Editing Alexander Korda (section)

==In Hollywood and France==
In December 1926 Korda and his wife sailed for the United States on board the [[steamboat|steamer]] [[RMS Olympic|''Olympic'']], with a view to Korda taking up a contract with the American studio [[First National Pictures|First National]].<ref>Kulik, pp. 41–42</ref> In Hollywood both struggled to adapt to the [[studio system]]. Korda had to wait some time before gaining his first directorial assignment, ''[[The Stolen Bride (1927 film)|The Stolen Bride]]'' (1927), a Hungarian-themed romance about a peasant's love for a countess.<ref>Kulik, p. 45</ref> The film starred the American actress [[Billie Dove]] rather than Korda's wife.

Following the moderate success of ''The Stolen Bride'' Korda worked on the comedy ''[[The Private Life of Helen of Troy]]'' (1927), replacing the previous director, [[George Fitzmaurice]]. The film retells the story of [[Helen of Troy]], parodying the historical epics of the era by transforming the classical characters into everyday people with modern problems. The film was a significant success for Korda, with his wife playing the role of Helen. The film was his most satisfying work in the United States and provided the template for his later success in Britain.

After this film, however, Korda became pigeonholed as a director of female stars and exotic foreign locations. He was generally given similar assignments for the remainder of his first period in Hollywood.<ref>Kulik, p. 48</ref> His next few films were disappointments as his career lost its momentum: ''[[Yellow Lily]]'' (1928), ''[[Night Watch (1928 film)|Night Watch]]'' (1928) both with Dove, and ''[[Love and the Devil]]'' (1929) with Maria Korda (who now spelled her name with a K). The latter two, though still [[Silent films]], had [[sound effects]] and music added to their soundtracks during Hollywood's transition to fully synchronized [[Sound film]]s.

Korda's next film ''[[The Squall]]'' (1929), with a young [[Myrna Loy]], was his first talkie and featured a Hungarian setting. Although, like many other directors, Korda had misgivings about the new technology, he quickly adapted to making sound films.

Korda's marriage was strained in Hollywood. The arrival of sound films wrecked his wife's career, as her heavy accent made her unemployable for most American films. ''Love and the Devil'' was the last of Korda's films she appeared in, and she made only two more films. She became increasingly resentful of the switch in their relationship, as her career was now over while Korda, who had once relied on her for the success of his films, was relatively flourishing. Their marriage collapsed, and they divorced in 1930.<ref>Kulik, pp. 49–50</ref>

Korda made two more sound films at First National:  ''[[Her Private Life]]'' (1929) and ''[[Lilies of the Field (1930 film)|Lilies of the Field]]'' (1930), both of which were remakes of earlier silent films.

Korda grew more frustrated in Hollywood as he came to strongly dislike the studio system. He hoped to save up enough money to return to Europe and begin producing on a large scale there, but his lavish personal spending and the large amounts he lost in the [[Wall Street crash]] prevented this. When his producer, [[Ned Marin]], moved from First National to the [[Fox Film Corporation]] Korda followed him. Korda's new contract gave him $100,000 a year.<ref>Kulik, p. 52</ref>

===Fox===

His first film for Fox, ''[[Women Everywhere]]'' (1930), cost slightly more than some of the [[B movie|programmers]] he had previously directed in the United States. He collaborated with several figures who would contribute to his future success in Britain. Korda was offered a series of scripts, all of which he disliked, before he finally agreed to make ''[[The Princess and the Plumber]]'' (1930).<ref>Kulik, pp. 54–55</ref> Korda's reluctance to make the film led to his conflict with studio bosses, which brought to an end his first period in Hollywood.

===Films in France===
Korda went to France where he made ''[[The Men Around Lucy]]'' (1931) for Paramount. He also made ''[[Rive gauche (film)|Rive gauche]]'' (1931).

Korda had a success with ''[[Marius (1931 film)|Marius]]'' (1931) starring [[Raimu]] from the play by [[Marcel Pagnol]]. He followed it with the Swedish and German versions of Marius, respectively ''[[Longing for the Sea]]'' (1931), and ''[[The Golden Anchor]]'' (1932).