Show People (1928)

Thank God that Marion Davies's talent has been given its due at last: rarer is the person who stands up and says she was the talent-less mistress of a powerful man. Show People (1928) might be her greatest vehicle and it is a good picture to show to silent cinema neophytes. Its blend of good humor and satire on the Hollywood machine make it still entertaining and relevant in regards to American celebrity culture.Marion Davies is sympathetic, sexy, and side-splitting, especially with her later parody of actress Mae Marsh, known for her bee-stung lips. William Haines is a good match for her as the love interest, a Mack Sennett style comedian. And silent film geeks will dig all the cameos from the stars of the day, including Charlie Chaplin, John Gilbert, and Douglas Fairbanks.A fun film. Check it out everyone.

SHOW PEOPLE, premiered November 11th of 1928, it was a Cosmopolitan Production, distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. I saw the "Restored Long Version" at the Library of Congress and per Dick May at Warners: "We have found some shots in various elements that were not in the existing MGM negative or the original negative. These have now been put back where they belong. Nothing important but it gets closer to the original." SHOW PEOPLE was directed by King Vidor and written by Agnes Christine Johnston and Laurence Stallings with titles by Ralph Spence, and it's based on a story by Wanda Tuchock and the play POLLY PREFFERED by Guy Bolton.SHOW PEOPLE is a starring vehicle for actress Marion Davies and actor William Haines and includes notable cameo appearances by many of the great film stars of the day, including Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, William S. Hart, and John Gilbert. Director Vidor also appears in a cameo as himself. The film is a comedic satire of the early days of movie making in Hollywood loosely based on the career of Gloria Swanson, who began her career in comedy, switched to costume dramas and married a titled foreigner just before this film was written. Many consider it Davies' best role.Marion Davies was a Broadway dancer in the 1916 edition of Ziegfeld Follies, when William Randolph Hearst discovered her and became so enchanted that for eight weeks he never missed a performance, reserving two seats per show (one seat for his hat). Soon after, Davies appeared in only Hearst-produced movies, a professional association which spilled over into her private life; she became Hearst's mistress.On the IMDb they list over 25 of her 48 films averaging an 8 out of 10 stars or higher. Davies retired from the screen in 1937 and continued as the popular hostess of San Simeon, Hearst's gigantic estate on the California coast until Hearst died in 1951. Davies was much loved by her friends and by Hollywood in general; alas, most people today "know" Davies only through the character of "Susan Alexander" in Orson Welles' thinly disguised chronicle of William Randolph Hearst's life, CITIZEN KANE. In 1962 a year after she died, CITIZEN KANE was rediscovered and declared a masterpiece. It is also a work of fiction.Film buffs are heart-broken that poor Marion's reputation suffered from that movies portrayal of the "opera singer" without talent. In truth, Marion was very successful in films, especially comedies.Co-star William Haines was born January 1st of 1900 in Stanton, VA. Entering films in 1922, Haines rose to stardom at MGM as the star of several breezy comedy-dramas, in which he usually played a smart-aleck braggart who was forced to eat humble pie sometime before the fadeout. One of Haines' most popular films was TELL IT TO THE MARINES with Lon Chaney. His favorite leading ladies included Joan Crawford and Marion Davies. Haines' popularity diminished in the early 1930s, due to the emergence of younger cocksure types like James Cagney. He later became a famous interior decorator to the stars and books on him and his celebrity home décor designs are still popular & expensive! Director King Vidor made his reputation on pictures such as the antiwar drama THE BIG PARADE and later THE CROWD (my favorite silent drama) that displayed a remarkably sophisticated social conscience as well as an innovative directorial technique that placed it at the pinnacle of silent-era cinema. Of his talkies there is the boxing drama, THE CHAMP, starring Wallace Beery and Jackie Cooper. Ironically, the most widely seen and known film today that Vidor worked on was the OVER THE RAINBOW song and early sepia-toned scenes in: THE WIZARD OF OZ. Later he directed the adventure film NORTHWEST PASSAGE starring Spencer Tracy.Vidor had a cute anecdote about pitching his SHOW PEOPLE story to Louis B. Mayer, MGM wonder-kid Irving Thalberg and Hearst when he started talking about the necessity for a pie-throwing scene (which Hearst was against anything that might embarrass or humiliate Davies) when Vidor noticed a newspaper sticking out of Hearst pocket, the headline read, "Hearst Wants Coolidge To Serve Second Term." Hearst would be on the set most days conducting his newspaper empire at a desk behind the camera with two secretaries manning the phones… and when they wanted to shoot a slap-stick scene they wanted to get rid of Hearst so Davies arranged to have an editor call him away so they could film the scene. She even asked Buster Keaton to show her how to back thru a door as if saying goodbye to friends as if it were funny… he told her DON'T ANTICIPATE! You'll know the scene I'm speaking about when you see it.Among the locations used in the film are MGM's back-lot and the old Mack Sennett "Keystone" studios, where such comedy greats as Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton & Harold Lloyd all worked early in their careers.In the movie, after the premiere of her first film she will be approached outside the theater by a fan wanting an autograph. She does not recognize him and you may not either as Charlie Chaplin is not in costume or wearing his little black mustache. It's an inside joke as they were best friends and there were even rumors that they were lovers as explored in the 2001 film by Peter Bogdanovich, THE CAT'S MEOW starring Kirsten Dunst as Davies.A little later when she's invited to HIGH ART studio she sees a fancy car pull up and a movie star gets out… it's Marion Davies playing herself! The musicians who play "mood music" for Peggy Pepper during filming did the same thing in real life for actress Marion Davies.The well known faces back then appearing in the banquet scene include: Renée Adorée, Rod La Rocque, Mae Murray, John Gilbert, Norma Talmadge, Douglas Fairbanks, Marion Davies, and William S. Hart. All superstars 80 years ago!

