1930 in film

List of years in film (table)
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In television 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 In radio 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933
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Years in film
1870s
1880s 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889
1890s 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899
1900s 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909
1910s 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
1920s 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
1930s 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
1940s 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
1950s 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000s 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010s 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020s 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029

The following is an overview of 1930 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.

Top-grossing films

The top ten 1930 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:

Highest-grossing films of 1930

Rank	Title	Studio	Box office gross rental
1	Whoopee!	United Artists	$2,600,000
2	Check and Double Check	RKO Radio Pictures	$1,810,000
3	Common Clay	Fox Film Corporation	$1,700,000
4	Hell's Angels	United Artists	$1,600,000
5	All Quiet on the Western Front	Universal Pictures	$1,500,000
6	The Big House	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer	$1,300,000
7	Min and Bill		$1,223,000
8	Song o' My Heart	Fox Film Corporation	$1,200,000
9	Son of the Gods	Warner Bros.	$1,069,000
10	Hold Everything		$1,018,000

Events

• February 23: Silent screen legend Mabel Normand dies at the age of 37 in Monrovia, California after a lengthy battle with tuberculosis.
• March 10: Release of Goodbye Argentina (Adiós Argentina), the first Argentine film with a (musical) soundtrack. Ada Cornaro has her first starring role and Libertad Lamarque makes her film debut.
• April 6: William Fox sells his interest in Fox Film for $18 million and Harley L. Clarke becomes president.
• September 3: The Hollywood Reporter is first published.
• September 19: The Love Parade receives a record six Academy Award nominations.
• November 1: The Big Trail featuring a young John Wayne in his first starring role is released in both 35mm and a very early form of 70mm film. It is the first large scale big-budget film of the sound era, costing over $2 million. The film is praised for its aesthetic quality and realism that will not become commonplace until many decades later. However, due to the new film format and the film's release during the Great Depression, the film will go on to become a financial failure at the box office.
• November 15: Howard Hughes epic film Hell's Angels is released and features Jean Harlow in her first major role as well as some impressive aerial sequences. The film is a huge success and would go on to gross $8 million and launch Harlow as one of the 1930s' biggest stars.

Academy Awards

Main article: 3rd Academy Awards

• Best Picture: All Quiet on the Western Front – Universal Pictures
• Best Director: Lewis Milestone – All Quiet on the Western Front
• Best Actor: George Arliss – Disraeli
• Best Actress: Norma Shearer – The Divorcee

Notable films released in 1930

United States unless stated

A

• Abi and Rabi by Ovanes Ohanian (Iran)
• Abraham Lincoln, starring Walter Huston November 8, 1930
• L'Âge d'Or (The Golden Age), directed by Luis Buñuel November 29, 1930 – (France)
• Alraune March 2, 1930 – (Germany)
• All Quiet on the Western Front, directed by Lewis Milestone, starring Lew Ayres April 21, 1930
• A Lady to Love, starring Edward G. Robinson and Vilma Bánky
• A Man from Wyoming, starring Gary Cooper
• Animal Crackers, starring the Marx Brothers August 23, 1930
• Anna Christie, starring Greta Garbo February 21, 1930
• The Arizona Kid, starring Warner Baxter and Carole Lombard

B

• The Bad Man, starring Walter Huston
• The Benson Murder Case, starring William Powell
• The Bat Whispers, starring Chester Morris and Una Merkel
• Big Boy, a musical comedy with Al Jolson
• The Big House, starring Chester Morris and Wallace Beery
• The Big Pond, starring Maurice Chevalier and Claudette Colbert
• The Big Trail, starring John Wayne
• Der blaue Engel (The Blue Angel), directed by Josef von Sternberg, starring Marlene Dietrich and Emil Jannings – (Germany)
• Billy the Kid, starring Johnny Mack Brown
• The Blood of a Poet (Le Sang d'un Poete), directed by Jean Cocteau – (France)
• Borderline, starring Paul Robeson – (GB)
• Bride of the Regiment, starring Walter Pidgeon
• Bright Lights, directed by Michael Curtiz, a musical comedy in Technicolor

C

• Call of the Flesh, starring Ramón Novarro, a musical romance with Technicolor sequences
• The Cat Creeps, starring Helen Twelvetrees, a mystery film released by Universal
• Chasing Rainbows, starring Bessie Love, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences
• Check and Double Check, a comedy based on Amos 'n' Andy radio show
• Children of Pleasure, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences
• City Girl, directed by F. W. Murnau
• Common Clay, starring Constance Bennett
• The Cuckoos, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences

