Showing posts with label Canary Murder Case. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Canary Murder Case. Show all posts

Thursday, February 16, 2023

The Canary Murder Case, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1929

The Canary Murder Case, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1929. The Canary Murder Case is a detective story involving an amateur sleuth, a blackmailing showgirl, and the “swells” that surround her. The film was initially shot as a silent, and shortly thereafter reworked for sound. Louise Brooks, who plays the canary, would not dub her lines for the sound version. Her refusal and perceived “difficulty” harmed her career, effectively ending her stardom in the United States. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society filmography page.

Production of the film took place between September 11 and October 12, 1928 at Paramount’s studio in Hollywood. Sound retakes took place on and around December 19, 1928. Malcolm St. Clair directed The Canary Murder Case, with Frank Tuttle taking over the sound retakes. The film was released as an 80 minute talkie in most markets, and as a shorter silent in theater’s not yet “wired for sound.” A few publications, such as The Film Daily, reviewed both formats.

Based on a bestselling book of the same name, The Canary Murder Case was released to great anticipation. In February, 1929 Motion Picture named the film one of the best for the month, declaring “William Powell is superb. The rest of the players, including Louise Brooks, Jean Arthur, James Hall, Charles Lane, Gustav Von Seyffertitz and many others, win credit.” That opinion, however, was not shared by most. More typical of the reviews the film received was that of the New York World, who declared the film “an example of a good movie plot gone wrong as the result of spoken dialogue.”

Mordaunt Hall, writing in the New York Times, was more generous, “It is on the whole the best talking-mystery production that has been seen, which does not imply that it is without failings. It is quite obvious that Louise Brooks, who impersonates Margaret Odell, alias the Canary, does not speak her lines. Why the producers should have permitted them to be uttered as they are is a mystery far deeper than the story of this picture.” Billboard added “Louise Brooks is mediocre as the Canary, but this does not detract from the production, as she appears in but a few scenes.”

Louella Parsons, writing in the Los Angeles Examiner, stated St. Clair “was handicapped by no less a person than Louise Brooks, who plays the Canary. You are conscious that the words spoken do not actually emanate from the mouth of Miss Brooks and you feel that as much of her part as possible has been cut. She is unbelievably bad in a role that should have been well suited to her. Only long shots are permitted of her and even these are far from convincing when she speaks.” Parson’s comments were echoed by Margaret L. Coyne of the Syracuse Post-Standard, who observed, “The only flaw is the substitution of another voice for that of Louise Brooks — the Canary — making necessary a number of subterfuges to disguise the fact.”

All were not fooled. The Oakland Post-Enquirer and other publications eventually caught on. “It is generally known by this time that Margaret Livingston doubled for Louise Brooks in the dialogue sequences. Hence the not quite perfect synchronization in close-ups and the variety of back views and dimly photographed profiles of the Canary.”

The Cincinnati Enquirer quipped “The role of the murdered girl is played by Louise Brooks, who is much more satisfying optically than auditorily.” Writing in Life magazine, Harry Evans went further, suggesting Brooks’ didn’t speak well. “Louise Brooks, who furnishes the sex-appeal, is evidently a poorer conversationalist than Miss Arthur, because all of her articulation is obviously supplied by a voice double.” It was an assertion that would haunt Brooks for years.


Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia (including Tasmania), Bermuda, British Malaysia (Singapore), Canada, China, Dutch East Indies (Indonesia), India, Ireland, Jamaica, Japan, New Zealand, Trinidad, and the United Kingdom (England, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales).

