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John Gilbert (actor)

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For other uses, see John Gilbert (disambiguation) and John Pringle (disambiguation).
John Gilbert
Born
John Cecil Pringle

(1897-07-10)July 10, 1897
Logan, Utah, U.S.
DiedJanuary 9, 1936(1936-01-09) (aged 38)
Bel Air, California, U.S.
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale
NationalityAmerican
EducationHitchcock Military Academy
Occupation(s)Actor, director, writer
Years active1915–1934
Spouse(s)
Olivia Burwell
​
​
(m. 1918; died 1921)​

​
​
(m. 1922; div. 1925)​

​
​
(m. 1929; div. 1931)​

​
​
(m. 1932; div. 1934)​
Children2

John Gilbert (born John Cecil Pringle; July 10, 1897 – January 9, 1936) was an American actor, screenwriter and director. He rose to fame during the silent film era and became a popular leading man known as "The Great Lover". His legendary breakthrough came in 1925 with his starring roles in the The Merry Widow and The Big Parade. At the height of his career, Gilbert rivaled Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw. [1]

Gilbert's career declined precipitously when silent pictures gave way to talkies. Though Gilbert was often cited as one of the high-profile examples of an actor who was unsuccessful in making the transition to sound films, his decline as a star had far more to do with studio politics and money than with the sound of his screen voice, which was rich and distinctive. [2]

Biography

Early years

Born John Cecil Pringle in Logan, Utah, to stock-company actor parents, John Pringle (1865–1929) and Ida Apperly Gilbert (1877–1913), he struggled through a childhood of abuse and neglect. His family moved frequently and Gilbert attended several schools throughout the United States. After his family settled in California, he attended Hitchcock Military Academy in San Rafael, California.[3]

Extra

After he left school Gilbert worked as a rubber goods salesman in San Francisco, then performed with the Baker Stock Company in Portland, Oregon, in 1914.[4] He subsequently found work as a stage manager in stock company in Spokane, Washington in 1915. He lost his job when the company folded.[5]

He decided to try acting and gained work as a film extra through Herschell Mayall. Gilbert first appeared in a short directed by Wilfred Lucas, The Mother Instinct (1915). He found work as an extra with the Thomas Ince Studios on films such as The Coward (1915), Aloha Oe (1915), Civilization (1915), The Last Act (1916), and William Hart's Hell's Hinges (1916).[5]

Kay-Bee Company

He could also be seen in films for Kay-Bee Company such as Matrimony (1915), The Corner (1915), Eye of the Night (1916) and Bullets and Brown Eyes (1916). He had an early leading part in The Apostle of Vengeance.[5] His pay at this time was $40 a week.[6]

Gilbert began to get parts at Kay-Bee, billed as "Jack Gilbert" in The Aryan (1916) with Hart, The Phantom (1916), Shell 43 (1916), The Sin Ye Do (1917), The Weaker Sex (1917), and The Bride of Hate (1917).

His first leading role was in Princess of the Dark (1917) with Enid Bennett, but the film was not a big success and he went back to supporting roles in The Dark Road (1917), Happiness (1917), The Millionaire Vagrant (1917), and The Hater of Men (1917).[7]

Triangle Films

Gilbert went over to Triangle Films where he was in The Mother Instinct (1917), Golden Rule Kate (1917), The Devil Dodger (1917) (second billed), Up or Down? (1917), and Nancy Comes Home (1918).

For Paralta Plays, Gilbert did Shackled (1918), One Dollar Bid (1918), and Wedlock (1918) and More Trouble (1918) for Anderson, but the company went bankrupt.[6]

He did Doing Their Bit (1918) at Fox and returned to Triangle for The Mask (1918).

Gilbert did Three X Gordon (1918) for Jesse Hampton, The Dawn of Understanding (1918), The White Heather (1919) for Maurice Tourneur, The Busher (1919) for Thomas Ince, The Man Beneath for Haworth, A Little Brother of the Rich (1919) for Universal, The Red Viper (1919) for Tyrad, For a Woman's Honor (1919) for Jess Hampton, Widow by Proxy (1919) for Paramount, Heart o' the Hills (1919) for Mary Pickford, and Should a Woman Tell? (1919) for Screen Classics.[8]

Maurice Tourneur - Writing and Directing

Tourneur signed him to a contract to both write and act in films. Gilbert acted in and co-wrote The White Circle (1920), The Great Redeemer (1921) and Deep Waters (1921). As a writer only he worked on The Bait (1921), starring and produced by Hope Hampton. For Hampton, Gilbert wrote and directed, but did not appear in Love's Penalty (1921).

For HO David he was in The Servant in the House (1921).

Fox and Stardom

In 1921, Gilbert signed a three-year contract with Fox Film Corporation, where he was cast as a romantic leading man as "John Gilbert".

Fox gave Gilbert his first real starring part in Shame (1921).[9] He followed it with leading roles in Arabian Love (1922), Gleam O'Dawn (1922), The Yellow Stain (1922), Honor First (1922), Monte Cristo (1922) an adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo,Calvert's Valley (1922), The Love Gambler (1922), and A California Romance (1922). Many of these films were written by Jules Furthman.

