Pretty Ladies

What a good, and honest, backstage story!

Zasu Pitts is Maggey, the comedic star of a Follies show, envied by Selma (Lilyan Tashman, playing the show's "beauty" and girlfriend of the show's producer) because Maggey gets all of the laughs and attention. Maggey's big hit number in the show is about wanting a man: "To kiss me and miss me --- / To beat me and cheat me --- / I WANT A MAN!!" (The literal spotlight is then shone on various male audience members, to the delight of the entire audience.)

Selma throws fits because she thinks Maggey is stealing her scenes, and the producer-boyfriend suggests to Maggey that she should perhaps postpone her entrance in order to help out Selma's performance...

Thus is the sad Maggey's life: Talented, but unappreciated and love-lorn, she watches other couples pair off after the show, then sadly goes home alone, where she fantasizes about a Dream Man (a cameo by Conrad Nagel, who, in a bit of trick photography, dines with her and kisses her, though he doesn't exist).

The next day, pre-show, Maggey accidentally stumbles off the stage and onto the drums of Al (Tom Moore), a disheveled band member of the show. After she buys him a new drum, he gratefully writes a new show-tune for her ("The House Fly Blues"). As they leave the show that evening (Selma: "Who's that man with Maggey?" Decrepit state manager: "That ain't a man...it's the drummer!"), Maggey pretends she doesn't have her own car waiting and takes the bus with Al in order to discuss his new song. (Funnily, her confused driver follows alongside the bus while she shoos him away.)

Once home, Maggey pushes the Dream Man into a closet as she guides Al to her table... His "House Fly Blues" later appears as a clever show number: On the backdrop of a kitchen table, Maggey is a buzzing, crawling fly...

Aside from the surface Maggey-and-Al love story, the film includes many realistic (and cleverly done) behind-the-scenes looks at the Follies life, including a dirty-old-man stage manager looking up the girls' skirts as they ascend a staircase. And a panned shot across the showgirls, including Joan, getting ready in the dressing room (this shot is featured in the "Ultimate Star" bio of Joan). And then there's the chorus girl who, somewhat shockingly to today's eyes, keeps her baby in a basket below the dressing table; she takes a swig of liquor, then adds it to the kid's milk-bottle, saying, "Here, you little pie-faced mutt." (This same girl later has an offer from a Stage-Door Johnny to take her out: She accepts his offer of a cab, then gets in the cab with her baby and shuts the door on the man.)

RE Joan appearances:
Whenever the chorus appears, Joan is part of it. Joan also has two scenes alone with Zasu Pitts: The first is a minute-long scene (@9:30 - 10:30) in which Joan, dressed in 18th-century French wig and costume, commiserates with Maggey's man-troubles: "Men are all alike...if they ain't fresh they're rotten." But then Joan also meanly adds: "What do you know about love?"
Around 32:15 of the film, Joan enters in street clothes and invites Maggey to a party. From 33:15 on, Joan is shown at the party, specifically at 39:50 when George K. Arthur pesters her while she's making out.

RE the film's cameos: The initial credits say "Impersonation of Frances White by Norma Shearer"---I don't know who "Frances White" is (and couldn't find out after a Google search), and I didn't spot Norma Shearer anywhere in the film. RE comic actor George K. Arthur: At a party (attended by Maggey and also Al/Selma), Arthur shows up after Maggey dons blackface to try to entertain the guests after seeing her man Al and Selma together. When Maggey and Arthur hug, she inadvertently wipes some of her blackface paint onto his face. He then spends the next 10 minutes of the film telling party guests AND the fire department: "MAGGEY'S ALL BLACK!!" A pretty dull, repetitive, too-long sequence. (When Maggey leaves the party in humiliation after being abandoned by Al, and still wearing her smear of blackface, the best part is the funny look she gets from her actually black driver.)

After the party, Al is repentent and proposes marriage. Cut to him in a happy family scene with Maggey and baby in front of a Christmas tree and fireplace. But then a telegram arrives, offering Al a chance to write new song numbers in Atlantic City. And he goes! And he messes up! (I wasn't expecting any of this! I thought the film had ended at the happy-family Christmas scene!) Maggey's reaction is... appropriate to her imaginative and kind nature shown in earlier parts of the film...

An interesing, honest, well-shot and edited film, aside from being Joan's first film credit as "Lucille LeSueur."

I think this may be the best JC film from 1925. Not that Joan is in it very much, but she gets more face time than most of the extant films from her first year in Hollywood, with perhaps the exception of Sally, Irene, and Mary.

