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The Public Enemy (1931) Grapefruit Scene Photo Signed by James Cagney & Mae Clarke

Currency:USD Category:Memorabilia / Movie - Memorabilia Start Price:50.00 USD Estimated At:200.00 - 500.00 USD
The Public Enemy (1931) Grapefruit Scene Photo Signed by James Cagney & Mae Clarke
The iconic classic scene of James Cagney violently shoving a grapefruit into the face of Mae Clarke in the groundbreaking crime drama “The Public Enemy” (1931) has been voted as one of the top ten American Motion Picture moments of all time. Ironically the scene was staged as a practical joke between James Cagney and Mae Clarke (he was supposed to stuff an omelet into her mouth). However the director, William A. Wellman, thought it so shocking that he included it in the film. The infamous grapefruit scene was so brutal (never before did a male star treat a woman like that on the screen) that it caused an instant nation-wide sensation and galvanized women groups to protest the film. Riots broke out, and many arrests were made. Women were known to faint in the theaters or ran screaming into the lobby when the scene was shown. The only one who seemed to enjoy this was actor Lew Brice, who was Mae Clarke's ex-husband and went to the theater every day just to watch Cagney shove the grapefruit into Clarke's face, at which point he'd applaud, laugh, cheer and then leave! This production photograph of that scene is extremely rare, since it is personally signed by both James Cagney and Mae Clarke. A true Hollywood treasure! Comes with a Letter of Providence from Artie Kern who was the movie memorabilia consultant to the Song Writers Hall of Fame from 1980-1993. Photo is 8"x10".