| Dangerous Nan McGrew | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Malcolm St. Clair |
| Written by |
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| Produced by | Mack Sennett |
| Starring |
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| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 73 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Dangerous Nan McGrew is a 1930 Pre-Code American musical comedy film starring Helen Kane, Victor Moore and James Hall and directed by Malcolm St. Clair. [1] [2]
Dangerous Nan McGrew is the lead entertainer in a traveling medicine show. Muldoon, a member of the medicine show, is a fugitive wanted for murder. The medicine show gets stranded at the snowbound hunting lodge of a wealthy woman. Performing at a Christmas Eve show for the lodge guests, the saxophone-playing nephew of the landlady falls in love with Nan. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police are on the trail of Muldoon, and McGrew, a Sharpshooting singer, assists in the end. [3]
An early sound film, Dangerous Nan McGrew was made in the aftermath of the financial Panic of 1929 and during the economic crisis that followed. Film historian Ruth Anne Dwyer notes: “Not only was movie making technique modified, but dramatic content, reflecting the hardships of the Depression, changed significantly as well.” [4] Hollywood studio executives sought to capitalize on the public interest in Prohibition and related gangster violence, as well films that offered musical selections. Virtually any genre that included “songs” could be promoted as a “musical.” As such, Paramount studios promoted Dangerous Nan McGrew as “musical-comedy-western-romance.”
After completing the picture, director Malcolm St. Clair was hired by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to make another song-laced feature with a western-romantic theme, Montana Moon (1930) starring Joan Crawford. Released in April, the M-G-M production was in theatres two months before the Paramount picture, serving the public appetite for sound films featuring music. [5]
The New York Times planned Dangerous Nan McGrew, accusing producer Mack Sennett and Paramount of squandering its comedic potential. In spite of casting genuine screen talent, and starring Helen Kane, “Dangerous Nan McGrew isn't funny.” Actor Stuart Erwin is chastened for “grimacing his way” through the part of Eustace Macy, and Helen Kane for “acting in a tediously cute manner.” The scenario is identified as formulaic: “The crooks are captured, the rewards distributed and the marriages consecrated.” [6]
Biographer Ruth Anne Dwyer observes that director St. Clair skillfully incorporated a number of “signature” shots in which actors repeatedly open and close doors searching for one another. These comic “door” montages serve as an homage to fellow Paramount director Ernst Lubitsch who frequently used this technique to great effect. [7]
St. Clair, a veteran of many silent films, was evidently becoming more comfortable with handling the new sound equipment required for American film productions since 1929. Dwyer notes that Nan McGrew, though having “charming moments,” suffered from poor editing—a symptom of the new film stock that incorporated sound recording into the visual images: “The necessity of having to rely on others to edit was to hound St. Clair for the rest of his career.” [8]
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character designed by Grim Natwick at the request of Dave Fleischer. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She was featured in 90 theatrical cartoons between 1930 and 1939. She has also been featured in comic strips and mass merchandising.
Helen Kane was an American singer and actress. Her signature song was "I Wanna Be Loved by You" (1928), featured in the 1928 stage musical Good Boy. The song was written for Good Boy by the songwriting team Kalmar and Ruby. Kane's voice and appearance were thought to be a source for Fleischer Studios animators when creating Betty Boop. Kane attempted to sue the studio for claims of stealing her signature "boop-oop-a-doop" style, but the judge decided that the proof of this was insufficient, thus dismissing the case. Fleischer Studios later admitted that Kane had been the inspiration for Betty Boop.
The Goat is a 1921 American two-reel silent comedy film written, and co-directed by Malcolm St. Clair and Buster Keaton and starring Keaton.
Malcolm St. Clair was a Hollywood film director, writer, producer and actor.
A Social Celebrity is a 1926 American silent comedy drama film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and starred Louise Brooks as a small town manicurist who goes to New York City with her boyfriend, a barber who poses as a French count. The film is now considered lost.
