LEATHERNECKING (1930) — PREMIUM COLLECTOR DVD

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Leathernecking 1930 DVD Irene Dunne Rare Pre-Code Musical Comedy RKO Classic

LEATHERNECKING (1930)

Irene Dunne’s Film Debut • Rare Pre-Code Musical • Early RKO Talkie

Rediscover a fascinating piece of early Hollywood history with Leathernecking (1930), a rarely seen Pre-Code musical comedy starring Irene Dunne, Ken Murray, Louise Fazenda, Ned Sparks, Lilyan Tashman and Eddie Foy Jr.

For Irene Dunne collectors, this film is especially important: Leathernecking marked Dunne’s motion-picture debut, beginning a screen career that would make her one of the great stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Set against the colorful backdrop of the United States Marines in Honolulu, the film follows Marine private Chick Evans, played by Eddie Foy Jr., who becomes infatuated with beautiful society woman Delphine, played by Irene Dunne.

Chick realizes that being an ordinary Marine private may not be enough to impress Delphine, so he takes a decidedly questionable approach to romance.

He borrows his captain’s uniform and Distinguished Service Medal and uses them to pass himself off as a much more important military officer.

The deception initially works.

Chick receives an invitation to Delphine’s society party and appears to have found a way into her world—until his fellow Marines unexpectedly arrive and expose his real rank.

Humiliated and furious at being deceived, Delphine rejects him.

But Chick refuses to surrender his romantic campaign.

A plan to bring Chick and Delphine together aboard a yacht leads to even more trouble when what is supposed to be a staged shipwreck becomes dangerously real.

The pair find themselves stranded together, and the situation eventually gives Delphine an opportunity to discover that there may be more to Chick than his ridiculous attempts at impersonating an officer.

Comedy, romance, military hijinks, music and shipwreck adventure combine in this delightful survivor from Hollywood’s earliest years of sound filmmaking. AFI describes the film as a musical comedy-drama involving courtship, Honolulu, Marine Corps life, impersonation and shipwreck.

STARRING

Irene Dunne — Delphine
Ken Murray — Frank
Louise Fazenda — Hortense
Ned Sparks — Reynolds “Sparks”
Lilyan Tashman — Edna
Eddie Foy Jr. — Chick
Benny Rubin — Stein
Rita Le Roy — Fortune Teller
Fred Santley — Douglas
William von Brinken — Richter
Carl Gerard — Colonel

AFI confirms this principal cast.

PRODUCTION CREDITS

Directed by: Edward F. Cline
Assistant Director: Frederick Fleck
Adaptation: Alfred Jackson
Continuity: Jane Murfin
Titles: John W. Krafft
Cinematography: J. Roy Hunt
Art Direction: Max Rée
Musical Direction: Victor Baravalle
Additional Music: Oscar Levant
Recording Engineer: John E. Tribby
Dance Direction: Pearl Eaton
Production Company: RKO Productions, Inc.

AFI documents Edward F. Cline as director, Alfred Jackson as adaptor, Jane Murfin on continuity, J. Roy Hunt as director of photography, Victor Baravalle as musical director and Oscar Levant as a contributor of additional music.

FILM INFORMATION

Title: Leathernecking
Year: 1930
Release Date: September 22, 1930
New York Opening: September 12, 1930
Genre: Musical / Comedy / Romance / Military Comedy
Country: United States
Language: English
Approximate Running Time: 72 Minutes
Original Length: 9 Reels
Original Sound System: RCA Photophone
Picture: Black & White with Color Sequences

AFI records the picture at approximately 72 minutes, with RCA Photophone sound and a combination of black-and-white photography and color sequences.

ALTERNATIVE NAME & FILM CURIOSITIES

BASED ON THE BROADWAY MUSICAL PRESENT ARMS

Before it became Leathernecking, the story had already entertained Broadway audiences as the musical Present Arms.

The Broadway production opened in New York in 1928, with a book by Herbert Fields, music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart.

The motion picture adaptation retained the military-romance premise while reshaping the stage production for the rapidly changing world of talking pictures.

For collectors interested in the history of the American musical, Leathernecking therefore represents an early screen connection to the legendary songwriting partnership of Rodgers and Hart.

