City Girl (1930 film)

Last updated

City Girl
City Girl 1930 poster.jpg
Poster art for 1930 sound version of the film
Directed by F. W. Murnau
Written by Marion Orth
Berthold Viertel
Based onThe Mud Turtle (play)
by Elliott Lester
Produced by William Fox
Starring Charles Farrell
Mary Duncan
Cinematography Ernest Palmer
Edited by Harry H. Caldwell
Katherine Hilliker
Music by Arthur Kay
Distributed by Fox Film Corporation
Release date
  • February 16, 1930 (1930-02-16)
Running time
89 minutes
CountryUnited States
Languages Sound film (Part-Talkie)
English Intertitles

City Girl is a 1930 American part-talkie sound film directed by F. W. Murnau, and starring Charles Farrell and Mary Duncan. It is based upon the play "The Mud Turtle" by Elliot Lester. Though shot as a silent feature, the film was refitted with some sound elements and released in 1930 as a sound film due to the public apathy to silent films. While the film has a few talking sequences, the majority of the film featured a synchronized musical score with sound effects using both the sound-on-disc and sound-on-film process. [1] [2] The film is credited as being the primary inspiration for Terrence Malick's film Days of Heaven (1978). [1] [2]

Contents

Plot

City Girl ad in The Film Daily, 1929 City Girl ad in The Film Daily, Jan-Jun 1929 (page 1473 crop).jpg
City Girl ad in The Film Daily , 1929

Lem Tustine is sent to Chicago by his father to sell the family farm's wheat crop. He meets Kate, a waitress who is sick of the endless bustle of the city, and she has dreams of living in the countryside. The stock market price of wheat starts to drop, and Lem hurriedly sells the crop for far less than the bottom line his father had given him.

Meanwhile, Lem has fallen in love with Kate, and they marry. They travel back to the countryside, but Lem's father, angry at the disastrous wheat sale, subjects Kate to hostility and physical abuse, mistakenly believing that she is simply after Lem's money. Lem fails to stand up to his father in support of Kate, and the relationship appears doomed. Matters are made worse when a group of farm hands arrive to help with the wheat harvest, and one of them named Mac tries to woo Kate. Lem's father interprets Mac's unwanted attentions as evidence of Kate's wanton nature, and he swears to break Lem and Kate apart.

When reports of a hailstorm destroying the country's wheat crops arrives, Lem's father tries to get the crop in early by working through the night. In an attempt to gain Kate's affections, Mac calls a strike to sabotage the harvest. Lem, reading a farewell letter from Kate, realizes that his own lack of action has caused all the misery, and he finally responds. He fights with Mac, berates his father and then searches for Kate. The workers abandon Mac and return to finish the harvest. Lem and Kate talk and finally agree to try again. Lem's father begs forgiveness from Kate as the film ends.

Cast

Music

The film featured a theme song entitled “In the Valley of My Dreams” which was composed by Pierre Norman and James Hanley.

Production

City Girl was shot on location in Athena [3] and Pendleton, Oregon. According to research by film historians, a farm was constructed for the making of the film. [4]

According to a newspaper article in the Heppner Gazette-Times on the arrival of Murnau and actress Mary Duncan in Pendleton, the film's original working title was Our Daily Bread. [5] Upon her arrival to shoot the film in August 1928, Duncan was granted the Round-Up Queen of the 1928 Pendleton Round-Up rodeo. [5]

The Fox Film studios for whom Murnau was working were subject to a takeover during filming. The new owners requested a number of changes to City Girl, including the addition of sound sequences which Murnau resisted, and eventually he walked away to begin filming Tabu, A Story of the South Seas . The sound version of City Girl was released at a time when all-talking pictures were the norm. Consequently, the film flopped at the box office because it was considered extremely outdated by the time it was in general release.

Rediscovery

During the early sound era, silent versions were routinely made for theatres that had not yet converted to sound. A forgotten copy of the silent version of this film was among those rescued from the Fox vaults in 1970 by Eileen Bowser of Museum of Modern Art and screened at the museum. [6] [7]

Related Research Articles

<i>7th Heaven</i> (1927 film) 1927 film by Frank Borzage

7th Heaven is a 1927 American synchronized sound romantic drama directed by Frank Borzage, and starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using the Movietone sound system. The film is based upon the 1922 play Seventh Heaven, by Austin Strong and was adapted for the screen by Benjamin Glazer. 7th Heaven was initially released as a standard silent film in May 1927. On September 10, 1927, Fox Film Corporation re-released the film with a synchronized Movietone soundtrack with a musical score and sound effects.

<i>Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans</i> 1927 film

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans is a 1927 American synchronized sound romantic drama directed by German director F. W. Murnau and starring George O'Brien, Janet Gaynor, and Margaret Livingston. The film's plot follows a married farmer (O'Brien) who falls for a woman vacationing from the city (Livingston), who tries to convince him to murder his wife (Gaynor) in order to be with her. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using the Movietone sound-on-film process. The story was adapted by Carl Mayer from the short story "The Excursion to Tilsit", from the 1917 collection with the same title by Hermann Sudermann.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyrus McCormick</span> American inventor and businessman (1809–1884)

Cyrus Hall McCormick was an American inventor and businessman who founded the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, which later became part of the International Harvester Company in 1902. Originally from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, he and many members of the McCormick family became prominent residents of Chicago. McCormick has been simplistically credited as the single inventor of the mechanical reaper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. W. Murnau</span> German film director (1888–1931)

Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau was a German film director, producer and screenwriter. He is regarded as one of cinema's most influential filmmakers for his work in the silent era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heppner, Oregon</span> City in Oregon, United States

Heppner is a city in, and the county seat of, Morrow County, Oregon, United States. As of 2010, the population was 1,291. Heppner is part of the Pendleton-Hermiston Micropolitan Area. Heppner is named after Henry Heppner, a prominent Jewish-American businessman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athena, Oregon</span> City in Oregon, United States

Athena is a city in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. The population was 1,126 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Hermiston-Pendleton Micropolitan Statistical Area.

