THE PRINCESS COMES ACROSS (1936)
90TH ANNIVERSARY PRESENTATION
As a child growing up in Indiana, Carole Lombard used to entertain friends by imitating their favorite film stars. When she got the chance to spoof Greta Garbo in this screwball comedy, now celebrating its 90th anniversary, she jumped at the opportunity. She’s a chorus girl stranded in London, who pretends to be Swedish royalty to land a movie contract and free passage to the States. When a blackmailer turns up dead in her stateroom, band leader Fred MacMurray and a group of international detectives come to the rescue. This was Lombard’s second of four films with MacMurray, and the two clicked effortlessly. It’s a race to see if they’re going to solve the case or fall into each other’s arms first. Alison Skipworth is Lombard’s partner in the chicanery, and William Frawley is MacMurray’s manager, three decades before they co-starred on My Three Sons.
d. William K. Howard, 76m, 35mm
35mm print courtesy of Universal Pictures.