D

• Danger Lights, starring Louis Wolheim
• The Dawn Patrol, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Richard Barthelmess and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
• The Devil to Pay!, starring Ronald Colman, Loretta Young, Myrna Loy
• The Divorcee, directed by Robert Z. Leonard, starring Norma Shearer and Robert Montgomery
• Dixiana, starring Bebe Daniels, a lavish musical comedy with Technicolor sequences
• Doughboys, a World War I comedy starring Buster Keaton

E

• Earth (Zemlya), directed by Alexander Dovzhenko – (U.S.S.R.)
• Elstree Calling, a British revue with color sequences, co-directed by Alfred Hitchcock – (GB)
• Escape, directed by Basil Dean, starring Gerald du Maurier, Edna Best (GB)

F

• Fast and Loose, starring Miriam Hopkins in her film debut, with Carole Lombard and Frank Morgan
• Feet First, a comedy starring Harold Lloyd
• Holiday, starring Buster Keaton
• The Florodora Girl, directed by Harry Beaumont; starring Marion Davies, Lawrence Gray, and Ilka Chase
• The Flute Concert of Sanssouci – (Germany)
• Follow Thru, starring Charles 'Buddy' Rogers, a musical comedy entirely in Technicolor

G

• General Crack, a drama with Technicolor sequences starring John Barrymore
• The Girl Said No, directed by Sam Wood
• The Golden Age, directed by Luis Buñuel
• Good News, starring Bessie Love, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences

H

• Hell's Angels, directed by Howard Hughes, starring Jean Harlow and Ben Lyon
• Hell's Heroes, directed by William Wyler
• Her Man, starring Helen Twelvetrees
• High Society Blues, starring Janet Gaynor
• Hold Everything, starring Joe E. Brown, a musical comedy entirely in Technicolor
• Holiday, starring Ann Harding and Mary Astor

I

• Imperial and Royal Field Marshal (C. a k. polní maršálek) – (Czechoslovakia)
• Ingagi, exploitation-documentary on gorilla-worshiping women encountered by an explorer. Box-office hit was revealed to be a hoax.

J-K

• Journey's End, directed by James Whale – (GB/US)
• Just Imagine, directed by David Butler
• King of Jazz, a revue with Paul Whiteman and his orchestra entirely in Technicolor

L

• Ladies Love Brutes, a comedy directed by Rowland V. Lee, starring George Bancroft and Mary Astor
• Ladies of Leisure, starring Barbara Stanwyck
• Leathernecking, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences starring Irene Dunne
• Let's Go Native, starring Jack Oakie and Jeanette MacDonald
• Liliom, starring Charles Farrell and Rose Hobart
• Loose Ankles, comedy drama starring Loretta Young and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., directed by Ted Wilde
• Lord Byron of Broadway, a musical drama with Technicolor sequences
• The Lottery Bride, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences starring Jeanette MacDonald

M

• Madam Satan, directed by Cecil B. DeMille
• Mamba, first talking drama entirely in Technicolor starring Jean Hersholt and Eleanor Boardman
• Mammy, a musical comedy starring Al Jolson with Technicolor sequences
• The Man from Blankley's, comedy drama directed by Alfred E. Green starring John Barrymore
• Manslaughter, starring Claudette Colbert and Fredric March
• Min and Bill, starring Marie Dressler and Wallace Beery
• Montana Moon, starring Joan Crawford and Johnny Mack Brown
• Monte Carlo, directed by Ernst Lubitsch, starring Jack Buchanan and Jeanette MacDonald
• Morocco, starring Gary Cooper and Marlene Dietrich
• Murder!, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Herbert Marshall – (GB)
• The Mystery of the Yellow Room (Le Mystère de la chambre jaune), directed by Marcel L'Herbier – (France)

N-O

• Nerone, directed by Alessandro Blasetti – (Italy)
• Night Birds directed by Richard Eichberg (Germany/GB)
• Not So Dumb, directed by King Vidor, starring Marion Davies and Elliott Nugent
• The Other (Der Andere), directed by Robert Wiene – (Germany)
• Outside the Law, directed by Tod Browning, starring Edward G. Robinson

P

• Paid, starring Joan Crawford and Robert Armstrong
• Paramount on Parade, an all-star revue with Technicolor sequences
• Peacock Alley, a musical drama with Technicolor sequences starring Mae Murray
• People on Sunday (Menschen am Sonntag), directed by Robert Siodmak – (Germany)
• Prix de Beauté (Beauty Prize), starring Louise Brooks – (France)
• Puttin' On the Ritz, directed by Edward Sloman, starring Joan Bennett, with Technicolor sequences

