What for?

This is one of two clown-focused cinema posters in the Cinema Art collection. At first glance you could be excused for thinking this film is titled Grock rather than its actual title, What For? This is intentional. Grock, born Charles Adrien Wettach, was a Swiss clown, composer and musician. Wettach was once called ‘the king of clowns’ and ‘the greatest of Europe's clowns’ and was the most highly paid entertainer in the world. So it is not at all surprising his name and image dominate the poster.

Having said that, the poster provides few other clues as to what the film is about. The production company is clearly relying on Grock as the film’s main drawcard. Whether this proved an effective advertising strategy is hard to say. With its tagline, ‘Delightful foolery with exquisite pathos’, it’s certainly a poster design of its time.