"Strictly on the Level, Like a Flight of Stairs": Irving Thalberg and Anita Loos as Trickster-Heroes in the Case of Red-Headed Woman (1932)

ABSTRACT:Archival documents concerning the adaptation of Red-Headed Woman (1932) disclose the "confusion" producer Irving Thalberg and screenwriter Anita Loos created in the minds of the censoring men at the Studio Relations Committee (SRC) and Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA). While others debated propriety versus sexual intrigue, trickster Loos—working closely with Thalberg—wove into the fabric of her story a profound subtext that advocated for social change regarding women through its critique of intersectional issues related to class, gender, and sexuality.