Elsewhere, The Canary Murder Case was shown under the title Die Stimme aus dem Jenseits (Austria); O drama de uma noite (Brazil); El Crimen de la Canaria (Cuba); Die Stimme aus dem Jenseits and Kanárkový vražedný prípad (Czechoslovakia) and Hlas Ze Záhrobí (Slovakia); Die Stimme Aus Dem Jensits (Danzig); Hvem dræbte Margaret O’Dell? (Denmark); De Kanarie Moordzaak (Dutch East Indies – Indonesia); Hääl teisest maailmast and Hääl teisest ilmast (Estonia); Salaperainen Rikos and Ett hemlighetsfullt brott and Det hemlighetsfulla brottet (Finland); Le meurtre du Canari (France); Die Stimme Aus Dem Jensits (Germany); Kandari Gyilkosság and Gyilkossag a szailoban (Hungary); La canarina assassinata and Il caso della canarina assassinata (Italy); カナリヤ殺人事件 (Japan); 카나리아 머더 케이스 (Korea); De Kanarie Moordzaak (The Netherlands); I Kanarifuglens Garn and I fristerinnens garn (Norway); Kryyk z za Swlatow (Poland); Die stimme aus dem Jenseits (Poland, German language publication); O Drama duma Noite (Portugal); Kdo je morilec? (Slovenia); ¿Quién la mató? (Spain, including The Canary Islands); Midnattsmysteriet (Sweden); and Дело об убийстве канарейки (U.S.S.R.).

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW: 

 —S. S. van Dine is the pseudonym used by art critic Willard Huntington Wright (1888 – 1939) when he wrote detective novels. Wright was an important figure in avant-garde cultural circles in pre-WWI New York, and under the pseudonym (which he originally used to conceal his identity) he created the once immensely popular fictional detective Philo Vance, a sleuth and aesthete who first appeared in books in the 1920s, then in movies and on the radio in the following decades.

Wright was one of the best-selling authors in the United States. The Canary Murder Case was the second book in a popular series featuring Vance — though the film made from it was the first in the series to feature the character. William Powell revived his role as Vance in four additional films, including The Greene Murder Case, released later in 1929. Other actors who played Vance include Basil Rathbone and Edmund Lowe.

— S.S. van Dine’s novel was loosely based on the real-life murder of showgirlDot King, which was never solved. King was among those nicknamed “Broadway Butterflies.”

— Glenn Wilson, a Federal investigator attached to the bureau of criminal investigation for Los Angeles county, reportedly served as an adviser on the film.

— In a 1931 article on the cinema in Singapore, the New York Times notes that “Asiatics love the gangster film, but very few are shown, owing to the censorship regulations which bar gun battles and will not tolerate an actual ‘kill’ on the screen. The first cuts made before they decide to ban all films of this type were very clumsy and made a mystery story a bigger mystery than ever. For instance, in the Canary Murder Case.”

— An Italian TV version of the story, directed by Marco Leto and featuring Giorgio Albertazzi as Philo Vance and Virna Lisi as the Canary, was broadcast in 1974.

Some day, I would like to see a proper DVD release of The Canary Murder Case which includes both the sound and (reportedly superior) silent versions.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2023. Further unauthorized use prohibited.

Saturday, October 8, 2022

Even more Louise Brooks and even more Louise Brooks Society

For a number of years now, the Louise Brooks Society has been a member of the CMBA (Classic Movie Blog Association). And for a number of years, the CMBA has run an annual blogathon in which members blog on a topic or theme. This year's blogathon, with the theme "Movies are Murder," is set to take place November 7th through November 11th. The Louise Brooks Society blog will join in, with a post or two on the 1929 film, The Canary Murder Case. Be sure and stay tuned.


Speaking of The Canary Murder Case.... of late, the Louise Brooks Society Instagram page has been posting images from that celebrated film. Many of these images have received hundreds of likes, and the relatively new LBS Instagram page has gathered more than 4,400 followers. Wowza! Check it out - and be sure and follow the Louise Brooks Society on Instagram

Looking for more Louise Brooks and silent film news? Be sure and follow the Louise Brooks Society on Twitter. More than 5,200 others do so. Check it out - and be sure and follow the Louise Brooks Society on Twitter

Links to the various LBS social media accounts can be found on the LBS Linktree at https://linktr.ee/LouiseBrooksSociety

Saturday, October 30, 2021

Happy Halloween from the Louise Brooks Society

Happy Halloween from the Louise Brooks Society. The two spookiest images involving the actress that I could find are these two publicity images from The Canary Murder Case (1929).


