''Saratoga'' is a 1937 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film written by

Anita Loos Corinne Anita Loos (April 26, 1888 – August 18, 1981) was an American actress, novelist, playwright and screenwriter. In 1912, she became the first female staff screenwriter in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood, when D. W. Griffith put h ...

and directed by Jack Conway. The film stars

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

and

Jean Harlow Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter; March 3, 1911 – June 7, 1937) was an American actress. Known for her portrayal of "bad girl" characters, she was the leading sex symbol of the early 1930s and one of the defining figures of the ...

in their sixth and final film collaboration and features Lionel Barrymore,

Frank Morgan Francis Phillip Wuppermann (June 1, 1890 – September 18, 1949), known professionally as Frank Morgan, was an American character actor. He was best known for his appearances in films starting in the silent era in 1916, and then numerous sound ...

Walter Pidgeon Walter Davis Pidgeon (September 23, 1897 – September 25, 1984) was a Canadian-American actor. He earned two Academy Award for Best Actor nominations for his roles in '' Mrs. Miniver'' (1942) and ''Madame Curie'' (1943). Pidgeon also starred in ...

Hattie McDaniel Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'' (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, ...

and Margaret Hamilton. Jean Harlow died before filming was finished, and it was completed using stand-ins. ''Saratoga'' was MGM's most successful film of 1937 and became the highest-grossing film of Harlow's career.

Plot

Bookie Duke Bradley (

) stops the bank from taking the stud of Grandpa Clayton ( Lionel Barrymore). Carol Clayton (

) calls from England that she is going to marry the wealthy Hartley Madison (

). Duke tells her father, Frank Clayton ( Jonathan Hale), and Grandpa. Broke, Frank gives Duke the deed to the family farm to pay his gambling debts. At the races, Duke takes bets and meets Hartley and Carol. Duke greets Fritzi (

Una Merkel Una Merkel (December 10, 1903 – January 2, 1986) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress. Merkel was born in Kentucky and acted on stage in New York in the 1920s. She went to Hollywood in 1930 and became a popular film ...

) with a kiss. During a race, Frank collapses and dies. Carol asks Duke to sell her the farm, but Duke assures her he won't foreclose on Grandpa. They quarrel about her marrying for money. Fritzi tells Duke that her husband Jesse Kiffmeyer (

) is allergic to horses. When Jesse sneezes during an auction, Duke sees to it that this is considered a bid, and Jesse ends up buying a horse that Fritzi wanted. Grandpa tells Duke that Carol is selling her horse, Moonray; Carol tells Duke she needs money to pay him off. Duke bids Hartley up to $14,000 for the horse. Hartley asks Grandpa to train Moonray. Carol studies horses and wins money from Duke. Tip O'Brien (

Cliff Edwards Clifton Avon "Cliff" Edwards (June 14, 1895 – July 17, 1971), nicknamed "Ukulele Ike", was an American singer, musician and actor. He enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standar ...

) sings "The Horse With the Dreamy Eyes" with Fritzi, Duke, and Rosetta (

), Carol's maid. Carol is friendly with Duke until he asks her to get Hartley betting. Duke calls on Hartley and tells him to help Carol's nerves. Hartley calls Dr. Bierd ( George Zucco), who says Carol is emotional and should marry soon or not see Hartley. Duke gets Hartley to bet and win $6,000, telling Tip it is bait. Carol tells Hartley not to bet with Duke, who learns Hartley is leaving. Carol asks Hartley to stay. At the track, Hartley bets with Duke and loses $5,000. On a train, Duke dines with Fritzi and Jesse, who is jealous. Fritzi knows Duke is in love with Carol, and Duke says he plans to win enough money to marry her. Carol tells Duke she loves him and has broken off her engagement to Hartley. When Duke objects to losing Hartley, she gets angry. At the races, Hartley loses. Hartley hires a new trainer for Moonray. Carol gets Jesse's contract with the jockey Dixie Gordon (

Frankie Darro Frankie Darro (born Frank Johnson, Jr.; December 22, 1917 – December 25, 1976) was an American actor and later in his career a stuntman. He began his career as a child actor in silent films, progressed to lead roles and co-starring roles ...

) so Duke will lose, but Fritzi tells Jesse that if Duke wins, he will marry Carol. Dixie is riding Moonray. Grandpa quarrels with the new trainer. The race is a photo finish, but Moonray loses. On a train, Carol and Duke celebrate.

Cast

as Duke Bradley *

as Carol Clayton * Lionel Barrymore as Grandpa Clayton *

as Jesse Kiffmeyer *

as Hartley Madison *

as Fritzi *

as Tip * George Zucco as Dr. Harmsworth Bierd * Jonathan Hale as Frank Clayton *

as Rosetta *

as Dixie Gordon * Henry Stone as Hand-Riding Hurley *

Dennis O'Keefe Dennis O'Keefe (born Edward Vanes Flanagan, Jr., March 29, 1908 – August 31, 1968) was an American actor and writer. Early years Born in Fort Madison, Iowa, O'Keefe was the son of Edward Flanagan and Charlotte Flanagan, Irish vaudevill ...

as Second Bidder/Dancer at party (uncredited) Cast notes: *After the death of Jean Harlow during

principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...