I had seen Marion Davies in a couple of movies and really couldn't understand her appeal. She couldn't dance for peanuts, she didn't attempt to sing and as for her acting - she seemed in a trance. But I hadn't seen her silent comedies and this film is wonderful. Rather than kidding her own image, as has been suggested here, to me it seems a satire on Gloria Swanson, who did start off in slapstick comedies, went on to highly emotional women's pictures and did end up marrying a Count. Marion, a top mimic, also did a funny rabbit imitation whenever she wanted to be seen as grand, that was Gloria Swanson spot on!!!Colonel Pepper (Dell Henderson) has motored all the way from Georgia to Hollywood, determined to prove that his daughter, Peggy, (Marion Davies) will be the greatest star ever. Their hope dwindles and they are down to their last 40 cents when they meet Billy Boone (William Haines) who works at the slapstick studios and promises to get Peggy a job. Peggy thinks she is going to be a great dramatic actress but the studio think she is a fantastic comic. They convince her to make the film and at the preview she is a great success. Charlie Chaplin asks for her autograph but she doesn't recognise him and treats him pretty rudely. "Who was that short little guy" - when she finds out she faints!!! Peggy and Billy get a call from High Art Studio but only Peggy is wanted and suddenly she is on her way. There is a funny scene where she sees a star she doesn't think much of - it's Marion Davies!!!She finally gets a chance of being a dramatic actress - but she can't cry!!! It is a hilarious scene as the director tries everything to get her to cry and when he succeeds, she can't stop!!! Her new leading man, Andre (Paul Ralli) convinces her to forget her comedy past and become elite and sophisticated - she even adopts a new name - Patricia Pepoire!!! She also seems to have forgotten Billy and her dad - she has developed a "STAR" personality!!! When the slapstick studio picks the same location as "Patricia's" movie, Billy is thrilled to see her but quite unprepared for her snobby attitude. When she calls him a cheap clown he realises that she is not the girl he once knew. After a studio luncheon ( a magnificent panning shot of some of the greatest stars of the day) "Patricia" gets a call from the Boss. It seems her films are a flop and no theatres want to book them - the public are tired of her mannerisms and want the old Peggy back. She and Andre decide to get married, she dreams of being a Countess (even though Billy says that Andre used to serve him spaghetti in a little cafe downtown and is no more a Count than he is). On her wedding day, Billy visits and after a hilarious custard pie fight she realises that Billy is the one for her.It was amazing to see all the guest stars - John Gilbert is seen going through the MGM gates, Lew Cody is talking to Elinor Glynn, who not only wrote "It" but several racy romances that were made into MGM movies. William Haines, another actor whose movies I had always wanted to see, was great - especially in the cafeteria scene , he had wonderful comic timing. Harry Gribbon was hilarious as the comedy director - there were so many hilarious scenes in this film and Marion was at the top of them all - I'm giving this film 10 out of 10.Highly, Highly Recommended.

I've seen hundreds of silent movies. Some will always be classics (such as Nosferatu, Metropolis, The General and Wings) but among them, my favorite is this film (it may not be the best--but a favorite, yes). In fact, when I looked it up on IMDb, I noticed I immediately laughed to myself because the movie was so gosh-darn cute and well-made. Marion Davies proved with this movie she really had great talent and was not JUST William Randolph Hearst's mistress.The story involves a hick from Georgia coming to Hollywood with every expectation that she would be an instant star! Her experiences and the interesting cameos of stars of the era make this a real treat for movie buffs and a must-see!