<i>Street Angel</i> (1928 film) 1928 film by Frank Borzage

Street Angel is a 1928 American synchronized sound drama film. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using the sound-on-film movietone process. The film was directed by Frank Borzage, adapted by Harry H. Caldwell (titles), Katherine Hilliker (titles), Philip Klein, Marion Orth and Henry Roberts Symonds from the play Lady Cristilinda by Monckton Hoffe. As one of the early, transitional sound film releases, it did not include recorded dialogue, but used intertitles along with recorded sound effects and musical selections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyrus McCormick Farm</span> United States historic place

The Cyrus McCormick Farm and Workshop is on the family farm of inventor Cyrus Hall McCormick known as Walnut Grove. Cyrus Hall McCormick improved and patented the mechanical reaper, which eventually led to the creation of the combine harvester.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Farrell</span> American actor (1900–1990)

Charles David Farrell was an American film actor whose height was in the 1920s and 1930s and the Mayor of Palm Springs from 1947 to 1955. Farrell was known for his onscreen romances with actress Janet Gaynor in more than a dozen films, including 7th Heaven, Street Angel, and Lucky Star. Later in life, he starred on TV in the 1950s sitcoms My Little Margie and played himself in The Charles Farrell Show. He was also among the early developers of Palm Springs.

<i>Lucky Star</i> (1929 film) 1929 film by Frank Borzage

Lucky Star is a 1929 sound part-talkie American romantic drama film starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell, and directed by Frank Borzage. In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with English intertitles. The soundtrack was recorded using the Movietone sound-on-film system. The plot involves the impact of World War I upon a farm girl (Gaynor) and a returning soldier (Farrell).

<i>Men Without Women</i> (film) 1930 film

Men Without Women is an American 1930 pre-Code drama film directed and written by John Ford, from the script by James Kevin McGuinness. The film also starred Kenneth MacKenna, Frank Albertson, and J. Farrell MacDonald. The sound version is now lost. Only a print of the "International Sound Version", held by the Museum of Modern Art, survives.

<i>The Man Who Came Back</i> (1931 film) 1931 film

The Man Who Came Back is a 1931 American Pre-Code romantic drama film directed by Raoul Walsh, starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. The movie was adapted to screen by Edwin J. Burke from the play by Jules Eckert Goodman.

<i>4 Devils</i> 1928 film by F. W. Murnau

4 Devils is a lost 1928 American synchronized sound drama film directed by German director F. W. Murnau and starring Janet Gaynor. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using the sound-on-film movietone process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor Potel</span> American actor (1889–1947)

Victor Potel was an American film character actor who began in the silent era and appeared in more than 430 films in his 38-year career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruggs, Oregon</span> Unincorporated community in the state of Oregon, United States

Ruggs is an unincorporated community located in the southern portion of Morrow County, Oregon, United States. Ruggs lies at the junction of Oregon Route 206, Oregon Route 207, Rhea Creek Road, and Upper Rhea Creek Road. The community is situated at an elevation of 2,136 feet (651 m).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Duncan</span> American actress (1895-1993)

Mary Duncan was an American stage and film actress. She is best known for her performances in F.W. Murnau's City Girl (1930) and Morning Glory (1933).

<i>A Trip to Chinatown</i> (film) 1926 film by Robert P. Kerr

A Trip to Chinatown is a 1926 American silent comedy film produced and distributed by the Fox Film Corporation and starring Margaret Livingston and Earle Foxe. The supporting cast includes Anna May Wong and Charles Farrell. The movie was scripted by Beatrice Van from Charles Hale Hoyt's hit 1891 Broadway musical of the same name and directed by Robert P. Kerr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harlan Thompson</span> American film director

Harlan Thompson was an American theatre director, screenwriter, lyricist, film director, and film and television producer. He wrote the Broadway hit Little Jessie James (1923–24), and several other Broadway musicals. He moved to Hollywood, where he was in turn a writer, director and producer.

<i>Under Western Skies</i> (1926 film) 1926 film

Under Western Skies is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Edward Sedgwick and starring Norman Kerry, Anne Cornwall, and Ward Crane.

References

  1. 1 2 French, Phillip (May 21, 2011). "City Girl". The Guardian . Retrieved December 22, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "City Girl. 1930. Directed by F. W. Murnau". Museum of Modern Art . May 27, 2018. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021.
  3. ↑ Williams, Heidi (April 30, 2009). "Review: The Beaver State's film heritage: The Oregon sesquicentennial film festival". Oregon Live. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  4. ↑ Danks, Adrian (October 2003). "Reaching Beyond the Frame: Murnau's City Girl". Senses of Cinema. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  5. 1 2 "Movie Star Chosen for Round-Up Queen". Heppner Gazette-Times. August 21, 1928. p. 6.
  6. ↑ Hudson, David. "MoMA Presents Fox Rarities". The Criterion Collection. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  7. ↑ Weiler, A. H. (June 3, 1970). "Modern Art Museum to Show Series of 6 Vintage Fox Films". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.