Marie Prevost
Encyclopedia
Marie Prevost was a Canadian-born actress of the early days of cinema
. During her twenty year career, she made 121 silent
and talking pictures
.
, she was still a child when her family moved first to Denver, Colorado
and then later to Los Angeles
. While working as a secretary, she applied for and obtained an acting job at the Hollywood studio owned by Mack Sennett
. Sennett, who was from a small town outside of Montreal
, dubbed her as the exotic "French girl", adding Dunn to his collection of bathing beauties under the stage name
of Marie Prevost.
In 1919, Prevost secretly married socialite
Sonny Gerke who left her after six months of marriage. Gerke's mother had forbidden him to associate with Prevost because she was an actress, so he was scared to tell his mother of the marriage—and he couldn't get a divorce without revealing that he was married. Prevost, fearful of the bad publicity a divorce would cause, would stay secretly married to Gerke until 1923.
. Initially cast in numerous minor comedic roles as the sexy, innocent young girl, she worked in several films for Sennett's studio until 1921 when she signed with Universal
. At Universal, Irving Thalberg
took an interest in Prevost and decided to make her a star. Thalberg ensured that she received a great deal of publicity and staged numerous publicity events. After announcing that he had selected two films for Prevost to star in, The Moonlight Follies (1921) and Kissed (1922), Thalberg sent Prevost to Coney Island
where she publicly burned her bathing suit to symbolize the end of her bathing beauty days.
While at Universal, Prevost was still relegated to light comedies. After her contract expired, Jack Warner
signed her to a two year contract at $1500 a week at Warner Bros.
in 1922. During this time, Prevost was dating actor Kenneth Harlan
. Jack Warner had also signed Harlan to a contract and cast the couple in the lead roles in F. Scott Fitzgerald
's The Beautiful and Damned
. To publicize the film, Warner announced that the couple would marry on the film's set. The publicity stunt worked and thousands of fans sent gifts and letters to the couple. The Los Angeles Mirror got wind that Prevost was still married to Sonny Gerke and ran a story with the headline "Marie Prevost Will be a Bigamist if She Marries Kenneth Harlan". Warner was livid over the negative publicity and Prevost's failure to disclose her first marriage despite the fact that the publicity stunt was his idea. Warner quickly arranged an annullment and, when the publicity surrounding the scandal died down, Prevost and Harlan were quietly married.
In spite of the bad publicity, Prevost's performance in The Beautiful and Damned brought good reviews. Director Ernst Lubitsch
chose her for a major role opposite Adolphe Menjou
in 1924's The Marriage Circle
. Of her performance as the beautiful seductress, Ernst Lubitsch
said that she was one of the few actresses in Hollywood who knew how to underplay comedy to achieve the maximum effect. This performance, praised by The New York Times
, resulted in Lubitsch casting her in Three Women
in 1924 and in Kiss Me Again
the following year.
Just as her career was blossoming, Prevost's mother was killed in an automobile accident while traveling in Florida with actress Vera Steadman
, another Canadian friend, and Hollywood studio owner, Al Christie
in 1926.
cast her as the lead in The Racket
(1928). During filming, Hughes and Prevost had a brief affair. Hughes quickly broke off the affair leaving Prevost heartbroken and furthering her depression. After playing the lead in The Racket, Prevost's days as a leading lady were over.
Prevost's depression caused her to binge on food
resulting in significant weight gain. By the 1930s, she was working less and being offered only secondary parts. A notable exception was Paid
(1930), a role which, while secondary to star Joan Crawford
, still garnered her good reviews. As a result of all this, her financial income declined and her growing dependency on alcohol added to her weight problems. By 1934, she had no work at all and her financial situation deteriorated dramatically. The downward spiral became greatly aggravated when her weight problems forced her into repeated crash diet
ing in order to keep whatever bit part a movie studio offered.
and malnutrition. Her body was not discovered until January 23, after neighbors complained about her dog's incessant barking. A bellboy, who ignored the note Prevost posted on the door asking that no one knock on the door more than once, finally forced the door open. Prevost was found lying face down on her bed, her legs marked with tiny bites. Prevost's pet dachshund
, Maxie, had nipped at her legs in an attempt to wake her up.
