Marie Prevost

c. 1918

Initially cast in minor comedic roles as the sexy, innocent young girl, she worked in numerous films for Sennett's studio. In 1919, Sennett cast Prevost in her first lead role in Yankee Doodle in Berlin. The film was a hit and helped to solidify Prevost's career. She scored another success in the 1920 romantic film Love, Honor, and Behave, opposite George O'Hara, another newcomer and Sennett protégé. By 1921, Prevost wanted to move to another studio, later stating that she left Keystone because Sennett was only interested in making money and was unconcerned with creativity. Director King Baggot helped secure her a contract with Universal for $1,000 per week. Prevost was released from her contract with Keystone, and she signed with Universal in 1921.[6]

At Universal, Irving Thalberg took an interest in Prevost and became determined to make her a star. Thalberg ensured that she received a great deal of publicity and staged numerous events which put her in the public spotlight. After announcing that he had selected two films in which Prevost would star, The Moonlight Follies (1921) and Kissed (1922), Thalberg sent Prevost to Coney Island where she burned her bathing suit to symbolize the end of her bathing beauty days.[7]

While at Universal, Prevost still was relegated to light comedies. After her contract expired, Jack L. Warner signed her to a two-year contract at $1,500 per week at Warner Bros. in 1922. During this time, Prevost was dating actor Kenneth Harlan. Jack Warner also had signed Harlan to a contract and cast the couple in the lead roles in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Beautiful and Damned. To publicize the film, Warner announced that the couple would marry on the film's set. The publicity stunt worked, and thousands of fans sent gifts and letters to the couple. In August 1923, Sonny Gerke, Prevost's first husband filed for divorce. The Los Angeles Mirror got wind that Prevost still was married and ran a story with the headline "Marie Prevost Will Be a Bigamist if She Marries Kenneth Harlan". Warner was livid over the negative publicity and Prevost's failure to disclose her first marriage despite the fact that the publicity stunt was his idea.[8]

c. 1923

In spite of the bad publicity, Prevost's performance in The Beautiful and Damned brought good reviews. Director Ernst Lubitsch chose her for a major role opposite Adolphe Menjou in 1924's The Marriage Circle. Of her performance as the beautiful seductress, Lubitsch said that she was one of the few actresses in Hollywood who knew how to underplay comedy to achieve the maximum effect.[9] This performance, praised by The New York Times, resulted in Lubitsch casting her in Three Women in 1924 and in Kiss Me Again the following year.

In early 1926, Warner Bros. decided to not renew Prevost and Harlan's contracts (the two quietly married in 1924 after Prevost's divorce was finalized).[10] Shortly after she was dismissed by Warner Bros., Prevost's mother Hughina died in an automobile accident in Lordsburg, New Mexico on February 5, 1926. Hughina had been traveling to Palm Beach, Florida with actress Vera Steadman and Hollywood studio owner Al Christie when their vehicle overturned. Hughina was crushed by the vehicle and died at the scene. Steadman and Christie sustained serious injuries, but survived.[11]

Actress Phyllis Haver, who had been friends with Prevost since her bathing beauty days, later stated in an interview that she believed the loss of Prevost and Harlan's contracts with Warner Bros. caused problems in the marriage and was one of the causes of Prevost's alcoholism.[10]

Devastated by the loss of her only remaining parent, Prevost began drinking heavily and developed an addiction to alcohol. Prevost tried to get past her personal torment by burying herself in her work, starring in numerous roles as the temptingly beautiful seductress who in the end was always the honorable heroine. Adding to her depression was the end of her marriage to Kenneth Harlan – the two separated in 1927.

After seeing Prevost in The Beautiful and Damned, Howard Hughes cast her as the lead in The Racket (1928). Hughes and Prevost later had a brief affair. After the affair ended, Prevost was heartbroken which furthered her depression.[12] Her role in The Racket proved to be Prevost's last leading role.

Prevost's depression caused her to binge on food resulting in significant weight gain. Her career continued but she was relegated to secondary roles. In 1929, Cecil B. DeMille offered her a co-starring role in his final silent film The Godless Girl, starring Lina Basquette. In her 1990 autobiography, Basquette recalled that Prevost was not outwardly bitter about losing her leading lady status, stating "Aw, hell, that's the way it is." Prevost received generally good reviews for her role in the film. The following year, she signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.[13]

While at MGM, Prevost worked steadily but was offered only secondary parts. In 1930, she appeared in Paid, starring Joan Crawford. While Prevost's role was secondary, she garnered good reviews. In 1931, she played Academy Award winner Helen Hayes' loyal friend in The Sin of Madelon Claudet. In 1932, she was one of the three leads in the film Three Wise Girls, starring Jean Harlow. By 1934, she had no work at all, and her financial situation deteriorated dramatically. The downward spiral became aggravated when her weight problems forced her into repeated crash dieting to keep whatever bit part a movie studio offered. Prevost made her last on screen appearance in a bit part as a waitress in Ten Laps to Go (1936).