Joan Crawford was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway. Crawford was signed to a motion picture contract by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1925. Initially frustrated by the size and quality of her parts, Crawford launched a publicity campaign and built an image as a nationally known flapper by the end of the 1920s. By the 1930s, Crawford's fame rivaled MGM colleagues Norma Shearer and Greta Garbo. Crawford often played hardworking young women who find romance and financial success. These "rags-to-riches" stories were well received by Depression-era audiences and were popular with women. Crawford became one of Hollywood's most prominent movie stars and one of the highest paid women in the United States, but her films began losing money. By the end of the 1930s, she was labeled "box office poison".
The following is an overview of 1927 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Carmel Myers was an American actress who achieved her greatest successes in silent film.
Berserk! is a 1967 British horror-thriller film directed by Jim O'Connolly and starring Joan Crawford, Ty Hardin, Diana Dors and Judy Geeson. The screenplay was written by Herman Cohen and Aben Kandel.
William Robertson Bakewell was an American actor. He achieved his greatest fame as one of the leading juvenile performers of the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Harry Beaumont was an American film director, actor, and screenwriter. He worked for a variety of production companies including Fox, Goldwyn, Metro, Warner Brothers, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Across to Singapore is a 1928 American silent romantic drama film directed by William Nigh, and starring Ramon Novarro, Joan Crawford and Ernest Torrence. The plot involves a love triangle between a woman and two brothers, set on board ship and in Singapore. The screenplay was written by Ted Shane based on the novel All the Brothers Were Valiant by Ben Ames Williams.
Old Clothes is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by Edward F. Cline and starring Jackie Coogan and Joan Crawford.
The Taxi Dancer is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Harry F. Millarde and starring Owen Moore and, in her first film with top billing, Joan Crawford.
Winners of the Wilderness is a 1927 American silent war drama film directed by W.S. Van Dyke and starring Tim McCoy and Joan Crawford. In this costume drama, set during the French and Indian War (1754-1763), Rene Contrecouer (Crawford), the daughter of a French general falls for a soldier of fortune (McCoy). The film was photographed mostly in black and white, but one scene was in color by Technicolor.
Twelve Miles Out is a 1927 American silent drama film directed by Jack Conway and starring John Gilbert and Joan Crawford. It is based on the 1925 Broadway play Twelve Miles Out by William Anthony McGuire.
The Law of the Range is a 1928 American silent Western film starring Tim McCoy and Joan Crawford and Rex Lease.
West Point is a 1927 American silent romantic drama film starring William Haines and Joan Crawford in a story about an arrogant cadet who finds love right before the all-important Army–Navy Game.
Four Walls is a 1928 American silent drama film directed by William Nigh and starring John Gilbert, Joan Crawford, and Carmel Myers. The film is based on the play of the same name by George Abbott and Dana Burnet. Four Walls is now considered lost. The film was remade in 1934 as Straight Is the Way.
Dance, Fools, Dance is a 1931 pre-Code Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer drama film starring Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, and Lester Vail in a story about a reporter investigating the murder of a colleague. Story and dialogue were created by Aurania Rouverol, and the film was directed by Harry Beaumont. Dance, Fools, Dance was the first of eight movies featuring Crawford and Gable.
The Only Thing is a 1925 American silent romantic drama film starring Eleanor Boardman. The film's scenario was written by author Elinor Glyn, and was based on a story adapted from Glyn's novel of the same name.
Rose-Marie is a 1928 American silent drama film directed by Lucien Hubbard. It was the first of three Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer adaptations of the 1924 operetta Broadway musical Rose-Marie. The best-known film adaptation starring Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald was released in 1936; another film was released in 1954. All three versions are set in the Canadian wilderness.
Charlie Chan's Courage (1934) is the fifth film in which Warner Oland played detective Charlie Chan. It is a remake of the 1927 silent film The Chinese Parrot, based upon the novel by Earl Derr Biggers. Both are considered lost films.
The Plunderer is a lost 1924 American silent Western film directed by George Archainbaud and starring Frank Mayo and Evelyn Brent. An earlier version filmed in 1920 starred William Farnum.
