Corinne, the human motor car mascot

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As with so much in life, making movies must have been far more complex a century ago than it is today. Especially when special effects were needed to make the audience believe things were not quite what they really were – think of that 1927 masterpiece Metropolis and the motoring tricks used in it to achieve that grand futuristic setting. Apart from the actual Rumpler Tropfenwagens used, scale models were, of course, part of the plan.

This photo shows the exact opposite of using scale models in film to achieve a somewhat bewildering effect. We see a radiator with a mascot – or hood ornament – that is actually a lot larger than expected. In fact, the mascot, in the style of the famous Spirit of Ecstasy, really is actress Corinne Griffith, dressed in a beautiful Art Deco costume.

The scene is from the 1930 movie ‘Lilies of the Field’, which is in fact a so-called lost film, with no known complete prints or negatives surviving other than about 40 seconds of a ballet scene. We do not believe it is much of a car movie, although this image is certainly powerful. Actress Corinne Griffith may have been an enthusiast herself, though. We found a photograph from a 1927 clipping showing her with her own motor car, a Hibbard & Darrin-bodied Minerva, no less! A fun detail, which unfortunately is too vague to tell us more about, is that car’s hood ornament – very large and definitely not the usual mascot. It may well have inspired the filmmakers!

Words: Jeroen Booij; Pictures: First National Pictures, Coachbuild.com

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