IRENE DUNNE’S FIRST MOTION PICTURE

One of the biggest reasons to own Leathernecking is its place in film history as Irene Dunne’s screen debut.

Dunne had already worked extensively on the stage before moving into motion pictures.

Only one year later she would appear in Cimarron (1931) and receive the first of her eventual five Academy Award nominations for Best Actress.

That makes Leathernecking an extraordinary opportunity for collectors to see one of Hollywood’s major stars at the very beginning of her film career.

ORIGINALLY INCLUDED COLOR SEQUENCES

Although surviving copies of early sound films are often encountered primarily in black and white, Leathernecking was originally released with color material.

AFI cites a contemporary Variety review stating that approximately 20 minutes of the original film were presented in color.

The original production therefore belongs to the fascinating group of early talking pictures that experimented with combining black-and-white photography with early color sequences.

Because surviving prints vary, the amount or condition of the original color material may differ depending upon the source used for a particular surviving copy.

EARLY HOLLYWOOD SOUND TECHNOLOGY

The film was made using the RCA Photophone sound system.

Pictures like Leathernecking capture Hollywood at an unusual moment when filmmakers were still learning how best to combine dialogue, music, choreography and camera movement.

That early sound-era quality is a major part of the film’s appeal today.

OSCAR LEVANT CONNECTION

Another interesting name hidden in the film’s production credits is Oscar Levant, who contributed additional music.

Levant would later become famous as a pianist, composer, actor and witty radio and television personality.

His involvement gives Leathernecking another interesting connection to American entertainment history.

PREMIUM COLLECTOR DVD EDITION

This edition is prepared for collectors who appreciate rare, obscure and difficult-to-find classic motion pictures.

This is not simply a loose disc placed into a paper sleeve.

Our classic-film editions are prepared as premium manufactured DVD sets, complete with custom presentation materials designed especially for collectors of rare vintage cinema.

YOUR COLLECTOR DVD SET INCLUDES

• Leathernecking (1930)

• Premium manufactured DVD-R

• Full-size protective DVD case

• Professionally designed custom front cover artwork

• Custom-designed spine artwork

• Custom-designed back cover artwork

• Printed custom disc artwork

• Bonus printed collector insert

• Carefully prepared collector presentation

• Secure protective packaging for shipment

Our goal is to give rare and forgotten films an attractive physical presentation worthy of a classic movie collection.

THIS IS A PHYSICAL PRODUCT

You are purchasing a physical DVD that will be shipped directly to you.

This listing is not for streaming access, a download or an electronically delivered digital file.

Your purchase includes the physical DVD, protective case, custom artwork and bonus printed insert.

DVD SPECIFICATIONS

Title: Leathernecking
Year: 1930
Media Format: DVD-R
Disc Type: Premium Manufactured DVD-R
Number of Discs: 1
Region: ALL REGION
Video: Primarily Black & White
Original Presentation: Black & White with Color Sequences
Aspect Ratio: Approximately 1.20:1 early sound-era presentation; exact framing may vary depending upon surviving source material
Language: English
Audio: English Mono
Original Sound Process: RCA Photophone
Running Time: Approximately 72 Minutes
Country of Origin: United States
Genre: Musical / Comedy / Romance
Packaging: Full-Size Protective DVD Case
Artwork: Custom Front / Spine / Back Design
Disc Artwork: Custom Printed Disc Design
Bonus Material: Printed Collector Insert
Product Type: Physical DVD

AFI confirms the original film as an RCA Photophone sound production running approximately 72 minutes and originally combining black-and-white and color photography.

IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT THE COLOR SEQUENCES

The original theatrical release reportedly contained approximately 20 minutes of color footage.

However, surviving prints of films from this period do not always preserve every element exactly as originally exhibited.

Depending upon the surviving source used for this edition, material originally photographed or presented in color may survive only in black and white or may display variations associated with the surviving print.

The listing therefore does not guarantee that the complete original color footage survives in the source print.

PLEASE NOTE — VINTAGE FILM QUALITY

Leathernecking was produced in 1930, during the earliest years of widespread talking-picture production.

