Michael Arlen's 1924 novel was turned into a play of the same title, "The Green Hat." It opened on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre, 235 W. 44th St., on September 25, 1925 and ran for 231 performances.
Of all her many film directors, one can surmise that Clarence Brown was Greta Garbo's favorite. They made seven films together in the 11 years between their first, La chair et le diable (1926), and the last, Marie Walewska (1937). Given her level of stardom, it's likely no mistake that with no other director did she collaborate more than twice.
Brown commented on his impression of Garbo, whom very few knew intimately: "Garbo starts where they all leave off. She was a shy person; her lack of English gave her a slight inferiority complex. I used to direct her quietly. I never gave her direction above a whisper. Nobody on the set ever knew what I said to her; she liked that. She hated to rehearse. She would have preferred to stay away until everyone else was rehearsed, then come in and do the scene."
Their film projects include: La chair et le diable (1926), Intrigues (1928), Anna Christie (1930), Romance (1930), L'inspiratrice (1931), Anna Karénine (1935), and Marie Walewska (1937). For two of their films, Romance (1930) and Anna Christie (1930), both Brown and Garbo Oscar-nominated as respectively Best Director and Best Actress in a Leading Role.
Brown commented on his impression of Garbo, whom very few knew intimately: "Garbo starts where they all leave off. She was a shy person; her lack of English gave her a slight inferiority complex. I used to direct her quietly. I never gave her direction above a whisper. Nobody on the set ever knew what I said to her; she liked that. She hated to rehearse. She would have preferred to stay away until everyone else was rehearsed, then come in and do the scene."
Their film projects include: La chair et le diable (1926), Intrigues (1928), Anna Christie (1930), Romance (1930), L'inspiratrice (1931), Anna Karénine (1935), and Marie Walewska (1937). For two of their films, Romance (1930) and Anna Christie (1930), both Brown and Garbo Oscar-nominated as respectively Best Director and Best Actress in a Leading Role.
The film was based on a 1924 best-selling novel by Michael Arlen, The Green Hat, which he adapted as a four-act stage play in 1925. The Green Hat was considered so daring in the United States that the movie did not allow any associations with it and was renamed A Woman of Affairs, with the characters also renamed to mollify the censors. In particular, the film script eliminated all references to heroin use, homosexuality and syphilis that were at the core of the tragedies involved.
In the popular novel on which the film was based, The Green Hat, David commits suicide because he suffers from syphilis, not because of embezzlement. This critical plot element was excised during scripting by the Hays Commission. They would not even allow screen credit for the novel's name.
In the popular novel on which the film was based, The Green Hat, David commits suicide because he suffers from syphilis, not because of embezzlement. This critical plot element was excised during scripting by the Hays Commission. They would not even allow screen credit for the novel's name.
This was the third film that teamed Greta Garbo and John Gilbert.
Michael Arlen's novel The Green Hat also served as the basis for the 1934 M-G-M production Outcast Lady, directed by Robert Z. Leonard and starring Constance Bennett and Herbert Marshall.