Hollywood stardom, 1929–35 Gary Cooper

cooper , mary brian in virginian, 1929

cooper became major movie star in 1929 release of first sound picture, virginian, directed victor fleming , co-starred mary brian , walter huston. based on popular novel owen wister, virginian 1 of first sound films define western code of honor , helped establish many of conventions of western movie genre have lasted present day. according biographer jeffrey meyers, romantic image of tall, handsome, , shy cowboy hero embodied male freedom, courage, , honor created in large part cooper in film. unlike silent film actors had trouble adapting new sound medium, cooper transitioned naturally, deep , clear , pleasantly drawling voice, suited characters portrayed on screen, according meyers. looking capitalize on cooper s growing popularity, paramount cast him in several westerns , wartime dramas in 1930, including brave, texan, 7 days leave, man wyoming, , spoilers.

cooper , lili damita in fighting caravans, 1931

one of more important performances in cooper s career portrayal of sullen legionnaire in josef von sternberg s 1930 film morocco marlene dietrich in introduction american audiences. during production, von sternberg focused energies on dietrich , treated cooper dismissively. tensions came head after von sternberg yelled directions @ cooper in german. 6-foot-3-inch (191 cm) actor approached 5-foot-4-inch (163 cm) director, physically picked him collar , said, if expect work in country d better on language use here. despite tensions on set, cooper produced 1 of best performances , according thornton delehanty of new york evening post. in 1931, after returning western genre in zane grey s fighting caravans french actress lili damita, cooper appeared in dashiell hammett crime film city streets playing westerner gets involved big-city gangsters in order save woman loves. cooper concluded year appearances in 2 unsuccessful films: take woman carole lombard, , woman claudette colbert. demands , pressures of making ten films in 2 years left cooper exhausted , in poor health, suffering anemia , jaundice. had lost thirty pounds (fourteen kilograms) during period, , felt lonely, isolated, , depressed sudden fame , wealth. in may 1931, cooper left hollywood , sailed algiers , italy, lived next year.

during time abroad, cooper stayed countess dorothy di frasso @ villa madama in rome, taught him food , vintage wines, how read italian , french menus, , how socialize among europe s nobility , upper classes. after guiding him through great art museums , galleries of italy, accompanied him on ten-week big-game hunting safari on slopes of mount kenya in east africa, credited on sixty kills, including 2 lions, rhinoceros, , various antelopes. safari experience in africa had profound influence on cooper , intensified love of wilderness. after returning europe, , countess set off on mediterranean cruise of italian , french rivieras. rested , rejuvenated year-long exile, healthy cooper returned hollywood in april 1932 , negotiated new contract paramount 2 films per year, salary of $4,000 week, , director , script approval.

cooper , helen hayes in farewell arms, 1932

in 1932, after completing devil , deep tallulah bankhead fulfill old contract, cooper appeared in farewell arms, first film adaptation of ernest hemingway novel. co-starring helen hayes, leading new york theatre star , academy award winner, , adolphe menjou, film presented cooper 1 of ambitious , challenging dramatic roles, playing american ambulance driver wounded in italy falls in love english nurse during world war i. critics praised highly intense , emotional performance, , film became 1 of year s commercially successful pictures. in 1933, after making today live joan crawford , 1 sunday afternoon fay wray, cooper appeared in ernst lubitsch comedy film design living, based on successful noël coward play. co-starring miriam hopkins , fredric march, film received mixed reviews , did not @ box office. cooper s performance—playing american artist in europe competing playwright friend affections of beautiful woman—was singled out versatility , revealed genuine ability light comedy. cooper changed name legally gary cooper in august 1933.

cooper , anna sten in wedding night, 1935

in 1934, cooper loaned out mgm civil war drama film operator 13 marion davies, beautiful union spy falls in love confederate soldier. despite richard boleslawski s imaginative direction , george j. folsey s lavish cinematography, film did poorly @ box office. @ paramount, cooper appeared in first of 7 films director henry hathaway, , forever, carole lombard , shirley temple. in film, plays confidence man tries sell daughter relatives raised her, won on adorable girl. impressed temple s intelligence , charm, cooper developed close rapport her, both on , off screen. film box-office success.

the following year, cooper loaned out samuel goldwyn productions appear in king vidor s romance film wedding night anna sten, being groomed garbo . in film, cooper plays alcoholic novelist retreats family s new england farm meets , falls in love beautiful polish neighbor. cooper delivered performance of surprising range , depth, according biographer larry swindell. despite receiving favorable reviews, film not popular american audiences, may have been offended film s depiction of extramarital affair , tragic ending. same year, cooper appeared in 2 henry hathaway films: melodrama peter ibbetson ann harding, man caught in dream world created love childhood sweetheart, , adventure film lives of bengal lancer, daring british officer , men defend stronghold @ bengal against rebellious local tribes. while former more successful in europe in united states, latter nominated 6 academy awards , became 1 of cooper s popular , successful adventure films. hathaway had highest respect cooper s acting ability, calling him best actor of of them .

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