The Perils of Pauline

Director: George Marshall George Marshall

Overview

The third of four films bearing the title of The Perils of Pauline, this musical biopic purports to tell the life story of famed silent serial queen Pearl White. Right at the beginning, however, an introductory title informs the audience that what follows is merely "suggested" by incidents in White's life and career. Translation: The film is a fabrication from beginning to end, but an enjoyable one. Played on all four cylinders by Betty Hutton, White is introduced as a frustrated factory worker who aspires to become a dramatic actress. She joins a touring theatrical troupe managed by handsome but pompous Mike (John Lund), but fame and fortune elude her because she's unable to suppress her natural rambunctiousness. In desperation, White takes a job at a movie studio, where she promptly finds herself in the middle of a slapstick pie fight. With the help of bombastic director Mac (William Demarest), top-hatted villain portrayer Timmy (Billy De Wolfe), and imperious dramatics coach Julia (Constance Collier), Pearl soon becomes world-famous as the star of such cliffhanging, tied-to-the-railroad-tracks serials as The Perils of Pauline (hence the title of this film). At the height of her fame, she arranges for her theatrical mentor Mike to get a job as her leading man, forcing him to swallow his pride and admit that he's been in love with her from the moment he met her. A series of clich?d complications contrive to separate White and Mike, but he returns to her arms when she's seriously injured during a Parisian stage performance. A few fairly credible recreations of silent moviemaking techniques aside, The Perils of Pauline is wildly anachronistic and inaccurate (for one thing, Pearl White made most of her serials in New Jersey rather than Hollywood). As a musical comedy, however, the film passes muster, especially during the performance of such Frank Loesser tunes as "I Wish I Didn't Love You So" and "The Sewing Machine." As a bonus, the film rounds up several silent-movie veterans in cameo roles, including William Farnum, Chester Conklin, Jimmy Finlayson, Creighton Hale, Hank Mann -- and Paul Panzer, who played the sneering villain in the original 1914 Perils of Pauline.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/12/2023
UPC:	0744365698044
Original Release:	1947
Rating:	NR
Region Code:	A
Language:	English
Time:	1:33:00

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Betty Hutton	Pearl White
John Lund	Michael Farrington
Billy De Wolfe	Timmy Timmons
William Demarest	Mac
Constance Collier	Julia Gibbs
Frank Faylen	Joe Gurt
William Farnum	Hero, Western Saloon,Friar John,Friar John
Paul Panzer	Gent, Interior Drawing Room
Snub Pollard	Propman, Western Saloon,Propman in Saloon
Creighton Hale	Marcelled Leading Man
Chester Conklin	Chef Comic,Studio Cop
James Finlayson	Chef Comic
Hank Mann	Chef Comic
Bert Roach	Bartender, Western Saloon
Francis McDonald	Heavy, Western Saloon
Eric Alden	Officer
Ethel Clayton	Lady Montague
Harry Hayden	Stage Manager
Julia Faye	Nurse
Chester Clute	Willie Millick
Myrtle Anderson	Maid
Frank Ferguson	Theater Owner
Rex Lease	Reporter
Stanley Blystone	Reporter
Sidney D'Albrook	Reporter
John 'Skins' Miller	Cameraman, Drawing Room Set
Bess Flowers	Reporter
Paula Ray	Reporter
Tom Dugan	Balloonist
Eugene Borden	French Doctor
Byron Poindexter	Man
Ray de Ravenne	Call Boy
Jack Shea	Workman

Technical Credits

Frank R. Butler

P.J. Wolfson

Frank R. Butler	Screenwriter
P.J. Wolfson	Screenwriter
Sol C. Siegel	Producer
George Marshall	Director
Walter Oberst	Sound/Sound Designer