In 1928, Colbert signed a contract with Paramount Pictures. There was a demand for stage actors who could handle dialogue in the new "talkies", and Colbert's elegance and musical voice were among her best assets. Her beauty drew attention in "The Hole in the Wall" (1929), but at first she did not like film acting. Her earliest films were produced in New York. During the filming of the "The Lady Lies" (also 1929), she was also appearing nightly in the play "See Naples and Die". "The Lady Lies" was a box-office success. In 1930, she starred opposite Maurice Chevalier in "The Big Pond", which was filmed in both English and French. She co-starred with Fredric March in "Manslaughter" (1930), receiving critical acclaim for her performance as a woman charged with vehicular manslaughter. She was paired with March again in "Honor Among Lovers" (1931). She also starred in "Mysterious Mr. Parkes" (1931), a French-language version of "Slightly Scarlet" for the European market, although it was also screened in the United States. She sang and played piano in the Ernst Lubitsch musical "The Smiling Lieutenant" (1931), which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. Colbert's ability to "hold her man" (Maurice Chevalier again) surpassed "Queen" Miriam Hopkins, according to David Shipman. Colbert concluded the year with appearance in a modestly successful "His Woman" (1931) with Gary Cooper.