Grand Hotel
Thank the stars for a great entertainment!
Country
Production
Budget
$700 000
Box office
$1 235 000
Director
Actors
Scenario
Béla Balázs, Edgar Allan Woolf
Producer
Camera operator
William H. Daniels
Composer
Charles Maxwell
Artist
Audition
Benjamin Thau
Editing
Short description
Guests at a posh Berlin hotel struggle through worry, scandal, and heartache.
What's left behind the scenes
- John Barrymore agreed to a lower-than-usual fee just to appear in a movie with Garbo.
- The film contains no scenes where Greta Garbo and Joan Crawford appear in the same frame. This was done deliberately to avoid a clash of the two stars in the film.
- The role of Suzette was specifically written for Pauline Frederick. The actress was unable to play it due to illness, and the role went to Raffaele Ottiano.
- John Barrymore agreed to a fee lower than usual, just to appear in a film with Garbo.
- Wallace Beery also initially refused the role of Praising. He only agreed when he was promised that Praising would be the only character speaking with a German accent.
- Buster Keaton was considered for the role of Lionel Barrymore.
- Garbo wanted John Gilbert to play the role of her lover. The actor was not cast in the film because his most recent works had performed rather poorly at the box office.
- Greta Garbo long refused the role of the Georgian woman, as she believed that at 27 years old, she was too old to play a prima ballerina.
- The role of Suzette was specifically written for Pauline Frederick. The actress was unable to play it due to illness, and the role went to Rafaela Ottiano.
- There are no scenes in the film where Greta Garbo and Joan Crawford appear in the same shot. This was done intentionally to prevent a clash between the two stars on screen.
- The role of Lionel Barrymore could have been played by Buster Keaton.
- Garbo wanted to cast John Gilbert as her lover. The actor was not invited to the film because his recent work had performed rather poorly at the box office.
- Nevertheless, conflicts on set were unavoidable. Crawford was irritated that Garbo was desperately trying to steal the spotlight in the movie. Therefore, knowing Garbo's hatred of tardiness and her dislike of Marlene Dietrich, Crawford would intentionally arrive late to filming, bragging to everyone that she had spent that time with Dietrich.
- Garbo constantly demanded that the set be lit with red light to enhance the romantic mood.
- However, conflicts on set could not be avoided. Crawford was irritated that Garbo was desperately hogging the spotlight in the film. Therefore, knowing how much Garbo hated tardiness and Marlene Dietrich, Crawford planned significant delays in filming, letting everyone know she had been spending the time with Dietrich.
- Garbo constantly demanded that the set always be lit with red light to enhance the romantic mood.
- Wallace Beery also initially refused the role of Preysing. He agreed only after being promised that Preysing would be the only character speaking with a German accent.
- Greta Garbo long refused the role of Grusinskaya, as she felt that at 27, she was too old to play a prima ballerina.
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Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