Montana Moon is a 1930 pre-Code Western musical film which introduced the concept of the singing cowboy to the screen. Starring Joan Crawford, Johnny Mack Brown, Dorothy Sebastian, and Ricardo Cortez, the film focuses on the budding relationship between a city girl and a rural cowboy.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is a 1928 American silent comedy film directed by Mal St. Clair, co-written by Anita Loos based on her 1925 novel, and released by Paramount Pictures. No copies are known to exist, and it is now considered to be a lost film. The Broadway version Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Carol Channing as Lorelei Lee was mounted in 1949. It was remade into the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with Jane Russell as Dorothy Shaw and Marilyn Monroe as Lorelei Lee in 1953, directed by Howard Hawks.
Good and Naughty is a 1926 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and starring Pola Negri and Tom Moore. It was based on the play Naughty Cinderella by Henri Falk and René Peter. Released in 1926, it is a romantic comedy of mistaken identity about an attractive interior decorator (Negri) who is forced to make herself unattractive so she can be hired by a firm that has a policy against hiring attractive women.
A Woman of the World is a 1925 American silent comedy-drama film starring Pola Negri, directed by Mal St. Clair, produced by Famous Players–Lasky, and distributed by Paramount Pictures.
The Grand Duchess and the Waiter is a 1926 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Mal St. Clair and starring Florence Vidor and Adolphe Menjou. A “sophisticated comedy,” this Paramount production is based on a stage play by Alfred Savoir entitled La Grande-duchesse et le garcon d'etage (1924).
Yankee Doodle in Berlin is a 1919 American silent comedy and World War I film from producer Mack Sennett. A five-reel feature, it was Sennett's most expensive production up to that time. Hiram Abrams was the original State's Rights marketer before the film's release, but producer Sol Lesser bought the rights in March 1919.
The Show-Off is a 1926 American silent film comedy produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures, based on the play of the same name by George Kelly. Directed by Mal St. Clair, the film stars Ford Sterling, Lois Wilson and Louise Brooks.
Hollywood Cavalcade is a 1939 American film featuring Alice Faye as a young performer making her way in the early days of Hollywood, from slapstick silent pictures through the transition from silent to sound.
The Lighthouse by the Sea is a 1924 American silent adventure film produced by and distributed by Warner Bros. The film's star is canine sensation Rin Tin Tin, the most famous animal actor of the 1920s. The film was directed by Malcolm St. Clair.
Breakfast at Sunrise is a 1927 silent film comedy directed by Malcolm St. Clair and produced by and starring Constance Talmadge. It was distributed by First National Pictures.
The Trouble with Wives is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair, written by Sada Cowan and Howard Higgin, and starring Florence Vidor, Tom Moore, Esther Ralston, Ford Sterling, Lucy Beaumont, and Edgar Kennedy. It was released on September 28, 1925, by Paramount Pictures.
Knockout Reilly is a lost 1927 American silent drama film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and written by Pierre Collings, John W. Conway, and Kenneth Raisbeck based upon a story by Albert Payson Terhune. The film stars Richard Dix, Mary Brian, Jack Renault, Harry Gribbon, Osgood Perkins, and Lucia Backus Seger. The film was released on April 16, 1927, by Paramount Pictures.
The Fleet's In is a 1928 American silent comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and written by Monte Brice, George Marion Jr., and J. Walter Ruben. The film stars Clara Bow, James Hall, Jack Oakie, Bodil Rosing, Eddie Dunn, and Jean Laverty. The film was released on September 15, 1928, by Paramount Pictures.
On Thin Ice is a 1925 American silent crime drama film directed by Mal St. Clair and starring Tom Moore, Edith Roberts, and William Russell. It was produced and distributed by the Warner Bros. and based upon a 1924 novel by Alice Ross Colver.
After Business Hours is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and starring Elaine Hammerstein, Lou Tellegen, and Phyllis Haver.
