Scratch My Back (film)

Last updated

Scratch my Back
Scratch Film Daily.jpg
Advertisement in 1920 issue of
The Film Daily
Directed by Sidney Olcott
Written by Rupert Hughes
E.T. Lowe
Story by Rupert Hughes
Produced byEminent Authors Pictures
Starring Helene Chadwick
T. Roy Barnes
Cinematography Steve Rounds
Distributed by Goldwyn Pictures
Release date
  • June 12, 1920 (1920-06-12)
Running time
6 reels
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

Scratch my Back is a 1920 American silent comedy film produced by Eminent Authors Pictures and distributed by Goldwyn Pictures. Adapted by Rupert Hughes from one of his story, the film was directed by Sidney Olcott with T. Roy Barnes and Helene Chadwick in the leading roles. It is not known whether the film currently survives. [1]

Contents

This film is preserved in a copy prepared by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. [2]

Plot

As described in a film magazine, [3] Val Romney (Barnes), a young society man who does about as he pleases, is at a society function when he has a predicament of having an itching back and being unable to get any relief. Meanwhile, Madeline (Chadwick) is in a French boarding school from which she runs away and goes to London and becomes a dancer. When she tires of that life she returns to her father, an American living in Paris. On her way home she meets a young American whom she later marries without telling him of her escapades in London. Later, they are a married couple living in the United States when, during one night at the opera, they are seated in front of Val. Madeline is annoyed by an itchy back and Val, remembering that he was once in this discomfort, impulsively leans forward and scratches her shoulder. She writes him a note of thanks and asks him to call on her. The next day she tells him of her London experiences and says her former dance partner is trying to blackmail her. She dares not tell her husband and asks Val for help. She and Val plot to outwit the blackmailer. They succeed, but arouse the jealousy of her husband. Eventually things are straightened out when the husband tells Madeline that he knew of her secret about her time in London all along.

Cast

Maurice Maeterlinck visits Goldwyn studios, welcomed by Sidney Olcott Scratch Maeterlinck.jpg
Maurice Maeterlinck visits Goldwyn studios, welcomed by Sidney Olcott

Production

The film was shot in Goldwyn studios in Culver City, California. [1]

In Culver City, Olcott received on the set the prestigious visit of Maurice Maeterlinck, Belgian poet, Nobel prize of literature 1911. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sidney Olcott</span> Canadian filmmaker (1873–1949)

Sidney Olcott was a Canadian-born film producer, director, actor and screenwriter.

<i>Salome of the Tenements</i> 1925 film by Sidney Olcott

Salome of the Tenements is a 1925 American silent drama film adapted to the screen by Sonya Levien from the Anzia Yezierska novel of the same name. Made by Jesse L. Lasky and Adolph Zukor's Famous Players–Lasky Corporation, a division of Paramount Pictures, it was directed by Sidney Olcott and starred Jetta Goudal and Godfrey Tearle.

<i>Monsieur Beaucaire</i> (1924 film) 1924 film by Sidney Olcott

Monsieur Beaucaire is a 1924 American silent romantic historical drama film starring Rudolph Valentino in the title role, Bebe Daniels, and Lois Wilson. Produced and directed by Sidney Olcott, the film is based on Booth Tarkington's 1900 novel of the same name and the 1904 play of the same name by Tarkington and Evelyn Greenleaf Sutherland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helene Chadwick</span> American actress (1897–1940)

Helene Chadwick was an American actress in silent and in early sound films.

<i>Why Men Leave Home</i> 1924 film

Why Men Leave Home is a 1924 American silent comedy-drama film directed by John M. Stahl directed and stars Lewis Stone and Helene Chadwick. Produced by Louis B. Mayer and released through First National Pictures, the film is based on the 1922 play of the same name by Avery Hopwood.

<i>The Spreading Dawn</i> 1917 American film

The Spreading Dawn is a 1917 American silent drama film produced by Samuel Goldwyn in his first year of producing independently in his own studio and starring Broadway stage star Jane Cowl in her second and final silent film. It was directed by Laurence Trimble. The film is lost with a fragment, apparently only part of reel 3, surviving at the Library of Congress.