The closest Louise Brooks ever came to appearing in a horror film was when she was considered for the title role in Bride of Frankenstein (1935), the James Whale classic. Of course, the role went to the another actress with iconic hair, Elsa Lanchester, who was brilliant in the dual roles of the Bride and Mary Shelley. Would Brooks have been any good in the role? It is hard to say.

Sunday, February 14, 2021

On this day in 1930, Louise Brooks' 1920s films were still showing here and there in the USA

Like the actress herself, Louise Brooks' films had legs. Even in the United States, and even into the sound era, Brooks' late 1920's films like A Girl in Every Port (1928), Beggars of Life (1928), and The Canary Murder Case (1929) continued to be shown in theaters.

As a matter of fact, on this day in 1930 (that is February 14th) one of the very last recorded theatrical screenings of A Girl in Every Port (following its initial release) took place at the Memorial Opera House in Valparaiso, Indiana. The film was shown again on the 15th, and then it disappeared from American screens for nearly 30 years! What is remarkable is that this screening took place two years after this SILENT film was first released, and well into the sound era.

 
A Girl In Every Port had premiered on February 18, 1928 at the Roxy Theater in New York City, where it proved to be a huge hit. As they did back then, the film slowly opened across the United States, and eventually made its way to Valparaiso, Indiana, where it debuted locally on May 13, 1928 following a short run of another Louise Brooks' film, The City Gone Wild (1927).
 

Speaking of one Brooks' film following another -- and speaking of Brooks' earlier films still showing in 1930. . . . The Canary Murder Case (1929) had its moment in the sun in Bradford, Vermont on February 15th of that year at a venue called Bradford Colonial Events. I am going to guess and say that this small town venue was a hall, rather than a regular or dedicated movie theater, as it also held concerts and a nearby small town, White River Junction, had a dedicated movie theater called the Lyric. What is notable in this ad is that another Brooks film, Beggars of Life (1928), is scheduled to be shown a week later, marking it another instance of this William Wellman directed film showing nearly two years after it was first released. Admittedly, I don't know which version -- the silent of the hybrid sound version of this film was being shown, but still, there it is. Happy Valentine's Day from the Louise Brooks Society.


Friday, December 6, 2019

Louise Brooks and Redskin part two

On Saturday, December 7, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival will screen the 1929 Paramount film, Redskin. This second blog explores the little known connection Louise Brooks had with the film. More about the 2019 SFSFF "Day of Silents" may be found HERE.


Shot partly in early Technicolor, Redskin tells the story of a Navajo man named Wing Foot who was taken as a child to a government boarding school, where he is forced to assimilate. The film explores the damage done by prejudice as it explores issues of racial identity and cultural insensitivity in telling Wing Foot’s story. This June 1928 newspaper article suggests the film's topicality, while noting Louise Brooks' role in the production.


The film, directed by Victor Schertzinger and described by critics as one of the most visually beautiful films of the late 1920’s, was produced and released by Paramount Famous Lasky Corp. Following her widely acclaimed role in the gritty Beggars of Life, Brooks was next assigned to The Canary Murder Case, a widely celebrated murder mystery. It was a plum role for which Brooks was well suited. However, before work began on The Canary Murder Case, Brooks was suddenly reassigned to Redskin, another important Paramount film also set to go into production. In her nationally syndicated column, Louella Parson wrote in August, 1928:


Brooks’ role went beyond merely being cast as a a Pueblo Indian named Corn Blossom. Paramount records show the actress was paid for three weeks' work on Redskin. According to press reports from the time, Brooks reported to Gallup, New Mexico at the end of August, 1928, where the cast and crew gathered before heading out to camps near the location shoot.



