August 24, 1916 — Charlotte News
“Ruth Sands in ‘Legal Advice‘”
“Ruth Sands, an eastern girl, arrives at Coyote Flats, to practice her profession as an attorney at law. She is met by Jim Miller, the town judge, who tells her that the town is badly in need of a good lawyer.
The cowboys, fascinated by Ruth’s good looks, proceed to build her a house and an office. Tom Walton, the ranch foreman, falls in love with the beautiful woman-lawyer, and decides to get into trouble. He steals the sheriff’s horse, and riding into town, shoots up the main street. He is arrested and thrown into jail.
The day of Tom’s trial arrives, and all the cowboys are on hand to hear Ruth defend him. While Ruth is pleading the case, she looks toward the door and there stands a well-dressed eastern fellow, who proves to be her husband. They rush into each other’s arms and when the cowboys learn who the newcomer is, the court case is immediately suspended.”
January 7, 1917 — Pittsburgh Daily Post
“‘The Weaker Sex‘ . . . has a triumvirate of stellar players in the persons of Dorothy Dalton, Charles Ray and Louise Glaum. The play was written by Alice C. Brown, directed by Raymond B. West, and supervised by Thomas H. Ince. It is in five acts and carries a message of real appeal with the thrill and soul stir of genuine human interest. It is strong, virile and big, the tale of a woman who disproves the time-honored theory that femininity is the weaker vessel. In the role of a woman lawyer, Miss Dalton dominates this play of mystery and thoroughly establishes the fact that neither sex has a monopoly either of gray matter or those sturdy qualities usually ascribed to strong men and assumed to be absent in the character of women. As a pleader at the bar, the woman in this instance has that intuition, keenness of perception and perspicacity that are the inherent gifts of daughters of Eve, but in this particular case are gifts coupled up with strength and determination. Married to a successful lawyer, this woman of the bar is forced to abandon her practice after marriage. The husband will not even allow her to help him until her keenness and a woman’s judgment acquit his own son, charged with murder and condemned by circumstantial evidence. Charles Ray is seen as the son and Louise Glaum as the woman of evil ways, who enmeshes the boy. The Triangle studios are said to have done a notable bit of stage production and photography in this compelling picture, with the result that ‘The Weaker Sex’ gives promise of achieving a success of the first importance.”
August 28, 1917 — Santa Cruz Evening News
“‘God’s Law,’ by Lois Weber. John Doe, a farmhand, is arrested for apparently taking the life of a wealthy farmer. He is taken to prison because a pistol is found in the possession of his half-witted brother. But conscienceless detectives, by false testimony, wring from the accused by that modern torture known as the ‘third degree,’ overwhelm their victim, swear away his life, and he is condemned to died. Only at the last moment is John Doe saved, and then not because the administration of justice has miscarried, but because a clever woman lawyer has seen a rift in the well laid case against the innocent man and with this opening the plot is torn to rags and a human life saved.”
August 11, 1920 — The Brooklyn Daily Eagle
“A Farce and a Film
Wilson Collison, who used to write plays in collaboration with Avery Hopwood, has taken one intoxicated husband, two intoxicated young ladies in their lingerie, a wild-eyed wife with a gun, a butler and a woman lawyer and mixed them all up into a farce. The result is more mixup than farce. Mr. Collison calls it ‘The Girl With Carmine Lips,’ and it is extant at the Punch and Judy Theater, Manhattan.
The wife, egged on by a money-loving mother, is in search of a divorce. Most of the evening, gun in hand, she is also in search of the two young women whom she finds in her husband’s apartment. For three acts there is a constant slamming of doors, running in and out and hiding under divans and inside convenient chests. Unfortunately, though the wife shoots at practically everybody in the cast at one time or another, she incapacitates no one and the audience has to endure all of them right up to the end of the last act. . . .
