I Loved a Soldier

I Loved a Soldier (also known as Invitation to Happiness) is an unfinished 1936 American romantic-comedy-drama film directed by Henry Hathaway and produced by Paramount Pictures.[1][2] It stars Marlene Dietrich, Charles Boyer, Walter Catlett, Lionel Stander, and Margaret Sullavan.[3]

The Paramount picture was intended to be a remake of Pola Negri's 1927 Hotel Imperial, which was based on a play by Lajos Bíró. Film shooting began in early January 1936 where the film was officially named Invitation to Happiness.[4] Early on into the shooting, there was an accident with a gun that injured one of the crew members and almost hit Boyer, singeing his toupée.[4] That same day, the movie's title was changed to I loved a Soldier for unknown reasons.[4]

As a result of problems with the script and on-set altercations between Dietrich and Hathaway, producer Ernst Lubitsch suspended production on the film several weeks into shooting.[4] In March, Paramount announced that they and Dietrich were "amicable and friendly" again, and production of the film would continue with Margaret Sullavan as Dietrich's replacement.[4] Recast with new actors, the film was completed in 1939 under the title Hotel Imperial.[4] No footage shot for I Loved a Soldier was used in the final film and no footage of I Loved a Soldier is known to have survived.[1]