''Suzy'' is a 1936 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

directed by

George Fitzmaurice George Fitzmaurice (13 February 1885 – 13 June 1940) was a French-born film director and producer. Career Fitzmaurice's career first started as a set designer on stage. Beginning in 1914, and continuing until his death in 1940, he directed ...

and starring

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 ...

Franchot Tone Stanislaus Pascal Franchot Tone (February 27, 1905 – September 18, 1968) was an American actor, producer, and director of stage, film and television. He was a leading man in the 1930s and early 1940s, and at the height of his career was known ...

and

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one of ...

. The film was partially written by

Dorothy Parker Dorothy Parker (née Rothschild; August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American poet, writer, critic, and satirist based in New York; she was known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. From a conflicted and unhap ...

, based on a novel by Herbert Gorman. The

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated theme for ''Suzy'', "Did I Remember?", was sung by

Virginia Verrill Catherine Virginia Verrill ( November 20, 1916 – January 18, 1999) was a singer in the era of old-time radio and big bands. Her work included providing the off-screen singing voices for some female film stars. Early years Verrill was born Cathe ...

(uncredited).

Plot

In 1914, American showgirl Suzanne Trent (

) is in London, hoping to meet and marry a man with money. She tells her friend Maisie (

Inez Courtney Inez Courtney (October 12, 1897 – April 5, 1975) was an American actress on the Broadway stage and in films. Early years Born in Amsterdam, New York, Courtney came from a large Irish-American family. After her father's death when she was fif ...

) she can charm any man she chooses into marrying her, and then learn to love him. She sets her sights on Terry Moore (

), an Irishman she sees in a borrowed Rolls-Royce. She soon learns he is not wealthy, but he has a respectable job and good prospects, being an engineer, inventor, and pilot. They quickly fall in love and marry. But then they stumble on a German plot, and her husband is shot by a mysterious woman (

Benita Hume Benita Hume (14 October 1907 – 1 November 1967) was an English theatre and film actress. She appeared in more than 40 films between 1925 and 1955. Life and career She was married to film actor Ronald Colman from 1938 to his death in 1958 ...

), who leaves immediately. The landlady arrives moments later and hysterically calls for police, accusing Suzy of murder. Suzy also flees the scene, and therefore does not learn that Terry is expected to survive. Maisie has moved to Paris, and Suzy now follows her, taking a job at the same cabaret just before World War I begins. Thinking she is a widow, Suzy is heartbroken, until she meets the famed French

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

Andre Charville (

) at the cabaret. They quickly fall in love and get married. Andre's aristocratic father, Baron Edward Charville ( Lewis Stone), welcomes Suzy into the family home, but is concerned about the whirlwind romance and marriage because Andre has had many short-lived relationships with women. After Andre is recalled to the front, Suzy bonds with the old man, even inventing letters from Andre that she pretends to read to him. The Baron's concern was justified: when Andre returns briefly to Paris, he is more interested in socializing with his fellow pilots—and their girlfriends—than taking the opportunity to see the wife he has not even told them about. The Baron covers for him, but makes sure Andre and Suzy do meet for a few minutes as he returns to the front. Andre is wounded in action, and Suzy goes to comfort him. There she is shocked to meet Terry, who is delivering to Andre's squadron new British fighters he helped design. She explains to Terry what happened, but tells him she now loves Andre. Terry is incensed at her for not telling Andre she was already married to him, and for having run away. He assumes she never loved him. Suzy goes to Andre to tell him the truth—and has another shock, finding him in a compromising position with the woman who shot Terry. Unable to think clearly, she returns home to Paris, where she finds a magazine photo of Andre with the woman. Her name is Diane Eyrelle, and she has been "caring for" Andre during his recovery. Obviously, she is actually spying on him. Suzy returns to the air base and tells Terry what she has learned. He is dubious but agrees to take action. Suzy points out that as Andre is a public figure, for the sake of morale they should try to avoid damaging his reputation. They confront Andre first, but Diane overhears them, and as the four argue, her henchman comes in and shoots Andre. Andre was about to return to active service and is scheduled to take off immediately on a dangerous mission. Terry says he can fetch a doctor or take over the flight, but has no time to do both. Andre says to fly the mission. Terry takes his revenge, killing Diane and her henchman by strafing their car, then shooting down the German fighters meant to ambush Andre. He deliberately passes the airfield and crashes into a tree in front of the chateau, where Andre now lies dead. Suzy and Terry move his body so it will seem he died in the crash. At the funeral that follows, a German flyer drops a bouquet in homage. Terry is asked to escort the ace's widow back to Paris.

Cast

as Suzanne "Suzy" Trent *

as Capt. Terry Moore *

as Capt. Andre Charville * Lewis Stone as Baron Edward Charville *

as Madame Diane Eyrelle *

Reginald Mason Reginald is a masculine given name in the English language. Etymology and history The meaning of Reginald is “King". The name is derived from the Latin ''Reginaldus'', which has been influenced by the Latin word ''regina'', meaning "queen". Th ...

as Captain Barsanges *

as Maisie aka "Frostbite" *

Greta Meyer Greta Meyer (7 August 18838 October 1965) was a German actress in motion pictures beginning in the silent film era. Biography Meyer belonged to a German family that was comparable to the Barrymore family in America. At age 3 she debuted on sta ...