Collectors should understand that films approaching a century in age may survive in varying condition.

The presentation may contain characteristics associated with surviving archival and collector prints, including:

• Film grain

• Scratches

• Dust or print marks

• Contrast fluctuations

• Brightness variations

• Occasional soft-focus material

• Audio hiss

• Audio level variations

• Film splices

• Missing frames

• Differences between surviving color and black-and-white material

• Other age-related imperfections

These characteristics may originate with the surviving film element and do not necessarily indicate a defect in the DVD.

Our goal with rare-media releases is to provide the best available presentation reasonably accessible from surviving source material.

A rare film does not have to be perfect to be historically fascinating.

For many collectors, preserving access to movies that have nearly disappeared from commercial distribution is what makes collecting classic cinema so rewarding.

WHY ADD LEATHERNECKING TO YOUR COLLECTION?

There are hundreds of easily available Golden Age films.

The real treasures are often the movies that have largely disappeared from ordinary circulation.

Leathernecking offers several strong reasons for classic-film collectors to seek it out:

• Irene Dunne’s first motion picture

• Early Pre-Code Hollywood

• Early sound musical

• Based on a Rodgers and Hart Broadway musical

• U.S. Marine Corps setting

• Honolulu setting

• Romance and military comedy

• Shipwreck adventure

• Original color sequences

• Early RKO production

• Rarely seen today

It is particularly recommended for collectors interested in:

• Irene Dunne

• Pre-Code Cinema

• 1930 Movies

• Early Talking Pictures

• Vintage Musicals

• Rodgers & Hart

• Forgotten Hollywood

• Early RKO Films

• Broadway-to-Hollywood Adaptations

• Military Comedies

• Classic Romantic Comedies

• Rare Golden Age Cinema

• Early Color Film History

• Hard-to-Find Classic Movies

FROM BROADWAY TO EARLY HOLLYWOOD

Leathernecking is particularly fascinating because it sits at the intersection of Broadway musical theater and the first generation of Hollywood talking pictures.

The source musical Present Arms featured music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, while the screen version became a vehicle for a newcomer named Irene Dunne.

Within only a few years, Dunne would become one of Hollywood’s most respected dramatic and comedy actresses.

Here, collectors can see the very beginning.

PUBLIC DOMAIN STATUS

Leathernecking was released in the United States in 1930. AFI records its general release date as September 22, 1930.

Under United States copyright law, works from 1930 entered the U.S. public domain on January 1, 2026 after completion of the applicable maximum copyright term. Duke Law’s Center for the Study of the Public Domain confirms that works from 1930 became open to the public in the United States on that date.

PUBLIC DOMAIN STATEMENT

All films included in this collection have been thoroughly researched and verified as public domain under applicable United States copyright law.

Public-domain status may differ outside the United States.

SHIPPING INFORMATION

PLEASE ALLOW APPROXIMATELY 7–10 DAYS FOR YOUR ORDER TO SHIP.

Our collector DVDs are prepared with attention to presentation and include custom artwork, custom disc presentation and a bonus printed collector insert.

Because these are prepared as physical collector products, please allow approximately 7 to 10 days for your order to ship.

Your order will be carefully packaged to help protect the DVD, case and printed materials during transit.

We appreciate your patience while your collector edition is prepared.

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If you have any questions or concerns regarding your order, please send us a message through the marketplace messaging system.

We work through customer concerns and make every reasonable effort to address questions or problems in a timely manner.

If something is not right with your order, please give us an opportunity to assist you.

We believe in communicating directly with our customers and working toward a satisfactory resolution whenever a legitimate concern arises.

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REDISCOVER THE BEGINNING OF A HOLLYWOOD LEGEND

LEATHERNECKING (1930)

Irene Dunne • Ken Murray • Louise Fazenda • Ned Sparks • Lilyan Tashman • Eddie Foy Jr.

Before Cimarron.

Before The Awful Truth.

Before Love Affair.

Before I Remember Mama.

There was Leathernecking—the film that introduced Irene Dunne to motion-picture audiences.

Add this unusual 1930 Pre-Code musical comedy to your classic-film library and rediscover another piece of early Hollywood history.

Rare films deserve to be seen again.