Her funeral (which was paid for by Joan Crawford
) at the Hollywood Memorial Cemetery
was attended by Crawford, Clark Gable
, Wallace Beery
, and Barbara Stanwyck
among others.
In February 1937, it was discovered that Prevost's estate was valued at only $300 prompting the Hollywood community to create the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital
to provide medical care for employees of the television and motion picture industry.
For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Marie Prevost has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
at 6201 Hollywood Boulevard
.
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
. During her twenty year career, she made 121 silent
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
and talking pictures
Sound film
A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
.
Early life
Born Mary Bickford Dunn in Sarnia, OntarioSarnia, Ontario
Sarnia is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada . It is the largest city on Lake Huron and is located where the upper Great Lakes empty into the St. Clair River....
, she was still a child when her family moved first to Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
and then later to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. While working as a secretary, she applied for and obtained an acting job at the Hollywood studio owned by Mack Sennett
Mack Sennett
Mack Sennett was a Canadian-born American director and was known as the innovator of slapstick comedy in film. During his lifetime he was known at times as the "King of Comedy"...
. Sennett, who was from a small town outside of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, dubbed her as the exotic "French girl", adding Dunn to his collection of bathing beauties under the stage name
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
of Marie Prevost.
In 1919, Prevost secretly married socialite
Socialite
A socialite is a person who participates in social activities and spends a significant amount of time entertaining and being entertained at fashionable upper-class events....
Sonny Gerke who left her after six months of marriage. Gerke's mother had forbidden him to associate with Prevost because she was an actress, so he was scared to tell his mother of the marriage—and he couldn't get a divorce without revealing that he was married. Prevost, fearful of the bad publicity a divorce would cause, would stay secretly married to Gerke until 1923.
Career rise
One of her first publicly successful film roles came in the 1920 romantic film Love, Honor, and Behave, opposite another newcomer and Sennett protégé, George O'HaraGeorge O'Hara (actor)
George O'Hara was an American motion picture actor and screenwriter of the silent film era.- Biography :...
. Initially cast in numerous minor comedic roles as the sexy, innocent young girl, she worked in several films for Sennett's studio until 1921 when she signed with Universal
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
. At Universal, Irving Thalberg
Irving Thalberg
Irving Grant Thalberg was an American film producer during the early years of motion pictures. He was called "The Boy Wonder" for his youth and his extraordinary ability to select the right scripts, choose the right actors, gather the best production staff and make very profitable films.-Life and...
took an interest in Prevost and decided to make her a star. Thalberg ensured that she received a great deal of publicity and staged numerous publicity events. After announcing that he had selected two films for Prevost to star in, The Moonlight Follies (1921) and Kissed (1922), Thalberg sent Prevost to Coney Island
Coney Island
Coney Island is a peninsula and beach on the Atlantic Ocean in southern Brooklyn, New York, United States. The site was formerly an outer barrier island, but became partially connected to the mainland by landfill....
where she publicly burned her bathing suit to symbolize the end of her bathing beauty days.
While at Universal, Prevost was still relegated to light comedies. After her contract expired, Jack Warner
Jack Warner
Jack Leonard "J. L." Warner , born Jacob Warner in London, Ontario, was a Canadian American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California...
signed her to a two year contract at $1500 a week at Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
in 1922. During this time, Prevost was dating actor Kenneth Harlan
Kenneth Harlan
Kenneth Harlan was an American leading man of the silent film era, playing mostly romantic leads or adventurer types.-Career:...
. Jack Warner had also signed Harlan to a contract and cast the couple in the lead roles in F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
's The Beautiful and Damned
The Beautiful and Damned (film)
The Beautiful and Damned is a 1922 silent film directed by William A. Seiter and released by Warner Brothers in their early years. This film, based on the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel published in the same year, starred Kenneth Harlan and Marie Prevost. It is 70 minutes long.There are no known...
. To publicize the film, Warner announced that the couple would marry on the film's set. The publicity stunt worked and thousands of fans sent gifts and letters to the couple. The Los Angeles Mirror got wind that Prevost was still married to Sonny Gerke and ran a story with the headline "Marie Prevost Will be a Bigamist if She Marries Kenneth Harlan". Warner was livid over the negative publicity and Prevost's failure to disclose her first marriage despite the fact that the publicity stunt was his idea. Warner quickly arranged an annullment and, when the publicity surrounding the scandal died down, Prevost and Harlan were quietly married.
In spite of the bad publicity, Prevost's performance in The Beautiful and Damned brought good reviews. Director Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch was a German-born film director. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as his prestige grew, his films were promoted as having "the Lubitsch touch."In 1947 he received an Honorary Academy Award for his...
chose her for a major role opposite Adolphe Menjou
Adolphe Menjou
Adolphe Jean Menjou was an American actor. His career spanned both silent films and talkies, appearing in such films as The Sheik, A Woman of Paris, Morocco, and A Star is Born...
in 1924's The Marriage Circle
The Marriage Circle
The Marriage Circle is a 1924 silent film produced by Ernst Lubitsch and Warner Brothers with direction by Lubitsch and distribution by the Warners. Based on the play Only a Dream by Lothar Schmidt, the screenplay was written by Paul Bern...
. Of her performance as the beautiful seductress, Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch was a German-born film director. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as his prestige grew, his films were promoted as having "the Lubitsch touch."In 1947 he received an Honorary Academy Award for his...
said that she was one of the few actresses in Hollywood who knew how to underplay comedy to achieve the maximum effect. This performance, praised by The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, resulted in Lubitsch casting her in Three Women
Three Women
Three Women is a drama film starring May McAvoy, Pauline Frederick, and Marie Prevost, directed by Ernst Lubitsch, and based on the novel by Yolande Maree .A print survives in the George Eastman House archive.-Cast:...
in 1924 and in Kiss Me Again
Kiss Me Again
Kiss Me Again may refer to:*Kiss Me Again , a 1925 film directed by Ernst Lubitsch*Kiss Me Again , a 1931 film*Kiss Me Again , a 2006 film*Kiss Me Again , a 2010 film...
the following year.
Just as her career was blossoming, Prevost's mother was killed in an automobile accident while traveling in Florida with actress Vera Steadman
Vera Steadman
Vera Steadman was an American film actress of the silent era. She appeared in 99 films between 1915 and 1941, in her first years appearing as one of the Sennett Bathing Beauties.-Selected filmography:...
, another Canadian friend, and Hollywood studio owner, Al Christie
Al Christie
Al Christie was a Canadian-born motion picture director, producer and screenwriter.-Career:Born Alfred Ernest Christie, in London, Ontario, Canada, he was one of a number of Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood who made their way to Hollywood, California, attracted by the newly developing motion...
in 1926.
Decline
Devastated by the loss of her only remaining parent, Prevost began drinking heavily and developed an addiction to alcohol. Her marriage to Harlan ended in a 1927 divorce. Prevost tried to get past her personal torment by burying herself in her work, starring in numerous roles as the temptingly beautiful seductress who in the end was always the honorable heroine. After seeing Prevost in The Beautiful and Damned, Howard HughesHoward Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
cast her as the lead in The Racket
The Racket
The Racket is an American crime film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Thomas Meighan, Marie Prevost, Louis Wolheim, and George E. Stone...
(1928). During filming, Hughes and Prevost had a brief affair. Hughes quickly broke off the affair leaving Prevost heartbroken and furthering her depression. After playing the lead in The Racket, Prevost's days as a leading lady were over.
Prevost's depression caused her to binge on food
Binge eating
Binge eating is a pattern of disordered eating which consists of episodes of uncontrollable eating. It is sometimes as a symptom of binge eating disorder. During such binges, a person rapidly consumes an excessive amount of food...
resulting in significant weight gain. By the 1930s, she was working less and being offered only secondary parts. A notable exception was Paid
Paid (1930 film)
Paid is a 1930 American drama film starring Joan Crawford, Robert Armstrong, and Kent Douglass in a story about a wrongly accused ex-convict who seeks revenge, within the law, on those who sent her to prison. The film was adapted by Lucien Hubbard and Charles MacArthur from the play, Within the...
(1930), a role which, while secondary to star Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
, still garnered her good reviews. As a result of all this, her financial income declined and her growing dependency on alcohol added to her weight problems. By 1934, she had no work at all and her financial situation deteriorated dramatically. The downward spiral became greatly aggravated when her weight problems forced her into repeated crash diet
Crash diet
A crash diet is a diet which is extreme in its nutritional deprivations, typically severely restricting calorie intake. It is meant to achieve rapid weight loss and may differ from outright starvation only slightly. It is not meant to last for long periods of time, at most a few weeks. ...
ing in order to keep whatever bit part a movie studio offered.
Death
On January 21, 1937, at the age of 38, Prevost died from heart failure brought on by acute alcoholismAlcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
and malnutrition. Her body was not discovered until January 23, after neighbors complained about her dog's incessant barking. A bellboy, who ignored the note Prevost posted on the door asking that no one knock on the door more than once, finally forced the door open. Prevost was found lying face down on her bed, her legs marked with tiny bites. Prevost's pet dachshund
Dachshund
The dachshund is a short-legged, long-bodied dog breed belonging to the hound family. The standard size dachshund was bred to scent, chase, and flush out badgers and other burrow-dwelling animals, while the miniature dachshund was developed to hunt smaller prey such as rabbits...
, Maxie, had nipped at her legs in an attempt to wake her up.
Her funeral (which was paid for by Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
) at the Hollywood Memorial Cemetery
Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Hollywood Forever Cemetery, originally called Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery, is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angeles, California. It is located at 6000 Santa Monica Boulevard in the Hollywood...
was attended by Crawford, Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
, Wallace Beery
Wallace Beery
Wallace Fitzgerald Beery was an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill in Min and Bill opposite Marie Dressler, as Long John Silver in Treasure Island, as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa!, and his titular role in The Champ, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor...
, and Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress. She was a film and television star, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
among others.
In February 1937, it was discovered that Prevost's estate was valued at only $300 prompting the Hollywood community to create the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital
Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital
The Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital is a retirement community, with individual cottages, and a fully licensed, acute-care hospital, located at 23388 Mulholland Drive in Woodland Hills, California...
to provide medical care for employees of the television and motion picture industry.
For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Marie Prevost has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
at 6201 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
.
