11/9/25

The Greeks Had a Word for Them

Directed by Lowell Sherman (1932)

“Throughout the Ages, half of the women of the world have been working women; and the rest of the women have been working men.” So opens Lowell Sherman’s champagne-soaked The Greeks Had a Word for Them (reissued as Three Broadway Girls), a racy Pre-Code comedy adapted from Zoe Akins’ 1930 play. Following three gold diggers on the prowl for wealthy husbands in Depression-era Manhattan, the film stars Ina Claire, Joan Blondell, and Madge Evans as unapologetic schemers armed with wit, style, and charm. 

The film sparked battles with the censors and was subjected to endless recuts for its depiction of frank sexuality and celebration of something that was perceived perilously close to prostitution; however it still vibrates with the daring irreverence of early-1930s Pre-Code Hollywood when comedies could be more sharply provocative (and audiences were more eager to be shocked). Greeks was a precursor to Jean Negulesco’s 1953 How to Marry a Millionaire, a much more moralistic interpretation of Atkins’ work.

Restored in 2023 by the Library of Congress and The Film Foundation. Funding provided by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation. The primary source of the digital restoration was a 35mm nitrate print at the Library of Congress, which served as the best surviving material. That print is missing some frames and has a replacement opening and end title cards that were added when the film was re-released under the title ‘Three Broadway Girls.’ For the restoration, scans from a 16mm print at the George Eastman Museum were used to reintroduce the original cards and missing frames. 4K scanning was done by the LOC’s National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia. Digital image restoration was performed at L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, Italy.  Audio Mechanics in Burbank, California did the audio restoration. 

Courtesy of Library of Congress