The Gorgeous Hussy

Directed by Clarence Brown

President Andrew Jackson's friendship with an innkeeper's daughter spells trouble for them both.

1936 1h 43m Romance TV-PG

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CAST

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0

767550|32371

Clarence Brown

Director

1

40864|83574

Joan Crawford

[Margaret] Peggy [O'N..

2

1472132|132730

Robert Taylor

"Bow" Timberlake

3

10738|99559

Lionel Barrymore

Andrew Jackson

4

0|52538

Franchot Tone E..

John

5

52475|110898

Melvyn Douglas

John Randolph

FULL SYNOPSIS

In 1823 Washington, Major O'Neal and his daughter Margaret run an inn that is frequented by politicians. Peggy's outspoken and astute opinions have earned the admiration of men such as Andrew Jackson and Daniel Webster. Virginia senator John Randolph, with whom Peggy is secretly in love, seems only to regard her as a child. When new inn resident "Bow" Timberlake refers to Peggy as a "tavern girl," however, John slaps him. Bow soon falls in love with Peggy himself and proposes, but she refuses, then goes to John's room one night to confess her love for him. He sends her away, thinking that she is too young and does not really mean it, but begins to have a change of heart. When he finally realizes that they are both in love, however, he learns from Bow that Peggy has finally consented to marry him. Peggy again talks to John about their future, but John again rejects her, thinking that the younger Bow would be a more suitable husband. Because he is an officer on the U.S.S. Constitution , Bow must leave for a three month tour of duty shortly after their wedding. When the Constitution returns to Washington, Peggy learns that Bow has died. In 1828, Jackson is elected president amid a campaign of mud slinging aimed at his beloved Rachel, whom he inadvertently married before her divorce from her first husband was final. Soon after the election, Rachel dies after asking Peggy to look after Jackson. Peggy then becomes the president's official ...

VIDEOS

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Daughter Of An Innkeeper...

Movie Clip

Think Of Her Good Name!...

Movie Clip

ARTICLES

Whether playing a flapper in the 1920s, a proletarian working girl in the 1930s, or a broad-shouldered businesswoman in the 1940s, Joan Crawford was the quintessential modern woman. In only one of her talking films did she venture into period pantaloons, and that film, The Gorgeous Hussy (1936), was not a financial or critical success. "I was so totally miscast," Crawford later admitted. Recently married to New York actor and upper-class intellectual Franchot Tone, Crawford had acquired intellectual pretensions of her own. Essaying an historical character may have been part of that. The Gorgeous Hussy was based on a popular historical novel about Peggy O'Neal Eaton, a sassy innkeeper's daughter who gained political power in the 1830s because of her friendship with President Andrew Jackson, but was ostracized by Washington society. MGM executive David Selznick tried to talk Crawford out of tackling the role of Peggy Eaton by telling her "you can't do a costume picture, you're too modern." When she would not be dissuaded, Selznick decided to surround her with not one, but five strong leading men, and assigned producing duties to Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who had recently been working with Crawford and understood her strengths and weaknesses. The Gorgeous Hussy certainly looked great, with Adrian's lavish period costumes, George Folsey's stunning cinematography, and Cedric Gibbons' elegant art direction. And the men surrounding Crawford ranged from ade...

ARCHIVES

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The Gorgeous Hussy...

Publicity Stills

NOTES

According to a news item in Hollywood Reporter, Jean Harlow was to have appeared in the title role of this film. According to contemporary news items, RKO originally planned to film Samuel Hopkins Adams' novel, starring Katharine Hepburn, in 1934. When M-G-M obtained the rights to the novel in 1935, it was announced that Jean Harlow would star and Brian Aherne would play one of the male leads. Information contained in the file on the film in the MPAA/PCA Collection in the AMPAS library, notes that the Hays Office raised serious objections about the profanity used by Andrew Jackson throughout the original script. All instances of the character saying "damn" or "hell" were subsequently removed from the script. Some reviews noted that although the film was loosely based on real characters and incidents, many historical inaccuracies were present. Modern sources note that Bow Timberlake actually committed suicide and that John Eaton was forced to resign from Jackson's cabinet. Although Joan Crawford and Franchot Tone had acted together previously on the screen, this was their first joint film appearence subsequent to their 1935 marriage, a fact prominently mentioned in studio publicity for the picture. Beulah Bondi received an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actress for her role as Rachel Jackson. Modern sources credit Henry Grace with set decoration.