, her stand-in Mary Dees, took her place, with her voice dubbed by Paula Winslowe. * Margaret Hamilton appears uncredited as "Maizie".

Production and reception

Jack Conway Jean Harlow Clark Gable Saratoga 1937

Although screenwriter Robert Hopkins originally intended the script to be a vehicle for Harlow, the studio at first attempted to borrow Carole Lombard from Paramount Pictures for the lead role, but could not do so because of contractual difficulties.Melear, Mary Anne
"Saratoga"
on

TCM.com Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...

It was reported that

Joan Crawford Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, ncertain year from 1904 to 1908was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway theatre, Broadway. Crawford was si ...

would star but by 1937, Harlow was reported as being cast. Walter Pidgeon was borrowed from

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a ...

for the film."Notes"
on

Background filming took place in Lexington and

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

as well as in

Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...

. Lionel Barrymore tripped over a cable on set, breaking his hip for the second time in two years and reportedly breaking his knee cap. In 1951, he said that he needed a wheelchair because of the damage to his hip. At the time of filming, Harlow was suffering from myriad health issues and a tumultuous personal life. She was dealing with the aftermath of oral surgery to remove impacted wisdom teeth and had suffered sun poisoning in the months before filming. Unbeknownst to Harlow, she was also dying of

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

caused by complications of scarlet fever that she contracted as a child. In 1936, she divorced her third husband, cinematographer

Harold Rosson Harold G. "Hal" Rosson, A.S.C. (April 6, 1895 – September 6, 1988) was an American cinematographer who worked during the early and classical Hollywood cinema, in a career spanning some 52 years, starting from the silent era in 1915. He is bes ...

, whom she had married a year after her second husband,

Paul Bern Paul Bern (born Paul Levy; December 3, 1889September 5, 1932) was a German-born American film director, screenwriter, and producer for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he became the assistant to Irving Thalberg. He helped launch the career of Jean Harl ...

, died in 1933 by what was later ruled a suicide. During filming, Harlow was in a relationship with

William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor. A major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the '' Thin Man'' series based on the Nick and Nora Charles characters cr ...

. While she was eager to marry Powell, he was resistant though the two were reportedly engaged. On May 29, 1937, Harlow collapsed on the set during a scene with Walter Pidgeon. She was taken to

Good Samaritan Hospital Good Samaritan Hospital or Good Samaritan Medical Center may refer to: India *Good Samaritan Hospital (Panamattom), Koprakalam, Panamattom, Kerala *Good Samaritan Centre, Mutholath Nagar, Cherpunkal, Kottyam, Kerala United States *Banner - Univer ...

where, on June 7, she died of renal failure at the age of 26. Although approximately 90% of the film was finished,

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

planned to shelve the footage with Harlow and reshoot her scenes with

Virginia Bruce Virginia Bruce (born Helen Virginia Briggs; September 29, 1910 – February 24, 1982) was an American actress and singer. Early life Bruce was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As an infant she moved with her parents, Earil and Margaret Briggs, ...

Jean Arthur Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s. Arthur had feature roles in three F ...

. However, Harlow's fans were adamant that her final film be released. MGM acquiesced and shot the remaining Harlow scenes with Mary Dees. Dees was shot from behind or with costumes that obscured her face, playing Harlow's part for the camera, while Paula Winslowe supplied Harlow's voice. The film was released on July 23, 1937, nearly seven weeks after Harlow's death. ''Saratoga'' was one of the year's highest grossing films due in part to Harlow’s death. Critical reviews were generally positive, despite the reviewers commenting on the sadness of seeing Harlow so soon after her death. Writing for '' Night and Day'' in 1937,

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

gave the film a good review, claiming that it demonstrated "more than curiosity value". Greene noted that Harlow's acting achieved a high point in her career, and praised the film as having been "skilfully sewn-up n such a way thatthe missing scenes and shots lend it an air of originality which the correctly canned product mightn't have had: the story proceed ngfaster, less obviously: the heroine less unduly plugged". (reprinted in: ) According to MGM records the film earned $2,432,000 in the US and Canada and $820,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $1,146,000.

References

External links

* * * * {{Anita Loos 1937 films 1937 romantic comedy films American romantic comedy films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Jack Conway Films shot in Kentucky Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in New York (state) Gambling films American horse racing films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Saratoga Race Course Films with screenplays by Anita Loos Films scored by Edward Ward (composer) 1930s American films

Plot

Cast

Production and reception

See also

References

External links