Beauty for the Asking
Encyclopedia
Beauty for the Asking is a 1939 film
drama
produced by RKO Pictures
, and starring Lucille Ball
and Patrick Knowles.
It tells the story of Jean Russell (Ball), who becomes romantically involved with a wealthy married man (Knowles) who later spurns her. She later invents a new facial cream, and with the financial backing of her former lover's wife (Frieda Inescort), starts a business that makes her a millionaire.
Recently Leonard Maltin
has written favorably of the film, suggesting that the film offered an unusual feminist viewpoint for its time, and acknowledging that Ball delivered a strong performance.
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
produced by RKO Pictures
RKO Pictures
RKO Pictures is an American film production and distribution company. As RKO Radio Pictures Inc., it was one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheum theater chains and Joseph P...
, and starring Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
and Patrick Knowles.
It tells the story of Jean Russell (Ball), who becomes romantically involved with a wealthy married man (Knowles) who later spurns her. She later invents a new facial cream, and with the financial backing of her former lover's wife (Frieda Inescort), starts a business that makes her a millionaire.
Reception
RKO's pre-release publicity claimed that the film was to be an "exposé of the beauty racket" but reviewers of the day concluded that it was a standard "romantic love triangle".Recently Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
has written favorably of the film, suggesting that the film offered an unusual feminist viewpoint for its time, and acknowledging that Ball delivered a strong performance.
Cast
- Lucille BallLucille BallLucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
as Jean Russell - Patric KnowlesPatric KnowlesReginald Lawrence Knowles was an English film actor who renamed himself Patric Knowles, a name which reflects his Irish descent. He appeared in films of the 1930s through the 1970s...
as Denny Williams - Donald WoodsDonald Woods (actor)Donald Woods was a Canadian-born American film and television actor whose career spanned six decades....
as Jeffrey Martin - Frieda InescortFrieda InescortFrieda Inescort was a Scottish-born actress best known for creating the role of Sorel Bliss in Noel Coward's play Hay Fever....
as Flora Barton-Williams - Inez CourtneyInez CourtneyInez Courtney was an actress on the Broadway stage and in films. Born in Amsterdam, New York, she came from a large Irish-American family. Her father died when she was fifteen so she decided to go onto the stage...
as Gwen Morrison - Leona Maricle as Eve Harrington
- Frances Mercer as Patricia Wharton
- Whitney Bourne as Peggy Ponsby
- George BerangerGeorge BerangerGeorges Augustus Alexandre Roger de L'ile de Beranger , born George Augustus Beringer, was the seventh child of Adam Beringer and Caroline Mondientz. He was an Australian actor and film director. He played Shakespearean roles at the age of sixteen and left Australia in 1912 and began film work in...
as Cyril (as George Andre Beranger) - Kay Sutton as Miss Whitman, Jean's Secretary
- Ann Evers as Lois Peabody