Blond Cheat
Encyclopedia
Blond Cheat is a 1938 film directed by Joseph Santley
and starring Joan Fontaine
, Derrick De Marney
, and Cecil Kellaway
. The film was produced by William Sistrom
, and originally released by RKO Radio Pictures. The original story is by Aladar Lazlo. The screenplay is by Harry Segall
, Charles Kaufman, Paul Yawitz, and Viola Brothers Shore. The tagline for the movie was: "A happy blend of blackmail, robbery, treachery, and love!"
) is the chief assistant to Rufus Trent (Cecil Kellaway
), a wealthy London loan broker. Michael is socially prominent, but works for a living. He is engaged to Trent's daughter, Roberta (Lilian Bond
). The match had been engineered primarily by the socially-ambitious Mrs. Trent (Cecil Cunningham
).
As Michael is closing the shop late one afternoon, a man named Douglas (Olaf Hytten
) takes out a large loan, using earrings worn by his niece, Julie (Joan Fontaine
), as a deposit. He scurries right off with the money but, to his dismay, Michael finds that the earrings are fastened to Julie's ears and cannot be removed. He now has to keep guard of her until Douglas returns with the money.
Julie wants to go somewhere warm for the night. He hails a policeman to have her put in a jail cell so that she's kept somewhere safe, but when the cop arrives, she tricks him into arresting Michael instead. She manages to swipe Michael's house key and spends the night at his house.
The next morning, the butler finds Julie in Michael's bed. Michael arrives home with a cold after his night in jail. He doesn't realize that Julie's at his house. When Roberta arrives, angry, he calms her down, until she discovers Julie in Michael's pajamas and in his bedroom. Roberta breaks off her engagement to Michael.
Julie slips away in the confusion and arrives at a theatrical agency. Her "uncle" runs the agency and she quickly removes the earrings as he praises her night's work. In reality, Julie is an actress and, with her successful work breaking the engagement between Michael and Roberta, is offered a leading role in a new production.
Roberta arrives at home and tells her parents that the engagement is off. Trent is thrilled. It is revealed at this time that Trent hired Douglas's agency to break the engagement. At work Michael is being called to the carpet by Trent for loaning money without collateral when Mrs. Trent arrives and fixes everything so that Robert and Michael are engaged again. Trent, upset that the wedding is still on, goes back to Douglas and tells him he won't pay until the engagement is broken for good.
Gilbert (Robert Coote
), Trent's assistant, dislikes Michael. He works with Julie by bringing in a box for Michael at work. Inside are Michael's pajamas. Roberta is there when the box arrives and she isn't happy to see the contents. Michael hurries her off when he sees Julie inside the shop vault. Michael takes Julie to her hotel room and stays with her when she pretends to be sick after her night outside.
He arrives late for dinner with Roberta and her friends. When she questions him, he admits to being with Julie, but he reassures her that Julie is very sick in bed. At that instant Julie shows up looking glamorous. Fed up, Roberta leaves, but Michael insists on staying because he has to keep an eye on the earrings.
Alone with Michael, Julie confesses that she was trying to break up his engagement on purpose that night because she didn't think he should be married simply because he comes from a prominent family. As they share a cozy ride in a carriage, Michael makes overtures to having feelings for Julie. She tries to explain about the earrings when they are held up by robbers. They want the earrings. Michael explains that they cannot be removed, but one of the robbers threatens to cut Julie's ears off to get to them. She takes the earrings off easily and gives them to the robbers.
Furious, Michael admits to being a fool. He leaves her.
Trent doesn't want to pay Douglas, so he gets a note at dinner asking Trent to meet Douglas in Julie's dressing room. Mrs. Trent follows Trent, demanding an explanation. Since Trent had finally paid up, Douglas lies and says that he had a scheme to break up Michael and Roberta's engagement, but that Trent paid him off.
The truth comes out accidentally when Julie refuses to continue with the plan. The police arrive when Michael recognizes one of the robbers—the one who threatened to cut off Julie's ears—as a waiter at the club. The waiter tells the police that Roberta paid him to rob Julie and Michael.
He breaks into Julie's show and tells her he loves her.
