Second Choice
Encyclopedia
Second Choice is a 1930
American black-and-white
film released by Warner Bros.
and starring Dolores Costello
and Chester Morris
. It is a lost
film.
uncredited
wrote that the director held audiences' attention but said of the film's cast, "Jack Mulhall is miscast as Mallory and gives a halting performance. Miss Costello moves slowly and speaks the pseudo-smart lines with uncertainty. Chester Morris grimmaces as usual and never forgets he is the 'heavy,' and neither does the onlooker." Pittsburgh Press
wrote, "When it doesn't try to take itself too seriously, 'Second Choice' ... is what is known in film trade circle as a fairly good 'program' picture." The newspaper said that some dialogue was sometimes "ridiculous" and sometimes "fairly credible". It complained, "If 'Second Choice' had been made as a straight comedy it would have been a much better picture. The combination of comedy, drama and a tinge of melodrama was a little too much for it to swallow."
1930 in film
-Events:* November 1: The Big Trail featuring a young John Wayne in his first starring role is released in both 35mm, and a very early form of 70mm film and was the first large scale big-budget film of the sound era costing over $2 million. The film was praised for its aesthetic quality and realism...
American black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
film released by Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
and starring Dolores Costello
Dolores Costello
Dolores Costello was an American film actress who achieved her greatest success during the era of silent movies. She was nicknamed "The Goddess of the Silent Screen"...
and Chester Morris
Chester Morris
Chester Morris was an American actor, who starred in the Boston Blackie detective series of the 1940s.-Career:...
. It is a lost
Lost film
A lost film is a feature film or short film that is no longer known to exist in studio archives, private collections or public archives such as the Library of Congress, where at least one copy of all American films are deposited and catalogued for copyright reasons...
film.
Cast
- Dolores CostelloDolores CostelloDolores Costello was an American film actress who achieved her greatest success during the era of silent movies. She was nicknamed "The Goddess of the Silent Screen"...
- Valery Grove - Chester MorrisChester MorrisChester Morris was an American actor, who starred in the Boston Blackie detective series of the 1940s.-Career:...
- Don Warren - Jack MulhallJack MulhallJack Mulhall, born John Joseph Francis Mulhall, was a film actor since the silent film era and appeared in over 430 films....
- Mallory - Edna MurphyEdna MurphyEdna Murphy was an American actress of the silent era. She appeared in 80 films between 1918 and 1933. Murphy was voted "Most Photographed Movie Star of 1925" by ScreenLand Magazine....
- Beth Randall - Ethlyne ClairEthlyne ClairEthlyne Clair was an American actress. She was a native of Talladega, Alabama. She appeared mostly in silent film, including several Westerns where she played the love interest to Hoot Gibson. She was succeeded by Derelys Perdue in the Newlyweds film series, in which she appeared in 1927 and 1928...
- Edith Pemberton - Charlotte MerriamCharlotte Merriam-Silent film star:Born to an army colonel in Sheridan, Illinois, Merriam's film career began in 1919 with a role in The Flip of a Coin. She visited Universal Pictures that year and was offered a part in a comedy series starring Eddie Lyons and Leo Moran. Merriam accepted...
- Satterlee - James Clemens - Ned Pemberton(billed Jimmy Clemons)
- Edward MartindelEdward MartindelEdward Martindel was an American stage and film actor. He appeared on Broadway and in 89 films between 1915 and 1946....
- Herbert Satterlee - Henry Stockbridge - Mr. Grove
- Anna Chance - Mrs. Grove
uncredited
- Louise BeaversLouise BeaversLouise Beavers was an African-American film and television actress. Beavers appeared in dozens of films from the 1920s to the 1930s, most often in the role of a maid, servant, or slave. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Beavers was a member of Sigma Gamma Rho sorority, one of the four African-American...
- Maid - Louise LesterLouise LesterLouise Lester was an American silent film actress. She was the first feminine star of Western films.-Biography:...
- Bit Role
Reception
The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote that the director held audiences' attention but said of the film's cast, "Jack Mulhall is miscast as Mallory and gives a halting performance. Miss Costello moves slowly and speaks the pseudo-smart lines with uncertainty. Chester Morris grimmaces as usual and never forgets he is the 'heavy,' and neither does the onlooker." Pittsburgh Press
Pittsburgh Press
The Pittsburgh Press is an online newspaper in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, currently owned and operated by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Historically, it was a major afternoon paper...
wrote, "When it doesn't try to take itself too seriously, 'Second Choice' ... is what is known in film trade circle as a fairly good 'program' picture." The newspaper said that some dialogue was sometimes "ridiculous" and sometimes "fairly credible". It complained, "If 'Second Choice' had been made as a straight comedy it would have been a much better picture. The combination of comedy, drama and a tinge of melodrama was a little too much for it to swallow."