He returned to Tourneur to costar with Lon Chaney in While Paris Sleeps (1923). Back at Fox Gilbert starred in Truxton King (1923), Madness of Youth (1923), St. Elmo (1923), and The Exiles (1923).

Gilbert starred in Cameo Kirby (1923), directed by John Ford, co starring Jean Arthur. He went into The Wolf Man (1923) with Norma Shearer, not a horror film, but the story of a man who believes he murdered his fiancee's brother while drunk.

Gilbert's last films for Fox were Just Off Broadway (1924), A Man's Mate (1924), The Lone Chance (1924), and Romance Ranch (1924).[10]

MGM

Under the auspices of movie producer Irving Thalberg, Gilbert obtained a release from his Fox contract and moved to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he became a full-fledged star cast in major productions. First starring in His Hour (1924) directed by King Vidor and written by Elinor Glyn his film career entered its ascendancy. He followed this success with He Who Gets Slapped (1924) co-starring Chaney and Shearer and directed by Victor Sjöström; The Snob (1924) with Shearer; The Wife of the Centaur (1924) for Vidor. [11]

The next year, Gilbert would star in two of the most critically acclaimed and popular film productions of the silent era: Erich von Stroheim’s The Merry Widow and King Vidor’s The Big Parade.[12]

The Merry Widow (1925)

Gilbert was assigned to star in Erich von Strohiem’s The Merry Widow by Irving Thalberg, over the objections of the Austrian-American director. Von Stroheim expressed his displeasure bluntly to his leading man: "Gilbert, I am forced to use you in my picture. I do not want you, but the decision was not in my hands. I assure you I will do everything in by power to make you comfortable." Gilbert, mortified, soon stalked off the set in a rage, tearing off his costume. Von Stroheim followed him to his dressing room and apologized. The two agreed to share a drink. Then Gilbert apologized and they had another drink. The tempest subsided and was resolved amicably. According to Gilbert, the contretemps served to "cement a relationship which for my part will never end."[13]

The adulation astounded Gilbert: "Everywhere I hear whispers and gasps in acknowledgment of my presence,,,[t]he whole thing became too fantastic for me to comprehend. Acting, the very thing I had been fighting and ridiculing for seven years, had brought me success, riches and renown. I was a great mot ion picture artist. Well, I’ll be damned!"[14]

The Big Parade (1925)

Gilbert was next cast by Thalberg to star in the King Vidor’s war-romance The Big Parade (1925), which became the second-highest grossing silent film and the most profitable film of the silent era. Gilbert’s "inspired performance" as an American doughboy in France during WWI was the high point of his acting career. He fully immersed himself in the role of Jim Apperson, a Southern gentleman who, with two working class comrades, experiences the horrors of trench warfare. Gilbert declared: "No love has ever enthralled me as did the making of this picture...All that has followed is balderdash."[15]

The following year, Vidor reunited Gilbert with two of his co-stars from that picture, Renée Adorée and Karl Dane, for the film La Bohème (1926) which also starred Lillian Gish. He then did another with Vidor, Bardelys the Magnificent (1926).

File:OhnGilbert-actor2.jpg
Press release photo

Greta Garbo

Gilbert with Greta Garbo in A Woman of Affairs (1929)

In 1926, Gilbert made Flesh and the Devil (1926), his first film with Greta Garbo. Gilbert first encountered Garbo on the set during filming of the railway station scene, and the chemistry between the two was evidently instantaneous. Director Clarence Brown remarked approvingly that he "had a love affair going for me that you couldn’t beat, any way you tried." They soon began a highly publicized romance, much to the delight of their fans and MGM.[16][17]

He made The Show (1927) with Adoree for Tod Browning then did Twelve Miles Out (1927) with Joan Crawford and Man, Woman and Sin (1927) with Jeanne Eagels.[18]

Gilbert was reunited with Garbo in a modern adaptation of Tolstoy’s 19th Century novel, Anna Karenina. The title was changed to Love (1927) to capitalize on the real life love affair of the stars and advertised by MGM as "Garbo and Gilbert in Love."[19]

Gilbert made The Cossacks (1928) with Adoree; Four Walls (1928) with Crawford; Show People (1928) with Marion Davies for Vidor, in which Gilbert only had a cameo; and The Masks of the Devil (1928) for Victor Sjöström.

Though officially directed by Edmond Goulding, Gilbert, though uncredited, was responsible for directing the love scenes involving Garbo. He was perhaps the only person in the industry whose "artistic judgment" she fully respected. As such, MGM approved of this arrangement.[20]

Gilbert and Garbo were teamed for a third time in A Woman of Affairs (1928). His last silent film was Desert Nights (1929).