In early September of 1928, Brooks was called back to Hollywood, where she replaced Ruth Taylor in The Canary Murder Case. No one knows why for sure. Some reports had it that Taylor fell ill, while others claim Brooks was temperamental and unsuited to a film like Redskin. But there is certainly "more to the story".... *


When Louise Brooks left the cast of Redskin, she was replaced by Gladys Belmont, an otherwise unknown actress whose first and only starring role would be in the Native American drama.


* That "more to the story" likely includes studio politics, Brooks' resentment in having been denied a role in Gentleman Prefer Blondes, which starred Ruth Taylor, Brooks' dissatisfaction over her contract with Paramount, and a power play by Paramount in replacing her in a prestige production opposite a major star with an unknown actress.



Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Louise Brooks and Redskin part one

On Saturday, December 7, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival will screen the 1929 Paramount film, Redskin. This blog explores the little known connection Louise Brooks had with the film. More about the 2019 SFSFF "Day of Silents" may be found HERE.

Redskin tells the story of a Navajo man named Wing Foot who was taken as a child to a US government boarding school and forced to assimilate. The film explores the damage done by prejudice as it explores issues of racial identity and cultural insensitivity in telling Wing Foot’s story, the story of  a Native American navigating between his western education and the traditions passed down by the tribal elders. Today, the film’s title is considered a racial slur; in the 1920s when Redskin was made, it was used against the film's protagonist to illustrate intolerance, not endorse it.


The film, directed by Victor Schertzinger, was produced and released by Paramount Famous Lasky Corp. The story and screenplay is by Elizabeth Pickett. Julian Johnson, who penned the titles for Redskin, had also written the titles for a couple of Louise Brooks' films, including Beggars of Life (1928). Shot in two-color Technicolor at locations in New Mexico and Arizona (including Acoma Pueblo and Canyon de Chelly) — the film changes from color to black-and-white (sepia-toned in the original projection prints) when it leaves Navajo and Pueblo lands. And like Beggars of Life (1928), the film was originally released with a synchronized score and sound effects.

Louise Brooks' connection to Redskin goes beyond these few coincidences. After completing work on Beggars of Life, Brooks was next assigned to The Canary Murder Case. However, according to numerous press reports, before work would begin on the celebrated detective story, Brooks was suddenly reassigned to Redskin, another important Paramount film also set to go into production. Eventually, Brooks was withdrawn from Redskin and reassigned once again to The Canary Murder Case.


Harkening back to the studio’s earlier big-budget films set in the West, Redskin was an ambitious film focusing on Native Americans. The film was directed by Victor Schertzinger, a noted film-score composer who later helmed the Oscar-winning Grace Moore vehicle, One Night of Love (1934). Shot on location and largely in Technicolor, Redskin has been described by critics as one of the most visually beautiful films of the late 1920’s.

Typical for the time, the leads in Redskin are played by non-Native Americans, with Navajo and Pueblo acting only as bit players and extras. In what would have been one of the more unusual roles of her career, Brooks was set to play a Pueblo named Corn Blossom, a Native American character described in the Los Angeles Times as an “Indian flapper.” One Hollywood columnist thought the role Brooks’ “greatest opportunity to date.” Another reported Brooks’ screen test revealed a “striking resemblance to our conception of Romantic Indian heroines.”

This spectacularly photographed film — shot in the American southwest on historic tribal lands — centers on Wing Foot, Corn Blossom’s love interest and a Navajo caught between two tribes and two cultures. Wing Foot is played by Richard Dix, a major star of the time. Pueblo Jim, the rival suitor for Corn Blossom, is played by Noble Johnson, the pioneering African American film producer and longtime character actor.

Brooks’ role went beyond merely being cast. Paramount records show the actress was paid for three weeks' work on Redskin. She was photographed in costume, though without the make-up used on her successor (Gladys Belmont) to affect a Native American appearance. According to press reports from the time, Brooks reported to Gallup, New Mexico at the end of August, 1928, where the cast and crew gathered before heading out to camps near the location shoot.

