Author:
Erich von Stroheim (1885-1957), Austrian director and actor in Germany and Hollywood; Dawn Powell (1896-1965), author; Fox Film Company, California; Leonard Spigelgass; Geraldine Nomis
Publication details:
'Fox Film Comp. / California'. 9 August 1932.
Fox agreed to the film on condition that von Stroheim was limited to shooting 85,000 feet of film (around an hour and a half of screen time). The studio was pleased when he brought it in on time (he tied a thread around lead actor James Dunn’s genitals, and tugged on it every time he wanted him to show emotion) and on budget, but a screening left them appalled at the morbid content. Von Stroheim was sacked and the film was rewritten and renamed ‘Hello, Sister!’, with three-quarters of the original retained. It was a flop and von Stroheim chose never to direct again.