The Cardboard Lover

The Cardboard Lover is a 1928 silent romantic comedy film produced by Cosmopolitan Productions and distributed by Metro Goldwyn Mayer. It was directed by Robert Z. Leonard and stars Marion Davies and Swedish actor Nils Asther.

The film is based on the play Dans sa candeur naive by Jacques Deval. In London, Tallulah Bankhead played the female lead. On Broadway, Jeanne Eagels played the female lead.

The film survives at the Library of Congress and in the Turner library. In 2015, a second print of the film was found at a recycling centre.

It was remade as The Passionate Plumber in 1932 and Her Cardboard Lover in 1942.

A group of American coeds/flappers arrives at the Hotel Venitien on the French Riviera. In the hotel lobby, Sally Baxter encounters Monsieur de Segurola, "the famous baritone", and asks him to write something in her autograph album. However, when she reads what he has written, she tears it out. Next, she spots handsome Andre Briault, "the famous tennis champion", and his girlfriend Simone. After Andre drives away, Sally notices Simone and de Sugorola making eye contact. (Albine, Andre's valet, does not approve of Simone either.)

When Andre later telephones Simone, he hears someone singing; Simone claims it is only a phonograph record playing, but then de Sugorola coughs. Andre heads over to the hotel to check up on her. She tries to distract him, but Andre spots de Sugorola trying to sneak out of her suite, tosses him out into the hall and breaks up with Simone.

The last part is witnessed by Sally. She chases after Andre to get his autograph, but her pen seems to be out of ink. After he leaves, she finds that there is ink after all; unable to get a taxi, she steals a car and follows him to the Casino. There, she inadvertently loses 50,000 francs playing baccarat against him, and is asked to pay. She writes on a check that she has no money to speak of, and Andre good-naturedly tears it up.