The play takes its title from the fact that the woman lawyer is spoken of as having very brilliant lips. She is a mysterious creature who has no trouble winning any case she takes because no lawyer can be found to fight her in court and no judge has the courage to decide against her. Where she got her great influence the author does not tell us. Nor does the program let the audience into the secret of who the actress is who plays the part. Perhaps her reputation as an actress will not suffer greatly as a result of this secrecy. She is not very good. Wilfred Clarke is the innocent husband.”
November 30, 1923 — The Winnipeg Tribune
“In the J. G. Mayer super-photo-production, ‘The Greatest Menace,’ that is now attracting wide interest at the National theatre through its startling expose of the drug traffic, Ann Little, the famous picture star, enacts the role of a woman lawyer, who saves her brother from the sentence of death by her handling of his case. In the story Miss Little as Velma Wright, the feminine lawyer, learns that her once-brilliant brother, Charles W. Wright, Jr. (a role played by Robert Gordon) has not only become a habitual user of drugs, but is under arrest on a charge of murder. Miss Wright (Miss Little) enters the case with every ounce of energy and her efforts prove victorious.”
August 17, 1926 — Santa Ana Register
The Waning Sex
“‘The Waning Sex,’ the picture starring Norma Shearer, from the Broadway stage success of the same name by Frederick and Fanny Hatton, . . ., is a picture exactly suited to the taste and requirements of the discriminating picture-goer.
It is comedy with a snap and sparkle, an exhilarating, zestful tempo, and it even has plot, not with an artificial heaviness, but well-balanced and interesting.
Norma Shearer has the role of a successful woman lawyer, while Conrad Nagel, her leading man, is cast as the rising young district attorney who is in love with her. She is really in love with him but she is a modern-day woman whose independence is as precious to her as a man’s is to him and she is a bit wary of matrimonial gesture.”
August 11, 1927 — The Chillicothe Constitution-Tribune
The World at Her Feet
“A screen play as delightfully refreshing as it is intriguingly novel in development of plot is now showing at the Strand theater. It is ‘The World at Her Feet’ with beautiful Florence Vidor in the starring role, that of a successful woman lawyer who caps her career by arresting the lapsing affections of a husband who is about to stray. Miss Vidor, in all her brunette loveliness as first the efficient attorney, and next the charming wife using her law-sharpened wits to win back her mate, gives one of the finest performances of her movie career. She brings the role of sympathy of treatment, a knowledge of the requirements of farce comedy, and a stately grace that are enchanting. Arnold Kent, Richard Tucker and Margaret Quimsby are well cast in supporting roles. . . .”
August 12, 1927 — The Franklin Evening Star
“‘The World at Her Feet‘ . . Can a woman lawyer ethically use her divorcee client as a foil to patch up her own marital difficulties? The problem is met and solved in this picture.”
August 8, 1933 — The Eugene Guard
“Fay Wray as Ann Carver in ‘Ann Carver’s Profession’ . . . comes to the conclusion that ‘Love tolerates no rivals — not even success.’ As a successful woman lawyer, whose very success spells disaster for her marriage, Fay Wray has one of the most dramatic roles of her career. Supporting her in the film in the role of leading man is platinum-blonde Gene Raymond, young player who has appeared in countless brilliant roles. Beautiful Claire Dodd is cast in an important supporting part. . . .”
August 8, 1935 — Medford Mail Tribune
“Gripping Drama on Rialto Friday Bill
Police guns will blaze across the screen as background for a new type of rapid-fire romance in ‘Behind the Green Lights,’ a tale of police stations and law courts . . . .
This tense drama, suggested by the book by Capt. C. W. Willemse of the New York police, assertedly gives the actual story on police efforts to combat a ring of jewel thieves and the crooked lawyers who defend them. The lively romance furnished by Norman Foster and lovely Judith Allen, playing a smart young detective and an ambitious woman lawyer, respectively, is described as rising to a stirring climax when their careers clash to make them professional rivals as well as sweethearts.”
August 9, 1936 — Kingsport Times
“‘The Law in Her Hands‘ — With Margaret Lindsay and Glenda Farrell teamed as a pair of young women lawyers, ‘The Law in Her hands,’ the new comedy-drama . . . is gay with fun and vivid with swift and dramatic action. . . .”
