army save Diana from suicide, but he is severely wounded in the melee. Diana helps the Sheik regain his strength after he saves her and she vows her everlasting love to her British-educated hero. Reviewers at the time of the film's release were very critical of the film and the performance of Valentino, suggesting the public should ask the film to be censored as it was morally objectionable. Paramount Pictures thought the film would go nowhere fast, but millions of women made Valentino an international heartthrob. Many fainted at the initial showing of the film, and Rudolph Valentino eclipsed Wallace Reid in popularity. Over 70 years after his death, Rudolph Valentino is still remembered as the first male superstar to have a direct and lasting impact on female viewers, and the word "sheik" became as synonymous with Valentino as the word "vamp" was associated with the exotic Theda Bara. Watch for seven-year-old Loretta Young in a bit part. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

A baby is washed up on shore, and a wealthy couple, the Stanhopes (Sydney Deany and Helen Wright) take her in and raise her. She is named Lorelei and grows up to be a pretty girl (played by Louise Lovely). One afternoon, she goes swimming with a group of her friends. Two young men, David (Jack Mulhall) and Boyce William Quinn), are on a cruise, and when they see the scantily-clad girls in the water, they decide to stop and stick around for a while. David and Lorelei fall in love, arousing the jealousy of Boyce and Lorelei's friend Julie (Carmel Myers). One evening, David and Lorelei are chasing each other around and Lorelei falls over a cliff. After a desperate search, David falls into an exhausted sleep. He has a dream loaded with a lot of strange allegorical images before waking up and finally finding his girl. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide