The Divorce of Lady X
Encyclopedia
The Divorce of Lady X is a 1938 British
romantic comedy film
made by London Films
and distributed by United Artists
. It was directed
by Tim Whelan
and produced by Alexander Korda
from a screenplay
by Ian Dalrymple
and Arthur Wimperis
, adapted by Lajos Biró
from the play Counsel's Opinion by Gilbert Wakefield. The music score was by Miklós Rózsa
and Lionel Salter and the cinematography by Harry Stradling
.
The film stars Merle Oberon
, Laurence Olivier
, Ralph Richardson
and Binnie Barnes
.
The film was made in Technicolor
. It was a remake of the 1933 film, Counsel's Opinion
, also made by London Films and in which Binnie Barnes appeared in the role played by Merle Oberon.
), a guest at a costume party is forced to stay overnight in a hotel because of a particularly bad London fog. As there are no rooms available, Steele talks her way into sharing a suite with Everard Logan (Laurence Olivier
), a handsome but somewhat stiff lawyer. They spend the night together, quite chastely, but Logan becomes convinced that Leslie must be married. His conviction is confirmed when an old school friend, Lord Mere (Ralph Richardson
) arrives and asks Everard to represent him in a divorce case against his wife, Lady Claire (Binnie Barnes
).
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
romantic comedy film
Romantic comedy film
Romantic comedy films are films with light-hearted, humorous plotlines, centered on romantic ideals such as that true love is able to surmount most obstacles. One dictionary definition is "a funny movie, play, or television program about a love story that ends happily"...
made by London Films
London Films
London Films is a British film production company founded in 1932 by Alexander Korda originally based at London Film Studios in Denham, Buckinghamshire, England. The company's productions included The Private Life of Henry VIII , Things to Come , Rembrandt , The Four Feathers , The Thief of Bagdad ...
and distributed by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
. It was directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Tim Whelan
Tim Whelan
Tim Whelan was an American film director, writer, producer and actor.-Selected filmography:* Adam's Apple * When Knights Were Bold * It's a Boy * Aunt Sally...
and produced by Alexander Korda
Alexander Korda
Sir Alexander Korda was a Hungarian-born British producer and film director. He was a leading figure in the British film industry, the founder of London Films and the owner of British Lion Films, a film distributing company.-Life and career:The elder brother of filmmakers Zoltán Korda and Vincent...
from a screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
by Ian Dalrymple
Ian Dalrymple
Ian Dalrymple was a British screenwriter, film director and producer.- Biography :Born at Johannesburg, South Africa, he was educated at Cambridge University. Initially, he worked as an editor at Gaumont-British pictures and Gainsborough Pictures, later turning to screenwriting...
and Arthur Wimperis
Arthur Wimperis
Arthur Harold Wimperis was an English illustrator, playwright, lyricist and Academy Award-winning screenwriter....
, adapted by Lajos Biró
Lajos Biró
Lajos Bíró was a Hungarian novelist, playwright, and screenwriter who wrote many films from the early 1920s through the late 1940s. He was born in Nagyvárad, Austria-Hungary and eventually moved to the United Kingdom where he worked as a scenario chief for London Film Productions run by...
from the play Counsel's Opinion by Gilbert Wakefield. The music score was by Miklós Rózsa
Miklós Rózsa
Miklós Rózsa was a Hungarian-born composer trained in Germany , and active in France , England , and the United States , with extensive sojourns in Italy from 1953...
and Lionel Salter and the cinematography by Harry Stradling
Harry Stradling
Harry Stradling Sr., A.S.C. was an American cinematographer with over 130 films to his credit.His uncle Walter Stradling and son Harry Stradling Jr. were also cinematographers.-Early career:...
.
The film stars Merle Oberon
Merle Oberon
Merle Oberon was an Indian-born British actress best known for her screen performances in The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Cowboy and the Lady . She began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in The Private Life of Henry VIII . She travelled to the United States to make films for Samuel...
, Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
, Ralph Richardson
Ralph Richardson
Sir Ralph David Richardson was an English actor, one of a group of theatrical knights of the mid-20th century who, though more closely associated with the stage, also appeared in several classic films....
and Binnie Barnes
Binnie Barnes
Gertrude Maud "Binnie" Barnes was an English-American actress. She was born in Islington to a Jewish father and an Italian mother and was brought up Jewish, although she converted to Catholicism later in life....
.
The film was made in Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
. It was a remake of the 1933 film, Counsel's Opinion
Counsel's Opinion
Counsel's Opinion is a 1933 British romantic comedy film starring Henry Kendall and Binnie Barnes. It was one of three films directed in Britain in the early 1930s by Canadian-American Allan Dwan and was an early production from Alexander Korda's London Films...
, also made by London Films and in which Binnie Barnes appeared in the role played by Merle Oberon.
Plot
Leslie Steele (Merle OberonMerle Oberon
Merle Oberon was an Indian-born British actress best known for her screen performances in The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Cowboy and the Lady . She began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in The Private Life of Henry VIII . She travelled to the United States to make films for Samuel...
), a guest at a costume party is forced to stay overnight in a hotel because of a particularly bad London fog. As there are no rooms available, Steele talks her way into sharing a suite with Everard Logan (Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
), a handsome but somewhat stiff lawyer. They spend the night together, quite chastely, but Logan becomes convinced that Leslie must be married. His conviction is confirmed when an old school friend, Lord Mere (Ralph Richardson
Ralph Richardson
Sir Ralph David Richardson was an English actor, one of a group of theatrical knights of the mid-20th century who, though more closely associated with the stage, also appeared in several classic films....
) arrives and asks Everard to represent him in a divorce case against his wife, Lady Claire (Binnie Barnes
Binnie Barnes
Gertrude Maud "Binnie" Barnes was an English-American actress. She was born in Islington to a Jewish father and an Italian mother and was brought up Jewish, although she converted to Catholicism later in life....
).
Cast
- Merle OberonMerle OberonMerle Oberon was an Indian-born British actress best known for her screen performances in The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Cowboy and the Lady . She began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in The Private Life of Henry VIII . She travelled to the United States to make films for Samuel...
as Leslie Steele - Laurence OlivierLaurence OlivierLaurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
as Everard Logan - Binnie BarnesBinnie BarnesGertrude Maud "Binnie" Barnes was an English-American actress. She was born in Islington to a Jewish father and an Italian mother and was brought up Jewish, although she converted to Catholicism later in life....
as Lady Claire Mere - Ralph RichardsonRalph RichardsonSir Ralph David Richardson was an English actor, one of a group of theatrical knights of the mid-20th century who, though more closely associated with the stage, also appeared in several classic films....
as Lord Mere - Morton SeltenMorton SeltenMorton Selten was a British stage and film actor. He was occasionally credited as Morton Selton.It was generally acknowledged that Selten was an illegitimate son of the then Prince of Wales . He began acting in 1878, with stage performances mainly in America. His film career began in the 1920s...
as Lord Steele - J.H. Roberts as Slade
- Gertrude Musgrove as Saunders, the Maid
- Gus McNaughtonGus McNaughtonGus McNaughton was an English film actor. He appeared in 70 films between 1930 and 1947.He was born in London and died in Castor, Cambridgeshire.-Selected filmography:* Children of Chance...
as Room Service Waiter - H.B. Hallam as Jefferies, the Butler
- Eileen Peel as Mrs. Johnson