Joseph Santley
Joseph Santley was an American actor, singer, dancer, writer, director, and producer of musical theatrical plays and motion pictures....
and starring Joan Fontaine
Joan Fontaine
Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland , known professionally as Joan Fontaine, is a British American actress. She and her elder sister Olivia de Havilland are two of the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s....
, Derrick De Marney
Derrick De Marney
Derrick De Marney was an English stage and film actor and producer, of French and Irish ancestry.-Actor:On the London stage from 1922 and films from 1928...
, and Cecil Kellaway
Cecil Kellaway
Cecil Lauriston Kellaway was a South African-born character actor.Cecil Kellaway spent many years as an actor, author, and director in the Australian film industry until he tried his luck in Hollywood in the 1930s. Finding he could get only gangster bit parts, he got discouraged and returned to...
. The film was produced by William Sistrom
William Sistrom
William "Billy" Sistrom was an English film producer. He was born in Lincolnshire, England. He began work with Universal Pictures. Later he joined RKO in 1935, where he worked on the film adaptation of Leslie Charteris' The Saint in New York. He produced 30 UK and US films between 1930 and...
, and originally released by RKO Radio Pictures. The original story is by Aladar Lazlo. The screenplay is by Harry Segall
Harry Segall
Harry Segall was an American playwright, screenwriter and television writer.Segall was born in Chicago....
, Charles Kaufman, Paul Yawitz, and Viola Brothers Shore. The tagline for the movie was: "A happy blend of blackmail, robbery, treachery, and love!"
Plot
Michael Ashburn (Derrick De MarneyDerrick De Marney
Derrick De Marney was an English stage and film actor and producer, of French and Irish ancestry.-Actor:On the London stage from 1922 and films from 1928...
) is the chief assistant to Rufus Trent (Cecil Kellaway
Cecil Kellaway
Cecil Lauriston Kellaway was a South African-born character actor.Cecil Kellaway spent many years as an actor, author, and director in the Australian film industry until he tried his luck in Hollywood in the 1930s. Finding he could get only gangster bit parts, he got discouraged and returned to...
), a wealthy London loan broker. Michael is socially prominent, but works for a living. He is engaged to Trent's daughter, Roberta (Lilian Bond
Lilian Bond
Lilian Bond was a British film actress of the late 1920s through the 1940s, with most of her films being B-movies.-Life and career:...
). The match had been engineered primarily by the socially-ambitious Mrs. Trent (Cecil Cunningham
Cecil Cunningham
Cecil Cunningham was an American film and stage actress. She appeared in more than 80 movies between 1929 and 1946...
).
As Michael is closing the shop late one afternoon, a man named Douglas (Olaf Hytten
Olaf Hytten
Olaf Hytten was a Scottish film actor. He appeared in over 280 films between 1921 and 1955.He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack...
) takes out a large loan, using earrings worn by his niece, Julie (Joan Fontaine
Joan Fontaine
Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland , known professionally as Joan Fontaine, is a British American actress. She and her elder sister Olivia de Havilland are two of the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s....
), as a deposit. He scurries right off with the money but, to his dismay, Michael finds that the earrings are fastened to Julie's ears and cannot be removed. He now has to keep guard of her until Douglas returns with the money.
Julie wants to go somewhere warm for the night. He hails a policeman to have her put in a jail cell so that she's kept somewhere safe, but when the cop arrives, she tricks him into arresting Michael instead. She manages to swipe Michael's house key and spends the night at his house.
The next morning, the butler finds Julie in Michael's bed. Michael arrives home with a cold after his night in jail. He doesn't realize that Julie's at his house. When Roberta arrives, angry, he calms her down, until she discovers Julie in Michael's pajamas and in his bedroom. Roberta breaks off her engagement to Michael.
Julie slips away in the confusion and arrives at a theatrical agency. Her "uncle" runs the agency and she quickly removes the earrings as he praises her night's work. In reality, Julie is an actress and, with her successful work breaking the engagement between Michael and Roberta, is offered a leading role in a new production.