There is a great cast and I think that's one of the things that attracts me to Pretty Ladies, along with its blend of laughs and more serious fare. ZaSu Pitts---fresh off a masterful turn in Greed, 1924---stars as a Follies comedienne, Maggie. Tom Moore co-stars as Al, drummer in the Follies orchestra and aspiring songwriter (Moore was a major star in the early '20s and had a notable co-starring role in Manhandled with Gloria Swanson, 1924). Moore is likewise very good as a bored drummer with bigger show business dreams. Lilyan Tashman is Selma, Follies diva; she does a great job as the bad egg (had Tashman not died young, I think she would have been a big star). Other stars like Norma Shearer and Ann Pennington are listed in the credits, but not seen in the available copy. Reputedly, Myrna Loy and Carole Lombard appear as chorus girls in the dance numbers. Conrad Nagel---the distinguished gent who introduced Joan in her first talking role, her song and dance number in Hollywood Revue---is Maggie's dream lover.

The story revolves around a romance between ZaSu Pitts' character, Maggie, and Al, with Selma as antagonist. The latter, upset that comic Maggie's entrances ruin her applause, decides to subvert the budding romance and eventual marriage between Maggie and Al. When Al writes a hit song for Maggie, Selma asks him over to her place to write a tune for him, eventually setting the stage for his seduction.

Pitts is great as Maggie, playing the lonely clown with comedy and pathos. There is a small, easily overlooked scene about 15 minutes into the movie. An old, haggard cleaning woman at the theater (who I'd bet a nickel is played by Bodil Rosing) shows Maggie the press clippings from when she, Rossing's character, was a star on Broadway 30 years before. This poignant exchange between the erstwhile and current Broadway stars is a reminder that fame can be fleeting, and serves as a catalyst for Maggie to take a chance on romance with Al.

What of JC? She plays Bobby, a dancer, and is billed for the only time as Lucille LeSueur. She has a nice scene at the start in Maggie's dressing room in which the latter helps JC smooth over a lovers' quarrel. JC also gets what is likely her first line in a movie when she utters the gem, "Men are all alike, if they ain't fresh, they're rotten!" : ) JC has a few scenes later on, playing a party guest, which seems to be a recurring role for her in 1925.

There's a lot going on for an hour-long movie, but it moves along nicely. The story ends with Maggie forgiving Al for his transgression. It's a tad abrupt, though, as far as endings go, but this may be due to the missing footage. JC gets quality screen time for what she considered her first movie.

I give this 4 stars. I would have gone higher if the missing reels had popped up, if the ending was a little better, and---of course---if there had been more Joan Crawford in it!

I found Pretty Ladies from a man in Slovenia who happened to see a YouTube video I had posted of Twelve Miles Out. Very random and very lucky! I never thought I would see this film. The quality is much better than I anticipated. It has the look of a 35mm projector being recorded by a camcorder. You can see the flashing light of the projector and there is no music or anything. Truly a silent film.

This is the film that Joan Crawford counted as “film number one.” It is her first significant role in a film. Most sources say that this is the first and only time that Joan Crawford was billed by her real name, Lucille LeSueur, but I’m not so sure about that. The more I learn about Joan Crawford, the more I realize how many facts people got wrong, especially about the early years. There is no screen credit given to her in the print that I found. Not in the beginning, not in the end, and not during the film (as was done in many silent films). There is a Technicolor part missing from the film, so it’s possible she was given credit in that. The print I have is 54 minutes and the film is said to be 74 minutes. I would LOVE to see the Technicolor parts! Such a pity. It was probably a choreographed dancing act like other parts of the film.

An actual title shot from 'Pretty Ladies,' spoken by Joan's character.

The film has many famous faces in it, including Zasu Pitts, Lilyan Tashman, Conrad Nagel, Norma Shearer, and our beloved Joan Crawford, of course. Joan is a presence throughout the film, playing the role of a showgirl (according to sources, her name was Bobby, but I never saw that name used in my print). She is seen in a dancing bit in the beginning, talking to Pitts backstage in 2 scenes, dancing at a party, making out with some guy on the floor, and playing cards. She even has a few lines here and there. She seems at ease and very professional in such an early role. It looks very natural for her. Her best line in the film is “Men are all alike; if they ain’t fresh, they’re rotten."

The plot of the film is actually kind of strange. Maggie (Pitts) is part of the Ziegfeld Follies, along with many other showgirls. Her stage persona is that of a comedian and she is one of the stars, but in real life she is depressed and longs for true love. She envies the other showgirls’ exploits with men. She finally meets a man who writes a successful part in the show for her, and they fall in love and start a family, but another showgirl becomes jealous and has him write her a part in the show and ultimately gets him to commit adultery. Maggie finds out about it but refuses to acknowledge it. She remains with him, and the film ends with her praying to god that it doesn’t happen again. How sad! Such a tragic ending for such an upbeat film! You really want her to find love, and she does, but it’s not perfect love, and she doesn’t care… She says “I believe in God and God wouldn’t let this happen to me.” I’m not sure if there is a statement being made here or not.

By and large I enjoyed the film a lot. The fashion and the art direction alone are worth the watch. I found a small train scene in the rain particularly enjoyable. The film was a good start to an amazing career of an amazing woman that didn’t really come to an end until 1972.