Sound Era

With the coming of sound, Gilbert's vocal talents made a good first impression, though the studio had failed to conduct a voice test. The conventional wisdom of the day dictated that actors in the new talkies should emulate "correct stage diction". Gilbert’s strict adherence to this method produced an affected delivery that made audiences giggle, and not due to any particularity in Gilbert’s natural speech. Indeed, the "quality of his voice compared well with that of co-star Conrad Nagel, regarded as having one of the best voices for sound."[21]

Gilbert signed an immensely lucrative multi-picture contract with MGM in 1928 that totaled $1,500,000. The terms of the agreement positioned MGM executives Irving Thalberg and Nicholas Schenck, both sympathetic to Gilbert, to supervise his career. [22]

Gilbert frequently clashed with studio head Louis B. Mayer over creative, social and financial matters. A violent contretemps occurred at the planned double-wedding of Garbo and Gilbert and director King Vidor and actress Eleanor Boardman. Louis B. Mayer is reported to have made a crude remark to Gilbert about Garbo. Gilbert reacted by knocking Mayer to the floor with his fist. [23]

This story has been disputed by some historians, although Vidor’s bride, Eleanor Boardman claimed to be an eyewitness to the scene.[24]

In the all-star musical comedy The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929), Gilbert and Norma Shearer played the balcony scene from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, first as written, then followed with a slang rendition of the scene. The comic effect served to "dispell the bad impression" produced by Gilbert’s original "mincing" delivery.[25]

His Glorious Night

Audiences awaited further romantic roles from Gilbert on the talking screen. The next vehicle was the Ruritanian romance His Glorious Night (1929), directed by Lionel Barrymore. According to reviewers, audiences laughed nervously at Gilbert's performance. The offense was not Gilbert's voice, but the awkward scenario along with the overly ardent love scenes. In one, Gilbert keeps kissing his leading lady, (Catherine Dale Owen), while saying "I love you" over and over again. (The scene was parodied in the MGM musical Singin' in the Rain (1952) in which a preview of the fictional The Dueling Cavalier flops disastrously.)

Director King Vidor speculated that the late Rudolph Valentino, Gilbert's main rival for romantic leads in the silent era, probably would have suffered the same fate in the talkie era had he lived. Gilbert’s inept phrasing, his "dreadful enunciation" and the "inane" script as the genuine sources of his poor performance, that drew "titters" from audiences. [26]

The "Sqeaky Voice" Myth

The persistent myth that John Gilbert had a "squeaky voice" [27] that doomed his career in sound films first emerged from his performance in 1929 with His Glorious Night.

It was rumored that Louis B. Mayer ordered Gilbert’s voice to be gelded by manipulating the sound track to give it a higher, less masculine pitch. [28]

British film historian Kevin Brownlow analyzed the sound track from a print of His Glorious Night (a title alone he calls "risible") and found that the timbre and frequency of Gilbert’s speaking scenes were no different than in his subsequent talkies. He reports that, overall, Gilbert’s voice was "quite low". As to any manipulation of Gilbert’s footage, television technicians in the 1960s found that his voice was consistent with the other actors on the same print, casting doubt on any "sabotage" directed particularly at Gilbert’s voice.

Film critic John Baxter allows that Gilbert had "a light speaking voice", a minor defect that both MGM and the star "magnified into an obsession." [29][30]

In any case, Mayer apparently detested Gilbert and was disgruntled that the actor had signed a contract for six pictures at $250,000 each. It was suggested that Mayer deliberately gave Gilbert bad scripts and ineffective directors in an effort to void the contract. [31]

Decline

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cast Gilbert in a film adaption of The Living Corpse by Tolstoy re-titled as Redemption (1929). The bleak atmosphere and maudlin dialogue presaged the disaster looming in the stars’ personal life and career. Gilbert’s confident screen presence had vanished, while his use of the exaggerated stage diction that elicited laughs from the audience persisted. In one scene Gilbert declares ominously "I’m going to kill myself to let the whole world know what is has lost."[32]

MGM put him in a more rugged film, Way for a Sailor (1930) with Wallace Beery. He followed it with Gentleman's Fate (1931). Gilbert became increasingly depressed by progressively inferior films and idle stretches between productions. Despite efforts by studio executives at MGM to cancel his contract, Gilbert resolved to thwart Louis B. Mayer and see the six-picture ordeal through to the end. [33]

Gilbert's fortunes were temporarily restored when MGM's production chief Irving Thalberg gave him two projects that were character studies, giving Gilbert an excellent showcase for his versatility. The Phantom of Paris (1931), originally intended for Lon Chaney (who died from cancer in 1930), cast Gilbert as a debonair magician and showman who is falsely accused of murder and uses his mastery of disguise to unmask the real killer.

Downstairs (1932) was based on Gilbert's original story, with the actor playing against type as a scheming, blackmailing chauffeur. The films were well received by critics and fans but failed to revive his career.[21] In between he appeared in West of Broadway (1931). Shortly after making Downstairs, he married co-star Virginia Bruce; the couple divorced in 1934.

Gilbert fulfilled his contract with MGM with a perfunctory "B" picture - Fast Workers (1933) directed by Browning. He left the studio in 1933, terminating his $10,000 a week contract.