Roberta arrives at home and tells her parents that the engagement is off. Trent is thrilled. It is revealed at this time that Trent hired Douglas's agency to break the engagement. At work Michael is being called to the carpet by Trent for loaning money without collateral when Mrs. Trent arrives and fixes everything so that Robert and Michael are engaged again. Trent, upset that the wedding is still on, goes back to Douglas and tells him he won't pay until the engagement is broken for good.
Gilbert (Robert Coote
Robert Coote
Robert Coote was an English actor. He played aristocrats or British military types in many films, and created the role of Colonel Hugh Pickering in the long-running original Broadway production of My Fair Lady.-Biography:Coote was educated at Hurstpierpoint College in Sussex...
), Trent's assistant, dislikes Michael. He works with Julie by bringing in a box for Michael at work. Inside are Michael's pajamas. Roberta is there when the box arrives and she isn't happy to see the contents. Michael hurries her off when he sees Julie inside the shop vault. Michael takes Julie to her hotel room and stays with her when she pretends to be sick after her night outside.
He arrives late for dinner with Roberta and her friends. When she questions him, he admits to being with Julie, but he reassures her that Julie is very sick in bed. At that instant Julie shows up looking glamorous. Fed up, Roberta leaves, but Michael insists on staying because he has to keep an eye on the earrings.
Alone with Michael, Julie confesses that she was trying to break up his engagement on purpose that night because she didn't think he should be married simply because he comes from a prominent family. As they share a cozy ride in a carriage, Michael makes overtures to having feelings for Julie. She tries to explain about the earrings when they are held up by robbers. They want the earrings. Michael explains that they cannot be removed, but one of the robbers threatens to cut Julie's ears off to get to them. She takes the earrings off easily and gives them to the robbers.
Furious, Michael admits to being a fool. He leaves her.
Trent doesn't want to pay Douglas, so he gets a note at dinner asking Trent to meet Douglas in Julie's dressing room. Mrs. Trent follows Trent, demanding an explanation. Since Trent had finally paid up, Douglas lies and says that he had a scheme to break up Michael and Roberta's engagement, but that Trent paid him off.
The truth comes out accidentally when Julie refuses to continue with the plan. The police arrive when Michael recognizes one of the robbers—the one who threatened to cut off Julie's ears—as a waiter at the club. The waiter tells the police that Roberta paid him to rob Julie and Michael.
He breaks into Julie's show and tells her he loves her.
Cast
- Joan FontaineJoan FontaineJoan de Beauvoir de Havilland , known professionally as Joan Fontaine, is a British American actress. She and her elder sister Olivia de Havilland are two of the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s....
as Juliette 'Julie' Evans - Derrick De MarneyDerrick De MarneyDerrick De Marney was an English stage and film actor and producer, of French and Irish ancestry.-Actor:On the London stage from 1922 and films from 1928...
as Michael 'Mike' Ashburn - Cecil KellawayCecil KellawayCecil Lauriston Kellaway was a South African-born character actor.Cecil Kellaway spent many years as an actor, author, and director in the Australian film industry until he tried his luck in Hollywood in the 1930s. Finding he could get only gangster bit parts, he got discouraged and returned to...
as Rufus Trent - Cecil CunninghamCecil CunninghamCecil Cunningham was an American film and stage actress. She appeared in more than 80 movies between 1929 and 1946...
as Genevieve 'Gennie' Trent - Lilian BondLilian BondLilian Bond was a British film actress of the late 1920s through the 1940s, with most of her films being B-movies.-Life and career:...
as Roberta Trent - Robert CooteRobert CooteRobert Coote was an English actor. He played aristocrats or British military types in many films, and created the role of Colonel Hugh Pickering in the long-running original Broadway production of My Fair Lady.-Biography:Coote was educated at Hurstpierpoint College in Sussex...
as Gilbert Potts - Olaf HyttenOlaf HyttenOlaf Hytten was a Scottish film actor. He appeared in over 280 films between 1921 and 1955.He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack...
as Paul Douglas - John SuttonJohn Sutton (actor)John Sutton , who was born in Rawalpindi, British India , was actor of British parentage.-Filmography:*Rawhide as Lord Ashton...
as Fred Percy