- Published on
A lighthearted comedy featuring an excellent cast.
Screenland, Dec 1929
Date of Release: Aug 25, 1929
Studio: Fox
Director: Raymond Cannon
Screenplay: Robert S. Carr, Walter Catlett
Music : Sidney Mitchell, Con Conrad, Archie Gottler, Dave Stamper, Harlan Thompson
Choreographer: Fanchon and Marco
Leading Actors: Sue Carol (Mary), Nick Stuart (Dick), Dixie Lee (Billie), Jean Bary (Jackie), Richard Keene (José), David Rollins (Oscar), Jed Prouty (George), Walter Catlett (Elmer), Gordon De Main (Roy), Ilka Chase (Ethel), Dot Farley (Susan), Laura Hamilton (Maude)
Why Leave Home was a film adaptation of the hit Broadway play Cradle Snatchers. Written by Russel G. Medcraft and Norma Mitchell, the play opened at the Music Box Theatre on Sept 7, 1925 and ran for 485 performances. The play starred a young Humphrey Bogart and was described as “unquestionably the funniest play in town.”
The play was revived at the Liberty Theatre in 1932. Another musical adaptation Let’s Face It opened in 1941. The new adaptation starred Danny Kaye with a book by Herbert and Dorothy Fields, and music and lyrics by Cole Porter.
Fox had made a silent film version of the play titled The Cradle Snatchers in 1927. Actor Nick Stuart made his screen debut in the silent version, and Why Leave Home marked his first talkie.
Motion Picture News (Aug 31, 1929) reported that Why Leave Home would be released on the west coast under the title Imagine My Embarrassment. The title was changed due a suggestion by the President of Fox West Coast Theatres, though a reason was not given. Variety (Aug 21, 1929) ran a similar story and suggested the name change was considered for national release.
Why Leave Home opened to lukewarm reviews and solid houses in August 1929. The reviewers generally agreed the stage show was better, and dismissed the “flimsy” plot about six different couples trying to show up their significant others. The Educational Screen (October 1929), always reliable for a snarky review, described Why Leave Home as “So farcical as to be both harmless and inane.”
Studio: Fox
Director: Raymond Cannon
Screenplay: Robert S. Carr, Walter Catlett
Music : Sidney Mitchell, Con Conrad, Archie Gottler, Dave Stamper, Harlan Thompson
Choreographer: Fanchon and Marco
Leading Actors: Sue Carol (Mary), Nick Stuart (Dick), Dixie Lee (Billie), Jean Bary (Jackie), Richard Keene (José), David Rollins (Oscar), Jed Prouty (George), Walter Catlett (Elmer), Gordon De Main (Roy), Ilka Chase (Ethel), Dot Farley (Susan), Laura Hamilton (Maude)
Why Leave Home was a film adaptation of the hit Broadway play Cradle Snatchers. Written by Russel G. Medcraft and Norma Mitchell, the play opened at the Music Box Theatre on Sept 7, 1925 and ran for 485 performances. The play starred a young Humphrey Bogart and was described as “unquestionably the funniest play in town.”
The play was revived at the Liberty Theatre in 1932. Another musical adaptation Let’s Face It opened in 1941. The new adaptation starred Danny Kaye with a book by Herbert and Dorothy Fields, and music and lyrics by Cole Porter.
Fox had made a silent film version of the play titled The Cradle Snatchers in 1927. Actor Nick Stuart made his screen debut in the silent version, and Why Leave Home marked his first talkie.
Motion Picture News (Aug 31, 1929) reported that Why Leave Home would be released on the west coast under the title Imagine My Embarrassment. The title was changed due a suggestion by the President of Fox West Coast Theatres, though a reason was not given. Variety (Aug 21, 1929) ran a similar story and suggested the name change was considered for national release.
Why Leave Home opened to lukewarm reviews and solid houses in August 1929. The reviewers generally agreed the stage show was better, and dismissed the “flimsy” plot about six different couples trying to show up their significant others. The Educational Screen (October 1929), always reliable for a snarky review, described Why Leave Home as “So farcical as to be both harmless and inane.”
Sue Carol, Photoplay, Nov 1929
Several reviewers made mention of Sue Carol and David Rollins. Sue Carol was an heiress, but not substantially well off. She reportedly told a security guard she had three fur coats, which didn’t mean much in Chicago, but translated to luxurious wealth in Hollywood. The studio used the story of an heiress abandoning her fortune to seek fame in Hollywood as a publicity stunt, and it worked.
Carol was also featured in the press for her real life relationship with Nick Stuart. Stories like the one below ran in Photoplay.
“Every Sunday morning, rain or shine and hot or cold, Nick Stuart drives over to Sue Carol’s tepee for breakfast. Sue shows her love for Nick by dishing up a big mess of hot cakes. And Nick shows his love for Sue by eating them. Greater love hath no handsome leading man with dimples!”
David Rollins was an actor whose film career was short-lived. He appeared in Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 (1929), Happy Days (1930), The Big Trail (1930) and The Phantom Express (1932). He was interviewed for the book Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars.
The reviewer for the The Film Daily (Sept 22, 1929) wrote “The cast is uniformly good.” Many of the cast members were experienced Broadway and vaudeville performers, and most continued on to successful film careers.
Austro-Hungarian born Nick Stuart was an actor and singer who appeared in over fifty films. He later ran his own talent agency, directed a band, and ran a clothing store. Credits include Happy Days (1930), Rio Grande Romance (1936), Mr Muggs Steps Out (1940), and The Lost Planet (1953). He and Sue Carol married at the end of 1929, though the marriage only lasted five years.