Exhausted and demoralized by his humiliations at MGM and his declining success at the box office, Gilbert began to drink heavily, contributing to his declining physical and mental health.[34]

Queen Christina (1933)

Gilbert announced his retirement from acting and was working at Fox as an "honorary" director when, in August 1933, Gilbert announced he had signed a seven year contract with MGM at $75–100,000 a picture.[35] The reason was Greta Garbo insisted that Gilbert return to MGM to play her leading man in Queen Christina (1933), directed by Rouben Mamoulian. Garbo was top-billed, with Gilbert's name beneath the title. Queen Christina, though a critical success, did not revive Gilbert's poor self-image or his career.[36][37] Garbo is reported to have dropped the young Laurence Olivier scheduled to play the part for Gilbert, but director Rouben Mamoulian recalled that Olivier's screen tests had already eliminated from consideration.[38]

Columbia Pictures gave Gilbert what would be his final chance for a comeback in The Captain Hates the Sea (1934) in which he gave a capable performance as "a dissipated, bitter [and] cynical" playwright. But the off-screen cast of heavy drinkers encouraged his alcoholism. The film would be the last in his career.[39]

Biographer Kevin Brownlow's eulogy to John Gilbert considers the destruction of both the man and his career:

"The career of John Gilbert indicates that the star, and the person playing the star, were regarded by producers as separate entities, subject to totally different attitudes. Gilbert, as an ordinary human being, had no legal right to the stardom that was the sole property of the studio. When Gilbert, as an employee, tried to seize control of the future of Gilbert the star, the studios decided to save their investment from falling into the hands of rivals, [so] they had to wreck their property. Other properties - books, films, sets - could be destroyed with impunity. But the destruction of a star carried with it the destruction of a person…it seems somewhat abhorrent that it took such tragedies as that of John Gilbert to bring us our entertainment."[40]

Personal life

Gilbert was married four times. His first marriage, on August 26, 1918, was to Olivia Burwell, a native of Mississippi whom Gilbert had met after her family moved to California. They separated the following year and Burwell returned to Mississippi for a while. She filed for divorce in Los Angeles in 1921.[41]

In February 1921, Gilbert announced his engagement to actress Leatrice Joy. They married in Tijuana in November 1921.[42] As Gilbert had failed to secure a divorce from his first wife and the legality of Gilbert and Joy's Mexican marriage was questionable, the couple separated and had the marriage annulled to avoid a scandal.[43] They remarried on March 3, 1922. The marriage was tumultuous and, in June 1923, Joy filed for legal separation after she claimed that Gilbert slapped her face after a night of heavy drinking. They reconciled several months later. In August 1924, Joy, who was pregnant with the couple's daughter, filed for divorce.[44] Joy later said she left Gilbert after discovering he was having an affair with actress Laurette Taylor.[45] Joy also claimed that Gilbert had conducted affairs with Barbara La Marr (with whom he had a romance before his marriage to Joy), Lila Lee and Bebe Daniels.[46] Gilbert and Joy had a daughter, Leatrice Gilbert (later Fountain; 4 September 1924 – 20 January 2015).[47][48][49] Joy was granted a divorce in May 1925.[50]

In 1929, Gilbert eloped with actress Ina Claire to Las Vegas.[51] They separated in February 1931 and divorced six months later.[52][53] Gilbert's fourth and final marriage was on August 10, 1932, to actress Virginia Bruce, who had recently costarred with him on the MGM film Downstairs.[54][55] The entertainment trade paper The Film Daily reported that their "quick" wedding was held in Gilbert's dressing room on the MGM lot while Bruce was working on another studio production, Kongo.[56] Among the people attending the small ceremony were the head of MGM production Irving Thalberg, who served as Gilbert's best man; screenwriter Donald Ogden Stewart, whose wife Beatrice acted as Bruce's matron of honor; MGM art director and set designer Cedric Gibbons; and his wife, actress Dolores del Río.[56] Bruce retired briefly from acting following the birth of their daughter Susan Ann; however, she resumed her career after her divorce from Gilbert in May 1934.[57][58]

Before his death, Gilbert dated actress Marlene Dietrich as well as Greta Garbo.[59] When he died, he had recently been slated to play a prominent supporting role in Dietrich's film Desire.[60]

Death

By 1934, alcoholism had severely damaged Gilbert's health. He suffered a serious heart attack in December 1935, which left him in poor health.[61] Gilbert suffered a second heart attack at his Bel Air home on January 9, 1936, which was fatal.[62]

A private funeral was held on January 11 at the B.E. Mortuary in Beverly Hills. Among the mourners were Gilbert's two ex-wives, Leatrice Joy and Virginia Bruce, his two daughters, and stars Marlene Dietrich, Gary Cooper, Myrna Loy, and Raquel Torres.[63][64]

Gilbert was cremated and his ashes were interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale in Glendale, California.[65][66]

Gilbert left the bulk of his estate, valued at $363,494 (equivalent to $7.98 million in 2023), to his last ex-wife Virginia Bruce and their daughter, Susan Ann. He left $10,000 to his eldest daughter Leatrice, and other amounts to friends, relatives and his servants.[67][68]

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Gilbert has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1755 Vine Street.[69] In 1994, he was honored with his image on a United States postage stamp designed by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld.