Selected filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | Those Bitter Sweets | ||
| 1915 | His Father's Footsteps | ||
| 1916 | Unto Those Who Sin | Celeste | |
| 1916 | A Scoundrel's Toll | ||
| 1917 | Secrets of a Beauty Parlor | ||
| 1917 | Two Crooks | ||
| 1918 | Her Screen Idol | Billy McBride | |
| 1918 | His Hidden Purpose | The Girl in the Case | |
| 1919 | East Lynne with Variations | The Girl | |
| 1919 | Uncle Tom Without a Cabin | Eliza | |
| 1920 | Down on the Farm | The Faithful Wife | |
| 1920 | Love, Honor and Behave! | Newlywed | |
| 1921 | A Small Town Idol | Marcelle Mansfield | |
| 1921 | Moonlight Follies | Nan Rutledge | |
| 1922 | The Dangerous Little Demon | Teddy Harmon | |
| 1922 | The Married Flapper | Pamela Billings | |
| 1923 | Red Lights | Ruth Carson | |
| 1923 | The Wanters | Myra Hastings | |
| 1924 | Three Women | Harriet | |
| 1924 | Being Respectable | Valerie Winship | Credited as Mary Prevost |
| 1924 | The Lover of Camille | Marie Duplessis | |
| 1925 | Bobbed Hair | Connemara Moore | |
| 1925 | Seven Sinners | Molly Brian | |
| 1926 | His Jazz Bride | Gloria Gregory | |
| 1926 | Up in Mabel's Room | Mabel Ainsworth | |
| 1927 | Man Bait | Madge Dreyer | |
| 1927 | The Girl in the Pullman | Hazel Burton | Alternative title: The Girl on the Train |
| 1928 | A Blonde for a Night | Marie | |
| 1928 | The Rush Hour | Margie Dolan | |
| 1929 | The Godless Girl The Godless Girl The Godless Girl is a drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille, shown for years as his last completely silent film.-Production background:... |
Mame | |
| 1929 | The Flying Fool | Pat Riley | |
| 1930 | Ladies of Leisure Ladies of Leisure Ladies of Leisure is an American romantic drama film directed by Frank Capra, and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Ralph Graves. The screenplay by Jo Swerling is based on the 1924 play Ladies of the Evening by Milton Herbert Gropper.-Plot:... |
Dot Lamar | |
| 1930 | Sweethearts on Parade | Nita | |
| 1931 | The Good Bad Girl | Trixie | |
| 1931 | The Sin of Madelon Claudet The Sin of Madelon Claudet The Sin of Madelon Claudet is a 1931 American drama film directed by Edgar Selwyn and starring Helen Hayes. The screenplay by Charles MacArthur and Ben Hecht was adapted from the play The Lullaby by Edward Knoblock... |
Rosalie Lebeau | Alternative title: The Lullaby |
| 1932 | Three Wise Girls Three Wise Girls Three Wise Girls is a 1932 romantic drama film featuring Jean Harlow in her first starring role. A young small-town woman heads to New York City, where she and her two friends have romantic troubles.-Cast:*Jean Harlow as Cassie Barnes... |
Dot | |
| 1932 | Slightly Married | Nellie Gordon | |
| 1933 | The Eleventh Commandment | Tessie Florin | |
| 1933 | Only Yesterday Only Yesterday (1933 film) Only Yesterday is a 1933 drama film about a young woman who becomes pregnant by her boyfriend before he rushes off to fight in World War I. It stars Margaret Sullavan and John Boles. The film was based on the novel Briefe einer unbekannten by Stefan Zweig, though he was not credited... |
Amy | Uncredited |
| 1935 | Keystone Hotel Keystone Hotel (film) Keystone Hotel is a 1935 2-reel comedy short subject, directed by Ralph Staub.The story follows the arrival of the cross-eyed Count Drewa Blank at a downtown hotel, to judge a beauty contest. While downstairs various parties try to sway the Count's decision, the house detective investigates... |
Mrs. Clarabelle Sterling | |
| 1935 | Hands Across the Table Hands Across the Table Hands Across the Table is a 1935 American romantic screwball comedy film released by Paramount Pictures. It stars Carole Lombard as a manicurist looking for a rich husband and Fred MacMurray as a poor playboy, with Ralph Bellamy as a wealthy but handicapped ex-pilot... |
Nona | |
| 1936 | Thirteen Hours by Air Thirteen Hours by Air Thirteen Hours by Air is a 1936 mystery film made by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Mitchell Leisen, and starred Fred MacMurray and Joan Bennett... |
Waitress | Uncredited |
| 1936 | Cain and Mabel Cain and Mabel Cain and Mabel is a 1936 romantic comedy film designed as a vehicle for Marion Davies in which she co-stars with Clark Gable and Robert Paige .... |
Sherman's Receptionist | Uncredited |