<i>Clothes</i> (1920 film) 1920 film

Clothes is a 1920 American silent drama film produced and distributed by the Metro Pictures company. It is based on a 1906 Broadway play, Clothes, by Channing Pollock and Avery Hopwood. The play starred Grace George with a young supporting player named Douglas Fairbanks. A 1914 silent film was produced and is now lost. This 1920 version from Metro starred Olive Tell. By all accounts this version is lost as well.

<i>Girls</i> (1919 film) 1919 film by Walter Edwards

Girls is a 1919 American silent romantic comedy directed by Walter Edwards and starring Marguerite Clark. It is based on the 1909 Broadway play of the same name by Clyde Fitch starring Florence Reed in the part Clark plays in this film.

<i>Dangerous Curve Ahead</i> 1921 film

Dangerous Curve Ahead is a 1921 American silent comedy starring Helene Chadwick and Richard Dix. The film is considered to be lost.

<i>Not So Long Ago</i> 1925 film

Not So Long Ago is a 1925 American silent drama film produced by Jesse Lasky and Adolph Zukor and distributed by Paramount. It was directed by Sidney Olcott with Betty Bronson and Ricardo Cortez in the leading roles.

<i>Pardon My French</i> (1921 film) 1921 film

Pardon My French is a lost 1921 American silent comedy film produced by Messmore Kendall and distributed by Goldwyn Pictures. It was directed by Sidney Olcott with Vivian Martin in the leading role.

<i>A Very Good Young Man</i> 1919 film by Donald Crisp

A Very Good Young Man is a lost 1919 American silent comedy film directed by Donald Crisp, written by Martin Brown, Robert Housum, and Walter Woods, and starring Bryant Washburn, Helene Chadwick, Julia Faye, Sylvia Ashton, Jane Wolfe, Helen Jerome Eddy, and Wade Boteler. It was released on July 6, 1919, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>Her Face Value</i> 1921 film

Her Face Value is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by Thomas N. Heffron and written by Percy Heath based upon a story by Earl Derr Biggers. The film stars Wanda Hawley, Lincoln Plumer, Richard Rosson, T. Roy Barnes, Winifred Bryson, Donald MacDonald, and Harvey Clark. The film was released on October 13, 1921, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>The Woman Hater</i> (1925 film) 1925 film

The Woman Hater is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by James Flood and starring Helene Chadwick, Clive Brook, and John Harron. It was produced and distributed by Warner Bros.

<i>The Invisible Power</i> 1921 film

The Invisible Power is a 1921 American crime melodrama film directed by Frank Lloyd and released by Goldwyn Pictures.

<i>Grand Larceny</i> (1922 film) 1922 film by Wallace Worsley

Grand Larceny is a lost 1922 American silent romantic drama film directed by Wallace Worsley and starring Elliott Dexter, Claire Windsor, and Lowell Sherman. It was produced and released by Goldwyn Pictures.

<i>The Sin Flood</i> (1922 film) 1922 film

The Sin Flood is a lost 1922 American silent drama film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Richard Dix and Helene Chadwick. It was distributed by Goldwyn Pictures.

<i>The Re-Creation of Brian Kent</i> 1925 film directed by Sam Wood

The Re-Creation of Brian Kent is a 1925 American drama film directed by Sam Wood and written by Mary Alice Scully and Arthur F. Statter. It is based on the 1919 novel The Re-Creation of Brian Kent by Harold Bell Wright. The film stars Kenneth Harlan, Helene Chadwick, Mary Carr, ZaSu Pitts, Rosemary Theby, T. Roy Barnes, Ralph Lewis, and Russell Simpson. The film was released on February 15, 1925, by Principal Distributing.

<i>The Hunted Woman</i> 1925 film

The Hunted Woman is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by Jack Conway and starring Seena Owen, Earl Schenck, and Victor McLaglen.

<i>Gimme</i> (film) 1923 film

Gimme is a 1923 American comedy silent black and white film directed by Rupert Hughes and starring Helene Chadwick and May Wallace. This film along with Charge It (1921) and Ladies Must Dress (1927) encouraged women to be flappers and to increase their consumerism.

References

  1. 1 2 Progressive Silent Film List: Scratch My Back at silentera.com
  2. The Library of Congress/FIAF American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog:Scratch My Back
  3. "Reviews: Scratch My Back". Exhibitors Herald. New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company. 11 (6): 72. August 7, 1920.
  4. sidneyolcott.com