Fools for Scandal (Warner Bros.) (1938)

Carole Lombard, Fernand Gravet At Strand Today (Opening Day Story) Fun aplenty is promised today for patrons of the Strand Theatre —for “Fools for Scandal,” a comedy-romance with Carole Lombard and Fernand Gravet as its stars, will be given its local premiere there. It is presented by Warner Bros. and was both produced and directed by Mervyn LeRoy, ace director of comedies. Gravet’s tremendous success last year in his first American movie, “The King and the Chorus Girl,” will be readily recalled. Joan Blondell was his co-star in that. He is the young Franco-Belgian idol that LeRoy discovered in Paris and put under personal contract. Carole Lombard’s successes have been innumerable. Her two latest, each a tremendous hit, are “True Confession” and “Nothing Sacred.” In her present picture, she portrays an American movie queen (which ought to be easy for her) seeing Paris and London in disguise. Gravet plays an incognito Baron doing approximately the same thing. Rodgers and Hart, America’s leading tunesmiths, wrote the music, including two songs which are already in the hit class—‘There’s A Boy In Harlem” and “Can You Forget?” Adding to the general gaiety there’s a Paris night club scene featuring a big dance number, and a “Noah’s Ark Party” to which all the guests come in animal costume. Other notables in the excellent cast of “Fools for Scandal” include Ralph Bellamy, Isabel Jeans, Marie Wilson, Allen Jenkins, Marcia Ralston and Les Hite and his orchestra. Famed Train Was Lucky For Carole A train carried Carole Lombard to film stardom. The train was the ‘Twentieth Century,” around which a movie of the same title was made, and in which Miss Lombard appeared with John Barrymore. The show was a great hit. Ever since “Twentieth Century,” the blonde star has been the sereen’s leading exponent of high, sometimes called “screwball,” comedy. She is appearing now with Fernand Gravet in the Mervyn LeRoy-Warner Bros. comedy “Fools for Scandal,” currently on view at the Strand Theatre. In this she portrays a great American movie star at large in London and Paris. The role is funny all the way through, with romance’ occasionally emphasized in her scenes with the popular Franco-Belgian star. Others in the cast include Ralph Bellamy, Isabel Jeans, Allen Jenkins and Marie Wilson. Turkey a La Carole There’s no limit to a film prop man’s ingenuity. A scene for Mervyn LeRoy’s “Fools for Scandal” required Carole Lombard to eat a turkey drumstick with her fingers. But Miss Lombard announced that she didn’t like turkey. Eddie Edwards, the property man, promptly solved the problem by having a bare turkey drumstick bone wrapped in roast beef on which Miss Lombard chewed contentedly. “Fools for Scandal,” a comedy presented by Warner Bros., is now showing at the Strand Theatre. Mat 205—30c Carole Lombard and Fernand Gravet are this way about each other in "Fools For Scandal,'' the Strand's current attraction. STORY SYNOPSIS: Time: present; Place: Paris and London. An American movie star (Carole Lombard) with a million dollar bank account, is doing the continent incognito. (Imagine that!) At a wedding where everybody kisses everybody else she strikes up with Fernand Gravet, a penniless but handsome baron with a million dollar love technique. Little matters like a titled lady (Isabel Jeans) who has designs on the Baron; and Ralph Bellamy who thinks his engagement to our movie queen is permanent—make things tougher for the "boy gets girl angle." But he won't take "maybe" for an answer. He pursues: her to London and hires himself out as her cook, creates a few plain and fancy scandalous situations, and then the fun fireworks begin to pop. (Review ) A riotous comedy with music— and Carole Lombard and Fernand Gravet—is “Fools For Scandal,’ the Strand’s newest offering which was served up to a jammed but more than well-pleased audience last night. As if gorgeous Miss Lombard, she of the mad antics, were not enough, the picture should really teach the femme fans how to say ... Fer-nand Gra-vay, (it’s Gravet in the billing). The handsome French musical comedy star, making his second American appearance—the first was in “The King and the Chorus Girl’—surprises his most ardent fans with a song routine that’s well worth the price of admission alone. Personally directed by