View source for Claudette Colbert

=== Movie stardom, 1928–34 ===

In 1928, Colbert signed a contract with [[Paramount Pictures]],<ref name="tcmdb"/> which was looking for stage actors who could handle dialogue in the new "talkies" medium. Colbert's elegance and musical voice was one of her best assets,<ref name="Pace"/> In ''[[The Hole in the Wall (1929 film)|The Hole in the Wall]]'' (1929), audiences noticed her beauty, but at first she didn't like film acting.<ref name="All Movie Guide">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmovie.com/artist/p14003 |work=All Movie Guide |author=Hal Erickson |accessdate=2016-11-16 |title=Claudette Colbert biography}}</ref> Her earliest films were produced in New York. During production of the 1929 film ''[[The Lady Lies (film)|The Lady Lies]]'', she was appearing nightly in the play ''See Naples and Die''. 
''The Lady Lies'' was also box office success.<ref name="Pace"/>  In 1930 she starred opposite [[Maurice Chevalier]] in ''[[The Big Pond]]'', which was filmed in both English and French. She co-starred with [[Fredric March]] in ''[[Manslaughter (1930 film)|Manslaughter]]'' (1930), receiving critical acclaim<ref>Quirk, p. 64 citing ''The New York Times''.</ref> for her performance as a woman charged with [[vehicular manslaughter]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmovie.com/movie/v101560 |work=All Movie Guide |title=Manslaughter |author=Hal Erickson |accessdate=February 11, 2013}}</ref> She was paired with March in four productions, including ''[[Honor Among Lovers]]'' (1931) with [[Ginger Rogers]]. While these films were box office successes,<ref name="Shipman113"/> she also starred in ''Mysterious Mr. Parkes'' (1931), which was a French-language version of ''[[Slightly Scarlet (1930 film)|Slightly Scarlet]]'' for the European market, although it was also screened in the United States. She sang and played piano in the [[Ernst Lubitsch]] musical ''[[The Smiling Lieutenant]]'' (1931), which was the year's 10th domestic box-office success;<ref name="Pace"/><ref name="ultimate"/> Colbert was critically acclaimed for her ability to shrewdly play a character role opposite [[Miriam Hopkins]].<ref name="Shipman113" /> Colbert concluded the year with appearance in a modest successful film:  ''[[His Woman]]'' with [[Gary Cooper]].<ref name="ultimate"/>

Colbert's career got a huge boost when [[Cecil B. DeMille]] cast her as ''[[femme fatale]]'' in the 1932 historical epic ''[[The Sign of the Cross (1932 film)|The Sign of the Cross]] '', opposite [[Fredric March]] and [[Charles Laughton]]. In one of the most notable scenes in her movie career, she bathes nude in a marble pool filled with [[asses' milk]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Claudette Colbert (1903–1996) |work=Hollywood's Golden Age |url=http://www.hollywoodsgoldenage.com/actors/claudette_colbert.html |accessdate=July 24, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Springer |first=John |year=1978 |title=They Had Faces Then, Annabella to Zorina, the Superstars, Stars and Starlets of the 1930s |ISBN=0-8065-0657-1 |page=62}}</ref> The film was one of her biggest box-office hits.<ref name="ultimate"/>

In 1933, Colbert renegotiated her contract with Paramount to allow her to appear in films for other studios. Her musical voice was also featured in the 1933 film ''[[Torch Singer]]'', which co-starred [[Ricardo Cortez]] and [[David Manners]].

For 1933, she was already ranking as 13th box-office star.<ref>STARS' BOX-OFFICE RATINGS FOR PAST SEASON GIVEN: Survey Shows Sophisticates Slippinig Fast Will Rogers Tops All; Shirley Temple and Crosby Shoot Up
Schallert, Edwin. ''Los Angeles Times'' 09 Dec 1934: A1.</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/stream/motionpictureher117unse#page/n389/mode/2up ''Motion Picture Herald'', December 1, 1934] accessed 13 October 2016</ref> By 1933, she had appeared in 20 films, averaging approximately four films per year. A lot of her early films were commercial successes,<ref name="Pace"/> and her performances were admired.<ref name="Britannica"/> Their her leading roles were more serious and diverse, which proved her versatility.<ref name="richardson"/> 

Colbert was initially reluctant to appear in the [[screwball comedy]] ''[[It Happened One Night]]'' (1934). The studio accepted Colbert's demand that she be paid $50,000 and that filming was to be completed within four weeks to allow her to take a planned vacation.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hirschnor |first=Joel |year=1983 |title=Rating the Movie Stars for Home Video, TV and Cable |publisher=Publications International Limited |ISBN=0-88176-152-4 |page=87}}</ref> Colbert won the [[Academy Award for Best Actress]] for the film.<ref name="Oscars7"/>

[[File:Cleopatra publicity photo.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|alt=Screen capture of Colbert|in ''Cleopatra'', 1934]]

In ''[[Cleopatra (1934 film)|Cleopatra]]'' (1934), she played the title role opposite [[Warren William]] and [[Henry Wilcoxon]]. The film was one of the year's biggest domestic box-office hits.<ref name="Pace"/><ref name=ultimate/> Thereafter, Colbert did not wish to be portrayed as overtly sexual and later refused such roles.<ref>{{cite book |last=Chaneles |first=Sol |year=1974 |title=The Movie Makers |publisher=Octopus Books |ISBN=0-7064-0387-8  |page=97}}</ref>''[[Imitation of Life (1934 film)|Imitation of Life]]'' (1934) was the year's 8th domestic box-office success.<ref name="ultimate"/><ref>{{cite news |title=EARLY YEARS |accessdate=2016-10-09 |work=University of Virginia 
|url=http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma02/rodriguez/thesis/34show.html |year=2002}}</ref>