Romance of the Underworld

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Romance of the Underworld
Fox Film Corporation
Release date
  • November 11, 1928 (1928-11-11)
Running time
68 minutes; 7 reels (6,162 feet)
CountryUnited States
LanguagesSound (Synchronized)
(English Intertitles)

Romance of the Underworld is a 1928 American synchronized

James Kirkwood with Catherine Calvert
in Astor's part.

The full film

Plot

Cast

Scene from the movie

Uncredited

  • William Benge as Bartender
  • Maurice Black as Maitre D'
  • Sherry Hall as Pianist
  • John Kelly
    as window cleaner

Music

The film featured a theme song titled "Judy", which was composed by Irving Kahal, Sammy Fain, and Pierre Norman.

Censorship considerations

The Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, formed by the film industry in 1922, regulated the content of films through a list of subjects that were to be avoided. While Mary Astor portrayed a prostitute in Romance of the Underworld, this was acceptable as prostitution was not explicitly barred so long as it was not forced (i.e., white slavery) and aspects of her work were not shown in the film.[1] Here the work of Astor's character is ambiguously described as being a "hostess."

Preservation

Romance of the Underworld is extant at the Museum of Modern Art[2][3] and in a European archive.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ Campbell, Russell (1997). "Prostitution and Film Censorship in the USA". Screening the Past (2): C/6. Retrieved July 5, 2020.
  2. ^ Progressive Silent Film List: Romance of the Underworld at silentera.com
  3. ^ The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films: 1921-30 by The American Film Institute, c. 1971
  4. ^ The Library of Congress/FIAF American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog:Romance of the Underworld