Filmography

Year Films Role Notes
1915 The Coward Minor role Uncredited
1915 Matrimony Extra Short film
Uncredited
1915 Aloha Oe Extra Uncredited
1916 The Corner Extra Uncredited
1916 Bullets and Brown Eyes
1916 The Last Act Extra Uncredited
1916 Hell's Hinges Rowdy townsman Uncredited
1916 The Aryan Extra Uncredited
1916 Civilization Extra Uncredited
1916 The Apostle of Vengeance Willie Hudson
1916 The Phantom Bertie Bereton
1916 Eye of the Night Uncredited
1916 Shell 43 English Spy
1916 The Sin Ye Do Jimmy
1917 The Weaker Sex
1917 The Bride of Hate Dr. Duprez's Son
1917 Princess of the Dark "Crip" Halloran
1917 The Dark Road Cedric Constable
1917 Happiness Richard Forrester Credited as Jack Gilbert
1917 The Millionaire Vagrant James Cricket
1917 The Hater of Men Billy Williams
1917 The Mother Instinct Jean Coutierre
1917 Golden Rule Kate The Heller
1917 The Devil Dodger Roger Ingraham
1917 Up or Down? Allan Corey
1918 Nancy Comes Home Phil Ballou Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 Shackled James Ashley Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 More Trouble Harvey Deering Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 One Dollar Bid Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 Wedlock Granger Hollister Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 Doing Their Bit Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 The Mask Billy Taylor Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 Three X Gordon Archie Credited as Jack Gilbert
1918 The Dawn of Understanding Ira Beasly Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 The White Heather Dick Beach Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 The Busher Jim Blair Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 The Man Beneath James Bassett Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 A Little Brother of the Rich Carl Wilmerding
1919 The Red Viper Dick Grant Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 For a Woman's Honor Dick Rutherford
1919 Widow by Proxy Jack Pennington Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 Heart o' the Hills Gray Pendleton Credited as Jack Gilbert
1919 Should a Woman Tell? The Villain Credited as Jack Gilbert
1920 The White Circle Frank Cassilis Credited as Jack Gilbert
Writer
1920 The Great Redeemer Undetermined role Uncredited
Adaptation
1920 Deep Waters Bill Lacey Credited as Jack Gilbert
Writer
1921 The Servant in the House Percival Credited as Jack Gilbert
1921 The Bait
–
 Lost film
Writer
1921 Love's Penalty
–
 Writer, director, editor
1921 Shame William Fielding/David Field
1921 Ladies Must Live The Gardener Credited as Jack Gilbert
1922 Gleam O'Dawn Gleam O'Dawn
1922 Arabian Love Norman Stone
1922 The Yellow Stain Donald Keith
1922 Honor First Jacques Dubois/Honoré Duboois
1922 Monte Cristo Edmond Dantes, Count of Monte Cristo
1922 Calvert's Valley Page Emlyn Credited as Jack Gilbert
1922 The Love Gambler Dick Manners
1922 A California Romance Don Patricio Fernando
1923 While Paris Sleeps Dennis O'Keefe
1923 Truxton King Truxton King
1923 Madness of Youth Jaca Javalie
1923 St. Elmo St. Elmo Thornton Lost film
1923 The Exiles Henry Holcombe
1923 Cameo Kirby Cameo Kirby
1924 Just Off Broadway Stephen Moore
1924 The Wolf Man Gerald Stanley Lost film
1924 A Man's Mate Paul
1924 The Lone Chance Jack Saunders Lost film
1924 Romance Ranch Carlos Brent
1924 His Hour Gritzko
1924 Married Flirts Guest at party Cameo appearance
Lost film
1924 He Who Gets Slapped Bezano
1924 The Snob Eugene Curry Lost film
1924 The Wife of the Centaur Jeffrey Dwyer Lost film
1925 The Merry Widow Prince Danilo Petrovich
1925 The Big Parade James Apperson
1925 Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ Crowd extra in chariot race Uncredited
1926 La Bohème Rodolphe
1926 Bardelys the Magnificent Bardelys
1926 Flesh and the Devil Leo von Harden
1927 The Show Cock Robin
1927 Twelve Miles Out Jerry Fay
1927 Man, Woman and Sin Albert Whitcomb
1927 Love Captain Count Alexei Vronsky Director (Uncredited)
1928 The Cossacks Lukashka
1928 Four Walls Benny Horowitz Lost film
1928 Show People Himself Cameo appearance
Uncredited
1928 The Masks of the Devil Baron Reiner
1928 A Woman of Affairs Neville "Nevs" Holderness
1929 Desert Nights Hugh Rand Last silent film
1929 His Glorious Night Captain Kovacs Sound film debut
1929 The Hollywood Revue of 1929 Himself
1930 Redemption Fedya
1930 Way for a Sailor Jack
1931 Gentleman's Fate Giacomo Tomasulo/Jack Thomas
1931 The Phantom of Paris Chéri-Bibi
1931 West of Broadway Jerry Seevers
1932 Downstairs Karl Schneider Story
1933 Fast Workers Gunner Smith
1933 Queen Christina Antonio
1934 The Captain Hates the Sea Steve Bramley