R

• Raffles, featuring Ronald Colman and Kay Francis
• Reaching for the Moon, starring Douglas Fairbanks
• Renegades, starring Warner Baxter and Myrna Loy
• The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu, starring Warner Oland and Jean Arthur
• The Rogue Song, a musical operetta entirely in Technicolor directed by Lionel Barrymore
• The Royal Family of Broadway, starring Fredric March

S

• Show Girl in Hollywood, a musical comedy with Technicolor sequences directed by Mervyn LeRoy
• Son of the Gods, a drama with Technicolor sequences starring Richard Barthelmess
• Song o' My Heart, a musical starring Irish tenor John McCormack, directed by Frank Borzage, and shot in both 35mm and 70mm Fox Grandeur formats
• The Song of Love (La canzone dell'amore) directed by Gennaro Righelli, starring Dria Paola, Isa Pola – (Italy)
• Spring Is Here musical directed by John Francis Dillon
• St. Jorgen's Day (Prazdnik svyatogo Yorgena) – (U.S.S.R.)
• Soup to Nuts, a comedy and film debut for The Three Stooges
• Street of Chance, starring William Powell and Jean Arthur
• Sweet Kitty Bellairs, a musical comedy entirely in Technicolor

T

• Tarakanova, directed by Raymond Bernard – (France)
• The Temporary Widow, starring Lilian Harvey and Laurence Olivier – (GB)
• Three Faces East, starring Erich von Stroheim
• The Three from the Filling Station (Die Drei von der Tankstelle), directed by Wilhelm Thiele and starring Willy Fritsch, Lilian Harvey – (Germany)
• Tom Sawyer, starring Jackie Coogan
• True to the Navy, starring Clara Bow and Fredric March
• Two Hearts in Waltz Time (Zwei Herzen im 3/4 Takt) – (Germany)

U-V

• Under a Texas Moon, a musical comedy entirely in Technicolor directed by Michael Curtiz
• Under the Roofs of Paris (Sous les toits de Paris), directed by René Clair – (France)
• The Vagabond King, a musical drama entirely in Technicolor starring Jeanette MacDonald
• Viejo smoking (Old Smoking Jacket) – (Argentina)

W-Y

• The W Plan, directed by Victor Saville, starring Brian Aherne and Madeleine Carroll – (GB)
• Wara Wara, directed by José Maria Velasco Maidana; now the only surviving silent Bolivian feature film
• Way for a Sailor, starring John Gilbert and Wallace Beery
• Westfront 1918 (Vier von der Infanterie), directed by G. W. Pabst – (Germany)
• Whoopee!, a musical comedy in Technicolor with Eddie Cantor
• Young Man of Manhattan, starring Claudette Colbert, Charles Ruggles and Ginger Rogers
• Young Woodley, directed by Thomas Bentley, starring Madeleine Carroll (Britain)

Serials

• Across the World with Mr & Mrs Martin Johnson
• Hunting Tigers in India
• The Indians Are Coming
• The Jade Box
• The Lightning Express
• The Lone Defender, starring Rin Tin Tin
• Terry of the Times
• The Voice from the Sky

Short film series

• Buster Keaton (1917–1941)
• Our Gang (1922–1944)
• Laurel and Hardy (1921–1943)
  • Another Fine Mess (28 min)
  • Night Owls (21 min)
  • Hog Wild (19 min)
  • Laughing Gravy (21 min)
  • Brats (21 min)
  • Below Zero (20 min)
• Crying for the Carolines (5 min)

Animated short film series

• Felix the Cat (1919-1936)
  • April Maze (7 min)
  • Skulls and Sculls
  • Hootchy Cootchy Parlais Vous
• Aesop's Film Fables (1921–1933)
• Krazy Kat (1925–1940)
• Mickey Mouse (1928–1953)
  • Just Mickey (7 min)
  • The Barnyard Concert (6 min)
  • The Cactus Kid
  • The Fire Fighters
  • The Shindig
  • The Chain Gang
  • The Gorilla Mystery
  • The Picnic
  • Pioneer Days
• Oswald the Lucky Rabbit
• Silly Symphonies
  • Summer
  • Autumn
  • The Cannibal Capers
  • Night
  • Frolicking Fish
  • Arctic Antics
  • Midnight in a Toyshop
  • Monkey Melodies
  • Winter
  • Playful Pan
• Screen Songs (1929–1938)
  • Prisoner's Song (8 min)
• Talkartoons (1929–1932)
  • Dizzy Dishes (first Betty Boop cartoon)
  • Barnacle Bill (second Betty Boop cartoon)
• Looney Tunes (1930–1969)
  • Sinkin' in the Bathtub
  • Congo Jazz
  • Hold Anything
  • The Booze Hangs High
  • Box Car Blues
• Flip the Frog (1930–1933)
  • The Village Barber (7 min)
  • Puddle Pranks (7 min)
  • Cuckoo Murder Case (8 min)
  • Little Orphan Willie
  • Flying Fists (7 min)
• Terrytoons (1930–1964)
• Toby the Pup (1930–1931)
  • The Museum
  • Toby the Miner
  • Toby the Fiddler
  • Toby the Showman
  • The Bug House
• "Beary Bear" (1930–1949)
  • "Experiment Gone Wrong"
  • "Hickory's Hijinks"
  • "Piano Problems"
  • "Oh Deer!"
  • "Bushy the Lion"
  • "Trouble in Paris"