August 9, 1937 — The Evening News
“‘Broadway Siren‘ by Lewis Allen Browne
Lola Larkin, English star in a Broadway revue, loves Senator Balcom’s son, Winfield, who wants to marry her. But Senator Balcom goes to a friend, a clever woman lawyer named Martha Carter, and retains her to prevent such a seeming mesalliance. Norman Standish, Englishman, arrives in New York with his bride and meets Lola in secret. His bride, Cora, extremely wealthy, is a close friend of Martha Carter. When Cora finds out about her husband and Lola Larkin, she goes to Martha and tell her to bribe the Larkin girl never to see Standish again. She gives Martha check for $10,000 with which to buy off Lola.”
July 13, 1938 — Fitchburg Sentinel
“Gail Patrick is to portray the role of a woman lawyer in ‘Disbarred‘ in which she will be co-starred with Randolph Scott. The play will deal with crooked lawyers who act as fences and protect criminal gangs. Of course the publicity department had to discover that Miss Patrick studied law at the University of Alabama.”
September 6, 1939 — Greeley Daily Tribune
“A Woman is the Judge” — Columbia Picture
“The story concerns a woman judge who resigned from the bench at the peak of her career to defend her daughter who is accused of murder. A press sheet says:
‘”A Woman is the Judge”‘ has been hailed as a stirring emotional drama, which traces in absorbing detail the broad-mindedness, courage and unflinching honesty of the feminine jurist against a background of underworld intrigue and the rigid discipline of legal procedure.
Other prominent characters are a successful prosecuting attorney who for many years has been eager to make the judge his wife; a notorious racketeer; two of his women hirelings, one of whom is a beautiful young girl (the judge’s long-lost daughter), and the other, a hardened derelict of the underworld; a young defense attorney just beginning his legal career; and the judge’s devoted housekeeper.
As the girl, schooled in crime by her father, who heroically prevents the racketeer from carrying out his threatened blackmail against the judge, Rochelle Hudson has one of the most important roles of her career. Otto Kruger bring a compelling force to his portrayal of the attorney, presenting the love versus duty theme with a new eloquence. The role of the woman jurist is played with dignity by Frieda Inescort, noted on stage and screen for the high standard of her characterizations.'”
July 30, 1943 — Havre Daily News
“Louise Allbritton and Dennis O’Keefe are teamed in Universal’s ‘Good Morning, Judge,’ an action comedy with music. . . . Miss Albritton, one of Hollywood’s promising young contract actresses, essays the role of a woman attorney.
Mary Beth Hughes has the second feminine lead. J. Carrol Naish, Louise Beavers and Samuel S. Hinds appear in important roles.
Jean Yarbrough directed and the associate producer was Paul Malvern.”
August 13, 1950 — The Decatur Herald
“‘Sierra,’ a western in technicolor . . . . The western stars Audie Murphy, Wanda Hendrix, Burl Ives and Dean Jagger. Murphy plays the son of an outlaw and Wanda Hendrix is a female lawyer. The closing scenes, which show a stampede of wild horses, are highly exciting, according to critics.”
September 3, 1949 — Brooklyn Daily Eagle
“Recently-appointed U. S. Supreme Court Justice Tom Clark said today he hoped all his cases would be as pleasant as his first one.
The former Attorney General visited a set at Universal International Studios yesterday while Wanda Hendrix was portraying a lady lawyer. ‘Your case is the first I’ve heard since I was appointed,’ Clark told her.”
August 21, 1952 — Stilwell Democrat-Journal
“Ginger Rogers and Jack Carson are co-starred in ‘The Groom Wore Spurs,’ . . . . Miss Rogers appears in the film as a feminine lawyer whose legal work for a big-time celluloid western star lands her in a Las Vegas wedding chapel. Top supporting actors include Joan Davis and Stanley Ridges.”
Montana's Early Women Lawyers: Trail-blazing, Big Sky Sisters-in-Law 