John Gilbert is the subject of a mini-documentary film called Rediscovering John Gilbert (2010) featuring an on-camera interview with John Gilbert's daughter and biographer, Leatrice Gilbert Fountain. The short film, directed and produced by film historian Jeffrey Vance, has aired on the Turner Classic Movies cable channel and is also available on DVD from home video distributor Flicker Alley.[70]

Fictional portrayals

Gilbert has been portrayed in several films. Barry Bostwick appeared as the actor in the television film The Silent Lovers first shown in 1980. He has also been portrayed by his grandson, John Fountain, in Sunset (1988), Christopher Renstrom in La Divina (1989), and Adnan Taletovich in Return to Babylon (2012).

Footnotes

  1. ^ Koszarski, 1983: p. 150: "cemented John Gilbert’s reputation as a romantic hero."
    Brownlow, 1979. p. 192: Gilbert "inherited the title of The Great Lover...after the death of Valentino." And: "The Merry Widow made John Gilbert famous" and he "soared to fame" in The Big Parade, in which "he gave a performance that ranks as one of the finest of the entire silent period."
  2. ^ Brownlow, 1979. p. 192: Gilbert "experienced a humiliating plunge from popularity." and p. 193: Brownlow reports that Gilbert’s sound recordings for His Glorious Night was marred by his "dreadful enunciation" of his lines, a matter of that could have been corrected with elocution coaching and a better script, and not his natural voice which "was quite low" and p. 202: "the quality of [Gilbert’s]...compared well with that of co-star Conrad Nagel, regarded as having one of the best voices for sound." And see p. 194: Gilbert refused to walk out on his MGM contract despite "harassment" and was "no longer on speaking terms with Louis B. Mayer." Gilbert was "subjected to one poor picture after another" and suffered "attempts at [his] humiliation, aimed at forcing him to quit" so as to breach his lucrative contract.
  3. ^ "John Gilbert, Film Actor, Dies of Heart Attack". Reading Eagle. January 9, 1936. p. 1. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  4. ^ "Tickled a Mean Guitar". The Register-Guard. Eugene, Oregon. September 10, 1923. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b c John Gilbert Is Dead at 38; Forgotten by Four Ex-Wives: Only Firemen, Nurse and Doctor at Deathbed; Screen Idol Declared Love for Garbo Most Real Thing in His Life. John Gilbert Dead at 38 By the Associated Press. The Washington Post 10 Jan 1936 p. 1.
  6. ^ a b JOHN GILBERT, DASHING LOVER OF FILMS, DIES: Heart Attack Is Fatal to 38 Year Old Actor. Chicago Daily Tribune 10 Jan 1936 p. 3.
  7. ^ NOTED SCREEN ACTOR: John Gilbert's Sudden Death "THE PERFECT LOVER" The Scotsman 10 Jan 1936 p. 11.
  8. ^ Golden, Eve (2013). John Gilbert: The Last of the Silent Film Stars. University Press of Kentucky. p. 45. ISBN 0-8131-4162-1.
  9. ^ RADIOS.: ANOTHER STAR GLEAMS. GILBERT SAID TO HAVE WON THAT HONOR WITH FOX. Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 1 June 1921 p. III4.
  10. ^ JOHN GILBERT: Whom You Can Now See in "A California Romance" Picture Show; London Vol. 10, Iss. 248, (Jan 26, 1924) p. 7.
  11. ^ Brownlow 1979, p. 192: "At once [Gilbert’s] fortunes improved" upon working with Thalberg.
  12. ^ Koszarski, 1983, p. 150: Director Stroheim’s Merry Widow his "greatest critical and popular success."
    Phillips, 2009: "[The Big Parade] was also the most profitable silent-era feature and remained MGM’s most successful film until Gone with the Wind in 1939. In some American cities it screened for more than a year."
    Silver, 2010: "...it is arguably Vidor’s finest achievement."
  13. ^ Brownlow 1979. p. 192: Brownlow is apparently quoting Gilbert from an interview or memoir of the incident.
  14. ^ (Koszarski, 1983 p. 150: "cemented John Gilbert’s reputation as a romantic hero."
    Brownlow, 1979, p. 192: Brownlow quoting from an interview or memoir by Gilbert, no date. Also p. 196: The film brought Gilbert "international renown."
  15. ^ Brownlow 1979, p. 192-193: "Gilbert gave a performance that ranks as one of the finest of the entire silent period" And: "Gilbert was playing a part he never played before," Vidor said. "He never had dirty fingernails before, and he’d never done a part without makeup before. Then he found that he liked it."
  16. ^ Brownlow, 1979, p 198-199: See photo from set, with Garbo/Gilbert embracing
  17. ^ DEATH CALLS TO GILBERT, SCREEN STAR: Actor Dies After Heart Attack Great Lover of Films, Figure in Real Life Romances, Rose From Extra Ranks Los Angeles Times 10 Jan 1936 p. 1.
  18. ^ JOHN GILBERT WON SPURS Los Angeles Times 10 Mar 1927 p. A11.
  19. ^ Baxter 1970 p. 25: Love (originally titled Anna Karenina) of 1927 should not be confused with director Clarence Brown’s Anna Karenina (1935) with Greta Garbo.
  20. ^ Brownlow 1979, p. 201: Garbo "looked for approval from Gilbert after every scene. If he failed to nod, Garbo refused to continue, so MGM found it simpler to let Gilbert direct...over half the production."
  21. ^ Brownlow, 1979, p, 193: "no provision for a voice test in his contract" and p. 202: "The obsession in those early days of sound was with 'pear-shaped tones' admired in stage acting."
  22. ^ Brownlow 1979, p. 193: Gilbert’s contract "a staggering fee" and "Schenck had his own private feud with Mayer" and the contract provided Gilbert "protection…from the vindictiveness of Mayer…[the lucrative contract] was a severe blow to Mayer’s prestige...an act that he could not forgive."
  23. ^ Brownlow, 1979. p. 193: Brownlow confirms that Vidor and Gilbert "agreed to make it a double wedding" but Garbo failed to show. Brownlow provides some testimony from Boardman. See p. 200, wedding photo (without Garbo) is reporduced.
  24. ^ Brownlow, 1979. p. 193: Brownlow confirms that Vidor and Gilbert "agreed to make it a double wedding" but Garbo failed to show. Brownlow provides some testimont from Boardman. See p. 200, wedding photo (without Garbo) is reproduced.) Brownlow reports that Eleanor Boardman was present at the Mayer/Gilbert altercation, quoting Boardman: "Gilbert was getting very nervous...[and] violent" when Garbo failed to appear, she reports that Mayer advised Gilbert to "'sleep with [Garbo], don’t marry her'...Gilbert socked him, and knocked him down and [Mayer] hit his head on the tile. And that was really the beginning of the end of Gilbert’s career." Lautrice Gilbert Fountain, Gilbert’s daughter, is quoted by Brownlow: "After Jack had knocked [Mayer] down and drawn blood, Mayer said 'I’ll destroy you'."
