Strange Interlude (1932 film)
Encyclopedia
Strange Interlude is a 1932
American romantic drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard
. The film stars Norma Shearer
and Clark Gable
, and is based on the play Strange Interlude
by Eugene O'Neill
.
. Nina would have married him before he left, but her father forbade the marriage. Charlie is a friend, but Nina does not love him and he is too timid- too shy - to tell her the way that he feels about her. Sam is her husband and her love disappears after the ceremony when she finds out that there is mental illness
in his family and that there can be no children. To have the child she wants, but cannot have with Sam, she has a secret affair with Ned, who wants her to leave Sam. Gordon is the result of the affair, but he does not know Ned is his real father. Nina continues to play with the emotions of all three men and devote herself only to Gordon.
in New York City
on January 30, 1928 with 426 performances. The lead characters were played by Lynn Fontanne
and Glenn Anders, and the supporting cast included Helen Westley
and Tom Powers
. Because the play had 9 acts, it began in the afternoon, and concluded in the evening after an intermission for dinner. There were two Broadway revivals after the film was released.
1932 in film
-Events:*Cary Grant's film career begins*Katharine Hepburn's film career begins*Shirley Temple's film career begins*Disney released Flowers and Trees, the first cartoon in three-strip Technicolor film.*Santa, first sound film made in Mexico released....
American romantic drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard
Robert Z. Leonard
Robert Zigler Leonard was an American film director, actor, producer and screenwriter.He was born in Chicago, Illinois...
. The film stars Norma Shearer
Norma Shearer
Edith Norma Shearer was a Canadian-American actress. Shearer was one of the most popular actresses in North America from the mid-1920s through the 1930s...
and Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
, and is based on the play Strange Interlude
Strange Interlude
Strange Interlude is an experimental play by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. O'Neill finished the play in 1923, but it was not produced on Broadway until 1928, when it won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Lynn Fontanne originated the central role of Nina Leeds on Broadway...
by Eugene O'Neill
Eugene O'Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
.
Plot
Gordon Shaw was a flyer who was shot down and killed during World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Nina would have married him before he left, but her father forbade the marriage. Charlie is a friend, but Nina does not love him and he is too timid- too shy - to tell her the way that he feels about her. Sam is her husband and her love disappears after the ceremony when she finds out that there is mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
in his family and that there can be no children. To have the child she wants, but cannot have with Sam, she has a secret affair with Ned, who wants her to leave Sam. Gordon is the result of the affair, but he does not know Ned is his real father. Nina continues to play with the emotions of all three men and devote herself only to Gordon.
Cast (in credits order)
- Norma ShearerNorma ShearerEdith Norma Shearer was a Canadian-American actress. Shearer was one of the most popular actresses in North America from the mid-1920s through the 1930s...
as Nina Leeds - Clark GableClark GableWilliam Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
as Dr Ned Darrell - Alexander KirklandAlexander KirklandAlexander Kirkland was a leading man in Hollywood during the early sound era, as well as a notable actor in Pittsburgh theatre. He was born in Mexico City, Mexico. He was recognized more for being the husband of Gypsy Rose Lee from 1942 to 1944...
as Sam Evans - Ralph MorganRalph MorganRalph Morgan was a Hollywood film, stage and character actor, and the older brother of Frank Morgan .-Early life:...
as Charlie Marsden - Robert YoungRobert Young (actor)Robert George Young was an American television, film, and radio actor, best known for his leading roles as Jim Anderson, the father of Father Knows Best and as physician Marcus Welby in Marcus Welby, M.D. .-Early life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Young was the son of an Irish immigrant father...
as Gordon Evans (as a young man) - May RobsonMay RobsonMay Robson was an actress and playwright. A major stage actress of the late 19th and early 20th century, Robson is best known today for the dozens of 1930s motion pictures she appeared in when she was well into her seventies, usually playing cross old ladies with hearts of gold.- Biography :Born...
as Mrs Evans - Maureen O'SullivanMaureen O'SullivanMaureen Paula O’Sullivan was an Irish actress.-Early life:O'Sullivan was born in Boyle, County Roscommon, Ireland, the daughter of Roman Catholic parents Mary Lovatt and Charles Joseph O'Sullivan, an officer in The Connaught Rangers who served in The Great War...
as Madeline Arnold - Henry B. WalthallHenry B. WalthallHenry Brazeale Walthall was an American film actor.-Career:Walthall began his career as a stage actor, appearing on Broadway in a supporting role in William Vaughn Moody's The Great Divide in 1906–1908. His career in movies began in 1908, in the film Rescued from an Eagle's Nest, which also...
as Professor Leeds - Mary AldenMary AldenMary Maguire Alden was an American motion picture and stage actress. She was one of the first Broadway actresses to work in Hollywood.-Career:Born in New York City, Alden began her career on the Broadway stage...
as Mary, Leeds' Maid - Tad Alexander as Gordon Evans (as a child)
The play
The play originally opened on BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on January 30, 1928 with 426 performances. The lead characters were played by Lynn Fontanne
Lynn Fontanne
Lynn Fontanne was a British actress and major stage star in the United States for over 40 years. She teamed with her husband Alfred Lunt.She lived in the United States for more than 60 years but never relinquished her British citizenship. Lunt and Fontanne shared a special Tony Award in 1970...
and Glenn Anders, and the supporting cast included Helen Westley
Helen Westley
Helen Westley was an American character actress.-Career:Born as Henrietta Remsen Meserole Manney, Helen Westley was a member of the original board of the Theatre Guild, and appeared in many of their productions, among them Peer Gynt, and some of their productions of plays by George Bernard...
and Tom Powers
Tom Powers
Tom Powers was an American stage and film actor. He was born in Owensboro, Kentucky, USA and died in Hollywood, California, of heart disease.- Career :...
. Because the play had 9 acts, it began in the afternoon, and concluded in the evening after an intermission for dinner. There were two Broadway revivals after the film was released.