Laugh, clown, laugh

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Movie
German title Laugh clown, laugh
Original title Laugh, clown, laugh
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1928
length 73 minutes
Rod
Director Herbert Brenon
script Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
production Irving Thalberg
music Ted Fiorito
camera James Wong Howe
cut Marie Halvey
occupation

Lach, Clown, lach (OT: Laugh, Clown, Laugh ) is an American silent film from 1928 with Lon Chaney and Loretta Young in the leading roles. Directed by Herbert Brenon .

action

Tito and Simon travel as clowns from variety show to variety show. When Tito finds an abandoned child, he takes it in and raises it; he names the girl “Simonetta” after his brother. One day Simonetta meets the rich Luigi, who immediately falls in love with her. However, when she finds out that Luigi already has a girlfriend, she rejects him and returns to the brothers. Tito realizes that she is no longer a child and develops feelings for her, but also feels uncomfortable because he raised her as his daughter.

Luigi has been shaken by uncontrollable fits of laughter since Simonetta rejected him; Tito is saddened by his conflicting interests in her. Both go to the same doctor and meet each other for the first time. Because they suffer equally, they believe they can help each other but do not know that they both love the same woman. A deep friendship develops between them until Luigi Simonetta desires to marry. She agrees, which drives Tito into even deeper melancholy. Even before the marriage, Simonetta learns of Tito's true feelings for her. She explains that she loved him before Luigi and leaves to break off her engagement with Luigi.

While Simonetta is dissolving the engagement, Tito and Simon begin rehearsing for a new acrobatic number. Tito doesn't believe that Simonetta's love is real, but he also knows that as an adoptive father it is not right for him to have her as a wife. Torn by this inner conflict, he decides to perform the acrobatic number without safety. Despite his brother Simon's protests, he continues and throws himself to his death.

background

The film was preceded by a play that was staged from November 28, 1923 to March 1924 in New York City in the Belasco Theater with Lionel Barrymore and his second wife Irene Fenwick in the leading roles and brought it to 133 performances. The piece by David Belasco goes back to Fausto Martini's 1919 story Ridi, Pagliacco .

Lon Chaney, who had played a similar role as a tragic clown in The Man Who Was Slapped by Victor Sjöström in 1924, was cast in the main role. For Loretta Young , who was only 15 at the time , it was her first appearance as the leading lady . She was treated badly by Herbert Brenon at the start of filming. She turned to Chaney, who agreed to support her. Brenon then stopped his derogatory behavior. In the previous year, Lon Chaney was accordingly collegial towards Joan Crawford , whom he helped to shape her role while working together on The Unknown .

Joseph Farnham wrote the subtitles. Cedric Gibbons designed the film, Gilbert Clark provided the costumes. Sam and Jack Feinberg were the musicians in the studio.

Theatrical release

The production cost was $ 293,000, which is in the normal range for a Lon Chaney film. At the box office, Laugh, Clown, Laugh proved popular and grossed $ 450,000 for the studio.

Film music

Ted Fiorito composed the waltz Laugh, Clown, Laugh to text by Sam Lewis and Joe Young , which was very successful. When Lon Chaney died in 1930, his studio musicians played him in memory at the funeral.

Republication

Warner Home Video released the film on DVD in 2003.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cf. HISTORY LESSON: The Feinberg Brothers at lalalandhistory