The Greeks Had a Word for Them

"Through out the Ages half of the women of the world have been working women - and the rest of the women have been working men."

Jean, Polaire, and Schatze are three sometime showgirls living in Prohibition-era New York on the hunt for a good man or even better a rich man. But just because they are friends doesn't mean they are going to play fair with each other. Hilarity Ensues.

The Greeks Had a Word for Them (also known as Three Broadway Girls) is a 1932 talkie comedy based on the Zoe Akins play The Greeks Had A Word For It. A generation later it would be one of the inspirations for the more famous How to Marry a Millionaire.

Notable for featuring one of the earliest uses of a varation on the Video Will in a movie.

The movie is in the Public Domain and can be viewed online for free here.


 * Catch Phrase - "Ask me no secrets, I'll tell you no lies." (Jean)
 * Deadpan Snarker - Schatze.
 * Gold Digger - All three of them really but to varying degrees with Polaire being the least venal and Jean the most.
 * The Poor Mans Substitute - Joan Blondell (Schatze) was hired when Howard Hughes refused to release Jean Harlow.
 * Pretty in Mink - A major part of the story.
 * Video Will - A Phonograph Will actually, but otherwise the trope is played completely straight (complete with a The Tape Knew You Would Say That gag). Perhaps the Ur Example.
 * With Friends Like These... - It really stretches disbelief that Polaire and Schatze remain friends with Jean after the stunts she pulls.