Parlor, Bedroom and Bath
Encyclopedia
Parlor, Bedroom and Bath is a comedy film
starring Buster Keaton
, released by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer in 1931
. It was one of Keaton's early talking pictures, released in the aftermath of his silent career. The film was released in the United Kingdom as Romeo in Pyjamas. It is the remake of a 1920 film of the same name, based on the play by Charles William Bell
, a Canadian criminal lawyer and later Member of Parliament
for Hamilton West and Mark Swan, which opened on Broadway in New York City on Christmas Eve, 1917 and ran for 232 performances.
Parlor, Bedroom and Bath was filmed in Keaton's own house. According to a modern source, Eugene Pallette
, who starred in the 1920 film version, was believed to have been part of the production team of this film, though he was not a member of the cast.
The film is now in the public domain
and can be freely downloaded from the internet.
plays the role of Jeffrey Haywood, who wants to get married to Virginia Embrey (Sally Eilers
). However, Virginia refused to marry unless her older sister, the hard-to-please Angelica (Dorothy Christy
) gets married first. Angelica, in turn, finds every man she knows too dull and predictable, and for this reason prefers to stay single. Jeff then tries to make Angelica interested in the mild-mannered and timid Reggie Irving (played by Keaton) passing him off as a notorious playboy to intrigue her. He asks his friend Polly to teach Reggie "how to treat a woman right", but he turns out to be a disastrous learner.
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
starring Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
, released by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer in 1931
1931 in film
-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:*Best Picture: Cimarron - MGM*Best Actor: Lionel Barrymore - A Free Soul*Best Actor: Wallace Beery - The Champ*Best Actor: Fredric March - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde...
. It was one of Keaton's early talking pictures, released in the aftermath of his silent career. The film was released in the United Kingdom as Romeo in Pyjamas. It is the remake of a 1920 film of the same name, based on the play by Charles William Bell
Charles William Bell
Charles William Bell was a Canadian playwright, lawyer and politician, born in Hamilton, Ontario. He was Rocco Perri's lawyer....
, a Canadian criminal lawyer and later Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Hamilton West and Mark Swan, which opened on Broadway in New York City on Christmas Eve, 1917 and ran for 232 performances.
Parlor, Bedroom and Bath was filmed in Keaton's own house. According to a modern source, Eugene Pallette
Eugene Pallette
Eugene William Pallette was an American actor. He appeared in over 240 silent era and sound era motion pictures between 1913 and 1946....
, who starred in the 1920 film version, was believed to have been part of the production team of this film, though he was not a member of the cast.
The film is now in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
and can be freely downloaded from the internet.
Plot
Reginald DennyReginald Denny (actor)
Reginald Denny was an English stage, film, and television actor. He was once an amateur boxing champion of Great Britain.-Acting career:...
plays the role of Jeffrey Haywood, who wants to get married to Virginia Embrey (Sally Eilers
Sally Eilers
-Life and career:Born as Dorothea Sally Eilers in New York City to a Jewish-American mother, Paula, and an Irish-American father, Peter Eilers, . She was educated in Los Angeles and went into films because so many of her friends were in pictures. She studied for the stage, specialising in dancing...
). However, Virginia refused to marry unless her older sister, the hard-to-please Angelica (Dorothy Christy
Dorothy Christy
Dorothy Christy was an American actress. She acted with Will Rogers, Buster Keaton and the Marx Brothers and with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy in the film Sons of the Desert , in the role of Mrs Laurel. She was Queen Tika of Murania in The Phantom Empire, Gene Autry’s 1935 cliffhanger serial...
) gets married first. Angelica, in turn, finds every man she knows too dull and predictable, and for this reason prefers to stay single. Jeff then tries to make Angelica interested in the mild-mannered and timid Reggie Irving (played by Keaton) passing him off as a notorious playboy to intrigue her. He asks his friend Polly to teach Reggie "how to treat a woman right", but he turns out to be a disastrous learner.
Cast (in credits order)
- Buster KeatonBuster KeatonJoseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
as Reginald Irving - Charlotte GreenwoodCharlotte GreenwoodFrances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
as Polly Hathaway - Reginald DennyReginald DennyReginald Denny may refer to:*Reginald Denny *Reginald Oliver Denny, survivor of attack during 1992 Los Angeles riots...
as Jeffrey Haywood - Cliff EdwardsCliff EdwardsCliff Edwards , also known as "Ukelele Ike", was an American singer and voice actor who enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standards and novelty tunes. He had a number-one hit with "Singin' in the Rain" in 1929...
as Bell Hop - Dorothy ChristyDorothy ChristyDorothy Christy was an American actress. She acted with Will Rogers, Buster Keaton and the Marx Brothers and with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy in the film Sons of the Desert , in the role of Mrs Laurel. She was Queen Tika of Murania in The Phantom Empire, Gene Autry’s 1935 cliffhanger serial...
as Angelica Embrey - Joan Peers as Nita Leslie
- Sally EilersSally Eilers-Life and career:Born as Dorothea Sally Eilers in New York City to a Jewish-American mother, Paula, and an Irish-American father, Peter Eilers, . She was educated in Los Angeles and went into films because so many of her friends were in pictures. She studied for the stage, specialising in dancing...
as Virginia Embrey - Natalie Moorhead as Leila Crofton
- Edward BrophyEdward BrophyEdward S. Brophy was an American character actor, voice artist, and comedian. Small of build, balding, and raucous-voiced, he was known for portraying gangsters, both serious and comic.-Career:...
as Detective - Walter Merrill as Frederick Leslie
- Sidney BraceySidney BraceySidney Bracey was an Australian-born American film actor. After a stage career in Australia, on Broadway and in Britain, he appeared in 321 films between 1909 and 1942.-Life and career:...
as Butler