as Mrs. Schmidt * David Clyde as Knobby McPherson *

Christian Rub Christian Rub (pronounced ''Rhoob''; April 13, 1886 – April 14, 1956) was an Austrian-born American character actor. He was known for his work in films of the late 1910s to the early 1950s, and was featured in more than 100 films. Biography ...

as "Pop" Gaspard, the Pianist * George Spelvin as Gaston * Una O'Connor as Mrs. Bradley, Suzy's Landlady *

Theodore von Eltz Theodore von Eltz (November 5, 1893 – October 6, 1964) was an American film actor, appearing in more than 200 films between 1915 and 1957. He was the father of actress Lori March. Von Eltz was a Yale University professor's son. After 12 ...

as Revue Producer *

Dennis Morgan Dennis Morgan (born Earl Stanley Morner, December 20, 1908 – September 7, 1994) was an American actor-singer. He used the acting pseudonym Richard Stanley before adopting the name under which he gained his greatest fame. According to one obi ...

as Lieutenant Charbret *

Tyler Brooke Tyler Brooke (born Victor Hugo de Bierre, June 6, 1886 – March 2, 1943) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 90 films between 1915 and 1943. He was born in New York, New York and died in Los Angeles, California by committi ...

as Raoul * Robert Livingston as Pierre * Frank Dawson as Albert *

Ferdinand Gottschalk Ferdinand Gottschalk (28 February 1858 – 10 November 1944) was an English theatre and film actor. He appeared in 76 films between 1917 and 1938. He was born and died in London, England. He made his first appearance on the stage in Toronto ...

as Proprietor of Café Anges * Joseph R. Tozer as Colonel *

Harry Cording Hector William "Harry" Cording (26 April 1891 – 1 September 1954) was an English-American actor. He is perhaps best remembered for his roles in the films '' The Black Cat'' (1934) and ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938). Life and career ...

as Madame Eyrelle's Chauffeur *

Tempe Pigott Tempe Pigott (2 February 1869 – 6 October 1962) was an Australian silent and sound screen character actress. She was a stage actress in England and Australia, Canada and the United States for a number of years before entering motion pictures. ...

as Old Woman Getting Police *

Luana Walters Luana Walters (July 22, 1912 – May 19, 1963) was an American motion picture actress from Los Angeles, California. Biography Walters was an expert horsewoman, which led to her discovery as an actress at a rodeo in Palm Springs, California ...

as Check Room Girl

Production

Dorothy Parker was notable as one of the screenwriting team, with much of the early scenes’ witty dialogue attributed to her. Harlow's cabaret song, Walter Donaldson and Harold Adamson's "Did I Remember (To Tell You I Adored You)" was dubbed by vocalist Virginia Verrill who also had dubbed for her in '' Reckless'' (1935). Grant, who replaced Clark Gable as the third lead, also sang a few bars of the song. Other songs included: "When You Wore a Tulip and I Wore a Big Red Rose" and "Under the Bamboo Tree", uncredited but sung by Verrill."Did I Remember, Lyrics."
''International Lyrics Playground.'' Retrieved: March 30, 2011. In order to film the aerial sequences, footage was leased from

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in t ...

and one scene was directly lifted from '' Hell's Angels'' (1930), which had been Harlow's break-through film.Farmer 1990, p. 84. A number of aircraft were prominently seen, including Andre's

S.E.5 The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 is a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. It was developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory by a team consisting of Henry Folland, John Kenworthy and Major Frank Goodden. It was one of the fas ...

fighter, German Fokker D.VII and Thomas-Morse S-4 fighters as well as a rare

Sikorsky S-29-A The Sikorsky S-29-A was a twin-engine sesquiplane airliner, first flown in 1924. It was the first aircraft that aviation pioneer Igor Sikorsky designed and built after coming to the United States, hence the special "-A" suffix signifying "America ...

airliner filling in as a German

Gotha Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the Gotha (district), district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine House of Wet ...

bomber.

Reception

Although Harlow dominates the film, it is not considered one of her finest, with a mundane plot and only the Grant and Tone roles being notable.Wollstein, Hans J
"Suzy (1936)."
''AMG Review.'' Retrieved: March 30, 2011. Critic Frank S. Nugent of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' considered it hackneyed, as "...it plunges across the screen, creates some mild excitement and careens out again, leaving us with a few esthetic bruises and a feeling that a little fresh air would do no harm."Nugent, Frank S
"Suzy (1936): 'Suzy' at Capitol Clears Spelvin Mystery."
''

,'' July 25, 1936. Retrieved: March 29, 2011.

Accolades

Walter Donaldson (music) and Harold Adamson (lyrics) were nominated in the category, Best Music, Original Song for the song "Did I Remember" at the 1937 Academy Awards.

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * Farmer, James H. "Howard & Hell's Angels." ''Air Classics,'' Volume 26, No. 12, December 1990. * Hardwick, Jack and Ed Schnepf. "A Viewer's Guide to Aviation Movies." ''The Making of the Great Aviation Films'', General Aviation Series, Volume 2, 1989. * Wynne, H. Hugh. ''The Motion Picture Stunt Pilots and Hollywood's Classic Aviation Movies''. Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Co., 1987. .

External links

*
TCM: Suzy (1936)
* * {{George Fitzmaurice 1936 films American aviation films 1936 drama films American drama films American black-and-white films Films based on American novels Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films directed by George Fitzmaurice World War I aviation films World War I spy films Films with screenplays by Dorothy Parker Films set in London Films set in Paris 1930s English-language films 1930s American films