Dixie Lee is now remembered as Bing Crosby's wife, however she was very much a celebrated star in her own right (even if she was adored for her good looks rather than any remarkable acting abilities). After starting out on Broadway, a young Lee was signed with Fox. Her film credits include Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 (1929), Happy Days (1930), Cheer Up and Smile (1930), Manhattan Love Song (1934) and Redheads on Parade (1935). Lee made well received recordings of "A Fine Romance" and "The Way You Look Tonight." Sadly, Lee suffered from alcoholism and died from cancer at just 41.
Jed Prouty started out in vaudeville and Broadway before being signed by Fox. He went onto appear in over one hundred films, usually playing a comic character. His credits include The Girl in the Show (1929), The Floradora Girl (1930), The Big Bluff (1933), Black Sheep (1935), Happy Go Lucky (1936), A Star is Born (1937), Pot O’ Gold (1941), and Mug Town (1942).
Walter Catlett started out as a stage actor and singer in vaudeville and on Broadway before transitioning to film. He appeared in over 150 films, often playing unscrupulous characters. Some of his credits include Married in Hollywood (1929), Why Leave Home (1929), Happy Days (1930), Her Golden Calf (1930), The Floradora Girl (1930), Big City Blues (1932), The Captain Hates the Sea (1934), Pinocchio (1940), and Davy Crockett and the River Pirates (1955).
Ilka Chase was a highly educated and driven woman with a fascinating life story. The New York Times wrote in her obituary, “As an actress, radio and television personality, playwright, novelist, and urban sophisticate, Ilka Chase greatly brightened her times.” The daughter of Edna Woolman Chase, the editor-in-chief of Vogue for nearly forty years, Chase was born in New York and went to school in France. She appeared on Broadway in twenty different productions, and in over forty films and television shows. She ran her own radio program, wrote plays, novels, and a cookbook, and also was active in wildlife preservation and various charities.
Dot Farley was a prominent early film actress, writer, and director. She appeared in over 300 films, though most were comedic shorts. The Women Film Pioneers Project suggests that Farley’s writing credentials were not taken seriously, or properly documented, owing to her fame in comedies.
Although Why Leave Home performed well at the box office, it was quickly overshadowed by The Cock-Eyed World.
The film is now believed lost.
Carol was also featured in the press for her real life relationship with Nick Stuart. Stories like the one below ran in Photoplay.
“Every Sunday morning, rain or shine and hot or cold, Nick Stuart drives over to Sue Carol’s tepee for breakfast. Sue shows her love for Nick by dishing up a big mess of hot cakes. And Nick shows his love for Sue by eating them. Greater love hath no handsome leading man with dimples!”
David Rollins was an actor whose film career was short-lived. He appeared in Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 (1929), Happy Days (1930), The Big Trail (1930) and The Phantom Express (1932). He was interviewed for the book Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars.
The reviewer for the The Film Daily (Sept 22, 1929) wrote “The cast is uniformly good.” Many of the cast members were experienced Broadway and vaudeville performers, and most continued on to successful film careers.
Austro-Hungarian born Nick Stuart was an actor and singer who appeared in over fifty films. He later ran his own talent agency, directed a band, and ran a clothing store. Credits include Happy Days (1930), Rio Grande Romance (1936), Mr Muggs Steps Out (1940), and The Lost Planet (1953). He and Sue Carol married at the end of 1929, though the marriage only lasted five years.
Dixie Lee is now remembered as Bing Crosby's wife, however she was very much a celebrated star in her own right (even if she was adored for her good looks rather than any remarkable acting abilities). After starting out on Broadway, a young Lee was signed with Fox. Her film credits include Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 (1929), Happy Days (1930), Cheer Up and Smile (1930), Manhattan Love Song (1934) and Redheads on Parade (1935). Lee made well received recordings of "A Fine Romance" and "The Way You Look Tonight." Sadly, Lee suffered from alcoholism and died from cancer at just 41.
Jed Prouty started out in vaudeville and Broadway before being signed by Fox. He went onto appear in over one hundred films, usually playing a comic character. His credits include The Girl in the Show (1929), The Floradora Girl (1930), The Big Bluff (1933), Black Sheep (1935), Happy Go Lucky (1936), A Star is Born (1937), Pot O’ Gold (1941), and Mug Town (1942).
Walter Catlett started out as a stage actor and singer in vaudeville and on Broadway before transitioning to film. He appeared in over 150 films, often playing unscrupulous characters. Some of his credits include Married in Hollywood (1929), Why Leave Home (1929), Happy Days (1930), Her Golden Calf (1930), The Floradora Girl (1930), Big City Blues (1932), The Captain Hates the Sea (1934), Pinocchio (1940), and Davy Crockett and the River Pirates (1955).
Ilka Chase was a highly educated and driven woman with a fascinating life story. The New York Times wrote in her obituary, “As an actress, radio and television personality, playwright, novelist, and urban sophisticate, Ilka Chase greatly brightened her times.” The daughter of Edna Woolman Chase, the editor-in-chief of Vogue for nearly forty years, Chase was born in New York and went to school in France. She appeared on Broadway in twenty different productions, and in over forty films and television shows. She ran her own radio program, wrote plays, novels, and a cookbook, and also was active in wildlife preservation and various charities.
Dot Farley was a prominent early film actress, writer, and director. She appeared in over 300 films, though most were comedic shorts. The Women Film Pioneers Project suggests that Farley’s writing credentials were not taken seriously, or properly documented, owing to her fame in comedies.
Although Why Leave Home performed well at the box office, it was quickly overshadowed by The Cock-Eyed World.
The film is now believed lost.
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