WOMEN MUST DRESS (1935) Dress Designer Minna Gombell Charms Gavin Gordon

Description

Vintage original 11x14 in. US lobby card from the 1930's dramatic comedy/romance,
WOMEN MUST DRESS
, released in 1935 by Monogram Pictures and
directed by Reginald Barker
. Minna Gombell stars as a
wife who is devastated when her husband (Gavin Gordon) divorces her and runs off with a younger woman. However, she finds that she has a flair for designing clothes and soon she's working as a dress designer and is a partner in a successful and fashionable women's clothing store.
The image features an interior medium shot of Linda Howard (
Minna Gombell
) happily at her husband, Philip (
Gavin Gordon
), during happier times between the couple. Miss Gombell is wearing a beautiful velvet burgundy dress with gold trim. This vintage original lobby card is unrestored in very fine+ condition with only light signs of wear on the very tip of the bottom corners. There are no pinholes, tears, stains, or other flaws and the
beautiful
color tints are fresh and vibrant without any signs of fading.
Women Must Dress
marked the film debuts of actors Jon Hall and Lois Collier.
A doctor's daughter, the versatile actress
Minna Gombell
had a successful career on the stage from 1912 to the end of the 1920's, appearing often in comedic roles, almost always in leads. She had a reputation as a fast learner, capable of reading and comprehending a script in a matter of hours. This ability served her well as an understudy early in her career. She made her Broadway debut in 1913 in
Madam President'
and later appeared in several productions of her stage director husband Myron C. Fagan (for instance,
Nancy's Private Affair
,1930). Minna began her film career in 1929. Although her specialty was street-wise, tough-talking blondes, she displayed quite a repertoire of varied characters during her movie career. She was best friend and steadying influence on Sally Eilers in
Bad Girl
(1931), a conflicted and unhappy mother in
After Tomorrow
(1932), the cold wife of
The Thin Man
(1934), a waspish wife in
Babbitt
(1934), brassy burlesque performers in
Stepping Sisters
(1932), a spunky wagon-line owner in
Doomed Caravan
(1941), and a tough nurse presiding over
The Snake Pit
(1948). She also had occasional leads, for instance as the gold-digger Stella in
Bachelor's Affairs
(1932), a comedy with Adolphe Menjou. An underrated actress, she enlivened many a film with her presence.