The author of a book on eugenics attempts to prove his theories by having his childless sister and her husband adopt the child of a “physically superior” chauffeur and housemaid, leading to comedic complications when the parents refuse to give up their child.
Acting
Frank Craven's theatrical mugging bridges silent and sound comedy.
Production
Glimpses 1929's awkward transition: static shots, hot mics, pure history.
Director
Frank Craven
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Pre-code films like this snuck risqué material past censors before the 1934 Hays Code crackdown—'unsuccessful efforts' was code for fertility anxiety and barely veiled sex jokes.
Doris Eaton, playing Edith Goodhue, was a former Ziegfeld Follies star still performing at 14; this was her talkie debut before becoming the last surviving Ziegfeld girl, dying in 2010 at age 106.
US
