Presented by the Art Deco Society of Angeles and Hollywood Heritage.
Marsha Gordon, the author of the new biography Becoming the Ex-Wife The Unconventional Life and Forgotten Writings of Ursula Parrott will give a book talk In connection with the exhibit “The Life & Unexpected Legacy of Norma Shearer” curated by Darin Barnes at the Hollywood Heritage Museum. Parrott, was the writer of the scandalous 1929 novel Ex-Wife which was adapted for the screen as THE DIVORCEE (1930) starring Norma Shearer. Shearer won her only Oscar for her “pre-code” performance as a woman challenging the conventions of womanhood in her day. The film was also nominated for Best Picture and Best Actor. Shearer starred in another adaptation of a Parrott novel with Strangers May Kiss, published in 1930. Parrott wrote ten screenplays in Hollywood, optioning eight of her novels. This presentation will introduce the audience to Parrott’s career and will focus on the films adapted from her work. It also will be richly illustrated with stills and clips from those movies. Following the talk, there will be a book sale and signing with Marsha Gordon.
Once the best known ex-wife in America, Ursula Parrott (1899-1957) was a prolific author, Hollywood screenwriter, and consistent headline-grabber during her colorful, unconventional life. The press covered her new books, Hollywood deals, marriages and divorces, and numerous run-ins with the law. She was Radcliffe-educated; had four optimistic walks down the aisle (and back); piloted for the Civilian Air Corps during World War II; co-founded a weekly rural Connecticut newspaper; and travelled the world, including an extended story-collecting trip to Russia in the 1930s.
Ten films were made based on Parrott’s writing, mostly in the 1930s, and she worked as a screen and story writer out of Astoria as well as during several stints in Hollywood. Her words gave Norma Shearer her only Academy Award and launched Jimmy Stewart’s career as a lead actor. F. Scott Fitzgerald was hired to adapt one of her short stories, but the Hays Office shut the production down. Parrott referred casually in her letters to being taken to lunch by Sammy (Goldwyn) or being lectured by Thalberg (Irving) in between massages by Sylvia of Hollywood, who served up salacious gossip alongside diet advice.
This presentation will introduce the audience to Parrott’s career and will focus on the films adapted from her work. It also will be richly illustrated with stills and clips from those movies.
ABOUT BIOGRAPHER MARSHA GORDON
Marsha Gordon is Professor of Film Studies at North Carolina State University, a recent Fellow at the National Humanities Center and an NEH Public Scholar. She is the author of numerous books and articles, most recently Becoming the Ex-Wife: The Unconventional Life and Forgotten Writings of Ursula Parrott, and co-director of several short documentaries.