Producer Mervyn LeRoy from a script prepared by Herbert and Joseph Fields and Irving Brecher, the film fairly sparkles with wit, speed and fun throughout—a made-toorder madcap formula for Miss Lombard and Gravet. A swell score of music is by Rodgers and Hart, a pair that’s penned many a hit tune, most re cent ones being “The Lady Is a Tramp,” “Where Or When?”, and “Johnny One-Note.” The two numbers in “Fools For Scandal” destined for equal popularity are “How Can You Forget” and “There’s a Boy In Harlem,” the latter being part of the ‘“‘Le Petit Harlem” cabaret sequence which was specially handled by Dance Director Bobby Connolly. The story itself is a wow. Miss Lombard is an American movie star in Europe to see the sights. Gravet, an impoverished French baron who does not use his title because of a lack of coin of the realm, shows off his culinary ability for a gag at a party. The haughty actress offers him a job as her cook to embarrass him. He accepts after which the film continues its fast pace as Miss Lombard falls hopelessly in love with her aloof chef. Supporting roles are aptly filled by Ralph Bellamy as Miss Lombard’s willing but unwanted fiance, Allen Jenkins as an American pal of Gravet, also impecunious, and Isabel Jeans and Marcia Ralston. Sh! It's scandalightful the way Carole Lombard and Fernand Gravet carry on in "Fools For Scandal," now at the Strand. Mat 201—30c Rodgers and Hart Song Team Write As They Beach! (Current ) Dick Rodgers and Larry Hart write as they beach. East or West, the team of Rodgers and Hart, which has been like ham-and-eggs, or anyhow words-and-music, for the past 18 years, find their best inspiration at the seashore. Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean are their Eastern habitats when they are working on Broadway shows. When they’re doing a Hollywood chore, they get as close to the Pacific as they can. Rodgers and Hart, Richard and Lorenz, respectively, may be a little superstitious about oceans since the success of “Thou Swell” a few years back. — Their latest Pacific inspiration produced three special numbers for Mervyn LeRoy’s production of “Fools for Scandal,” starring Carole Lombard and Fernand Gravet for Warner Bros. The first one they wrote was about a place 3000 miles away — Harlem. They called it “There’s A Boy In Harlem.” Then they forgot about geography and wrote one called “How Can You Forget?” It comes under the “torch” classification. The third R.H. number is called “Food for Scandal.” This last-named is a “plot piece.” It fits the action of the play, runs about five minutes, and joins dialogue and action to music. It involved a good deal of timing on Monsieur Gravet’s part. Every move he made had to be done in beat. The song team has been writing music for Broadway shows and Hollywood movies alternately for the past decade. Some of their recent hits include “The Lady Is A Tramp,” “Where Or When,” “Blue Moon” and “Johnny One Note.” They say they’re not geniuses. They start working in the morning. Preferably near an ocean. Fernand Stages One-Man Revolt Fernand Gravet, the FrancoBelgian film star, staged a oneman revolution for five minutes one day on the set of “Fools for Scandal,” in which he is appearing opposite Carole Lombard. Gravet is superstitious about owls, believing the hooters to be birds of ill omen. When he saw an owl mask to be used in the “Animal Party” scenes for “Fools for Scandal,” he protested to Mervyn LeRoy, who was producing and directing the comedy for Warner Bros. “That bird is bad luck for me,” Gravet said. “I will not play in any scenes with an owl, live, stuffed or as a mask.” LeRoy took a quick glance at the script to see whether the owl mask was an integral part of the plot. Discovering that any other bird would do, he acceded to his Franco-Belgian star’s superstition. Harlem Gals Croon The three Brown Sisters who appear in “Le Petit Harlem” night club sequences of “Fools for Scandal,” the Mervyn LeRoy production for Warner Bros., starring Carole Lombard and Fernand Gravet, sing hot songs with religious fervor. There’s a reason. The dusky girls, who have become famous as among their race’s leading exponents of jazz and swing numbers, contribute part of their salaries to the support of the Central Avenue Baptist Church, Los Angeles, of which their father is pastor. Pave Eight