Births

• January 3 – Robert Loggia, American actor (died 2015)
• January 10 – Roy E. Disney, American film executive (died 2009)
• January 11 – Rod Taylor, Australian actor (died 2015)
• January 13 – Frances Sternhagen, American actress
• January 19 – Tippi Hedren, American actress
• January 29 – Benjamin Tatar, American actor (died 2012)
• January 30 – Gene Hackman, American actor
• February 6 – Allan King, Canadian director (died 2009)
• February 10 – Robert Wagner, American actor
• February 16 – Ricou Browning, American film director, actor, cinematographer and stuntman
• February 20 – Patricia Smith (actress), American actress (died 2011)
• February 27 – Joanne Woodward, American actress
• March 6 – Allison Hayes, American actress (died 1977)
• March 16 – Lotte Ledl, Austrian actress
• March 24 – Steve McQueen, American actor (died 1980)
• March 24 30 – Estella Blain, French actress (died 1982)
• April 1 – Grace Lee Whitney, American actress (died 2015)
• April 13 – Roger Browne, American actor
• April 14 – Bradford Dillman, American actor (died 2018)
• April 18 – Clive Revill, New Zealand actor
• April 21 – Silvana Mangano, Italian actress (died 1989)
• April 24 – Richard Donner, American director and producer
• April 25 – Paul Mazursky, American director and actor (died 2014)
• April 28 – Carolyn Jones, American actress (died 1983)
• May 9 – Joan Sims, English actress (died 2001)
• May 11 – Bud Ekins, American actor and stuntman (died 2007)
• May 31 – Clint Eastwood, American actor, director and producer
• June 1 – Edward Woodward, English actor and singer (died 2009)
• June 15 – Odile Versois, French actress (died 1980)
• June 19
  • Gena Rowlands, American actress
  • Diana Sowle, American actress (died 2018)
• June 29 – Ariadna Welter, Mexican actress (died 1998)
• July 10 – Bruce Boa, Canadian actor (died 2004)
• July 18 – Burt Kwouk, British-Chinese actor (died 2016)
• August 12 – Peter Weck, Austrian film director and actor
• August 14 – Liz Fraser, English actress (died 2018)
• August 25 – Sir Sean Connery, Scottish-born actor
• September 16 – Anne Francis, American actress (died 2011)
• September 21 – Dawn Addams, English actress (died 1985)
• October 1 – Richard Harris, Irish actor (died 2002)
• October 5 – Yuriy Yakovlev, Bulgarian actor (died 2002)
• October 23 – Gérard Blain, French actor and director (died 2000)
• December 3 – Jean-Luc Godard, French director
• December 9 – Francesco Maselli, Italian director
• December 11 – Jean-Louis Trintignant, French actor
• December 17 – Armin Mueller-Stahl, German actor

Deaths

• January 31 – Dorothy Seastrom, American actress (born 1903)
• February 23 – Mabel Normand, American actress (born 1892)
• July 7 – Arthur Conan Doyle, British author and creator of Sherlock Holmes (born 1859)
• August 26 – Lon Chaney, American actor (born 1883)
• September 14 – Tommy Mintz, American actor, assistant director (born 1906)
• September 15 – Milton Sills, American actor (born 1882)
• November 8 – Clare Eames, American actress (born 1894)
• December 15 – Diane Ellis, American actress (born 1909)

Film debuts

• Pat O'Brien – Compliments of the Season
• James Cagney – Sinners' Holiday
• John Carradine – Bright Lights
• Buster Crabbe – Good News
• Bing Crosby – King of Jazz
• Frances Dee – Playboy of Paris
• Irene Dunne – Leathernecking
• Jimmy Durante – Roadhouse Nights
• Rex Harrison – The Great Game
• Miriam Hopkins – Fast and Loose
• Ruby Keeler – Show Girl in Hollywood
• Hedy Lamarr – Money on the Street
• Ethel Merman – Her Future
• Laurence Olivier – The Temporary Widow
• Eleanor Powell – Queen High
• Penny Singleton – Good News
• Maureen O'Sullivan – So This Is London
• Spencer Tracy – The Strong Arm