  25. ^ Brownlow, 1979 p. 193: Gilbert’s vocal delivery elicited "no complaints from the public...fortunately the scene was delivered in slang and the burlesque wiped out the bad impression" One review noted that Gilbert’s speech was "too mincing and affected for words."
  26. ^ Brownlow, 1979. p. 193: Brownlow quotes from a contemporary Variety magazine review of the film, which pans Gilbert’s performance. "When audiences saw and heard Gilbert in a serious love scene, they killed his career with laughter".
  27. ^ Brownlow, 1979, p. 193: "The [erroneous] idea that Gilbert had a s queaky voice has persisted for years."
  28. ^ Brownlow 1979 p. 193: "One theory suggests that [Gilbert] was sabotaged by a bad recording." Brownlow, however makes no reference to "gelding"'.
  29. ^ Baxter, 1976 p. 28-29
  30. ^ "John Gilbert, the silent era's talk of the town". Los Angeles Times. 2013-05-13. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
  31. ^ Laurier, 2012: Gilbert "famously failed to make the transition to talking films, in large part as the result of studio connivance."
  32. ^ Brownlow 1979, p. 202: Gilbert’s "whole demeanor had changed….[his confidence] evaporated." Gilbert's use of "proper stage diction" reflects the early industry "obsession" with stage elocution. And "with hindsight, one realizes that [Gilbert] was not acting at all" but predicting his own tragic fate.
  33. ^ Brownlow, 1979. p. 194: Gilbert refused to walk out on his MGM contract despite "harassment" and was "no longer on speaking terms with Louis B, Mayer." Gilbert was "subjected to one poor picture after another" and suffered "attempts at [his] humiliation, aimed at forcing him to quit" so as to breach his lucrative contract.
  34. ^ Baxter 1976, p. 28-29: "Despite efforts of many close friends...Gilbert destroyed himself with drink and melancholy."
    Brownlow, 1979 p. 194: By the end of his contract with MGM "Gilbert was drinking very heavily." Quoting Sam Marx: "I think Gilbert was his own most destructive enemy...He took to drinking very heavily and sort of willed himself to die." And "the attempts at humiliation…” by MGM executives."
  35. ^ John Gilbert Signs Seven Year Contract as Actor for M-G-M Chicago Daily Tribune 11 Aug 1933 p. 21.
  36. ^ Baxter 1970, p. 61-62: Gilbert "not especially good as the male lead, but works competently in a difficult part."
  37. ^ John Gilbert Wants Contract Interpreted The Washington Post 6 Dec 1933 p. 8.
  38. ^ Baxter 1970 p. 62: The story that Olivier was dropped "on Garbo’s orders" is unlikely. Director Mamoulian, is reported have thought the "inexperienced" actor was "unsuitable" for the role, based on screen tests.
    Brownlow 1979, p. 194: "An outstandingly brave decision" on Garbo’s part, and "a generosity rare in the film industry."
  39. ^ Brownlow, 1979 p. 194
  40. ^ Brownlow 1979, p. 194: Brownlow offers a striking metaphor of the studio system, where Louis B. Mayer is a scrap-yard owner, capable of "wrecking cars with the drivers still at the wheel."
  41. ^ Golden, 2013. pp.38, 43, 60
  42. ^ Golden, 2013. pp. 54, 56
  43. ^ Golden, 2013. p. 60
  44. ^ "Leatrice Joy Asks Divorce". The Telegraph-Herald. August 13, 1924. p. 22. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  45. ^ Golden, 2013. pp. 85–86
  46. ^ Golden, 2013. p. 57
  47. ^ Golden, 2013. p. 86
  48. ^ "Leatrice Fountain's Obituary on GreenwichTime". GreenwichTime. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  49. ^ "Leatrice Gilbert Fountain (1924-2015): Daughter of Hollywood Legends". 25 January 2015. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  50. ^ "FILM STAR GIVEN DIVORCE". The Los Angeles Times. May 29, 1925. p. A8.
  51. ^ Monahan, Kaspar (July 12, 1933). "Hollywood's Shattered Romances". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 19. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  52. ^ "John Gilbert, Ina Claire Agree to Separate". Rochester Evening Journal and the Post Express. February 14, 1931. p. 7. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  53. ^ "Films Actress Given Divorce From Gilbert". St. Petersburg Times. August 5, 1931. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  54. ^ "John Gilbert Is Wed and Filming Resumed". San Jose News. August 11, 1932. p. 1. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  55. ^ "Here's Proof John Gilbert Is Screen's Great Lover". New York, Syracuse. Syracuse Herald. August 11, 1932. p. 12. Retrieved August 19, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  56. ^ a b "GILBERT'S QUICK MARRIAGE", news item, The Film Daily [New York, N.Y. (West Coast Bureau)], August 12, 1932, page 4. Internet Archive, San Francisco, California. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  57. ^ "Fourth Divorce for John Gilbert of Films". The Southeast Missourian. May 26, 1934. p. 1. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  58. ^ COURT GIVES DIVORCE TO MRS. JOHN GILBERT: Virginia Bruce, Former Stage Beauty, Is Fourth Wife to Quit the Actor. The New York Times (1923-Current file); New York, N.Y. 26 May 1934 p. 12.
  59. ^ "Olivia Burwell". The Palm Beach Post. January 10, 1969. p. 1. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  60. ^ "Desire (1936)". nytimes.com. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  61. ^ "John Gilbert, Screen Lover, Dies Suddenly in Sleep". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 10, 1936. p. 1. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  62. ^ Gelb, Barbara (21 April 1985). "Loved by Garbo and Deitrich". The New York Times.
  63. ^ "Pay Final Honor To Actor". San Jose News. January 11, 1936. p. 1. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  64. ^ SERVICE FOR JOHN GILBERT: Two Former Wives Attend Funeral of Actor in Beverl.y Hills, New York Times 12 Jan 1936 p. N10.
  65. ^ "Marlene Is Witness at Gilbert Cremation". The Milwaukee Journal. February 16, 1936. p. 8. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  66. ^ Boyd, Hal (June 27, 1947). "Forest Lawn Cemetery Is One Of Glendale's Big Industries; Great of Film World Lie Here". San Jose News. p. 7. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  67. ^ "Gilbert's Estate Set at $363,494". The Milwaukee Journal. January 28, 1936. p. 6. Retrieved April 8, 2013.
  68. ^ ESTATE OF JOHN GILBERT DISCLOSED TO BE $363,494 Los Angeles Times 28 Jan 1936 p. A1.
  69. ^ "John Gilbert - Hollywood Walk of Fame". www.walkoffame.com. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  70. ^ Rediscovering John Gilbert at IMDb

Sources

  • Baxter, John. 1970. Hollywood in the Thirties. International Film Guide Series. Paperback Library, New York. LOC Card Number 68-24003.
  • Baxter, John. 1976. King Vidor. Simon & Schuster, Inc. Monarch Film Studies. LOC Card Number 75-23544.
  • Brownlow, Kevin and Kobal, John. 1979. Hollywood: The Pioneers. Alfred A. Knopf Inc. A Borzoi Book, New York. ISBN 0-394-50851-3
  • Koszarski, Richard. 1983. The Man You Loved to Hate: Erich von Stroheim and Hollywood. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-503239-X
  • Laurier, Joanne. 2011. The Artist: An amiable gimmick. The World Socialist Web Site. Retrieved 26 May 2020. https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2012/01/arti-j07.html
  • Phillips, Richard. 2009. Several movies well worth revisiting: Sydney Film Festival 2009. World Socialist Web Site. Retrieved 24 May, 2020.https://www.wsws.or g/en/articles/2009/07/sff5-j17.html
  • Reinhardt, Bernd. 2020. Rediscovering Hallelujah (1929), director King Vidor’s sensitive film with all-black cast: 70th Berlin International Film Festival. World Socialist Web Site. Retrieved 24 May, 2020. https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/07/ber2-a07.html
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