Gladys Belmont (left, in the arms of Richard Dix) replaced Louise Brooks
in Redskin. The film was Belmont’s first and only starring role.




In early September of 1928, Brooks was called back to Hollywood, where she replaced Ruth Taylor in The Canary Murder Case. The reason given for the switch was that Taylor was ill. Reportage of the time stated, "No one knows why Louise Brooks, a perfect Indian type, was taken out of the picture after working for two weeks, but the rumor is it was another case of temperament — a dangerous experiment for stars these days when so many potential rivals are hanging around in the extra ranks! All the studio gave 'gave out' was that Miss Brooks' thorough knowledge of Broadway and its life suited her so perfectly for the role of Canary in The Canary Murder Case, that she had been selected. Ruth Taylor, formerly cast, fell ill."

However, despite rumors of temperament, studio executives may well have felt Brooks was miscast in the Native American drama. Brooks had been a well known NYC showgirl, and her “thorough knowledge of Broadway and its life” indeed “suited her perfectly to the role” of the feathered showgirl in The Canary Murder Case.


The original score for Redskin was composed by J.S. Zamecnik. The December 7th presentation of the film at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival will feature live musical accompaniment by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra (longtime interpreters and champions of Zamecnik's scores).

More on Louise Brooks and Redskin follows in the next post.

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Happy Halloween from the Louise Brooks Society

The closest Louise Brooks ever came to appearing in a horror film was being considered for the lead role in Bride of Frankenstein (1935), the James Whale classic. Of course, the role went to the another actress with iconic hair, Elsa Lanchester, who was brilliant in the dual roles of the Bride and Mary Shelley. Would Brooks have been any good in the role?



The following year, Brooks appeared in another Universal film with a spooky plot point, Empty Saddles (1936), a creaky programmer starring Buck Jones which Barry Paris describes as a "Confused western about outlaws attempting to take over a haunted dude ranch." Of course, it's not really haunted, just deserted, and the ghosts are .....


Nevertheless.... Happy Halloween from the Louise Brooks Society.


Wednesday, December 30, 2015

S.S. van Dines's The Canary Murder Case Cocktail

I recently came across an unusual book from 1935, So Red the Nose, or -- Breath in the Afternoon, a collection of cocktail recipes by 30 leading authors.

Among the drinks included in this illustrated book are Ernest Hemingway's Death in the Afternoon Cocktail ("After six of these cocktails The Sun Also Rises"); Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan Cocktail; Erskine Caldwell's Tobacco Road Cocktail; and Rockwell Kent's Salamina Cocktail. Other authors included in the book are Alexander Woolcott, Theodore Dreiser, Christopher Morley, Irving Stone, E. Phillips Oppenheim, MacKinley Kantor, Harriet Monroe, Hervey Allen and others.

What caught my attention was S. S. Van Dine's The Canary Murder Case Cocktail. Van Dine, of course, authored the mystery novel that was the basis for the 1929 detective film co-starring William Powell and Louise Brooks. Each was quite popular in their day.

Van Dine, something of a bon vivant and man about town, offered this recipe for his mystery cocktail: 1/2 jigger dry gin, 1/2 jigger cognac, 1/2 jigger yellow vermouth, 1 jigger orange juice, 1 dash orange bitters, shake well. Enjoy. And Happy new year.


Here is a picture taken on the set of The Canary Murder Case depicting author S. S. van Dine and actor William Powell.


Saturday, August 15, 2015

Louise Brooks in China, part 3

My research trip to look through old newspapers also turned up a couple of excellent finds from China -- in Chinese. One was a feature photo, the other a bit about The Canary Murder Case. I also found a similar page on Pandora's Box and another of The Street of Forgotten Men. The photo shown below says it was taken in Hollywood at Brook's home while she was having lunch with her sister.

 
Can anyone translate the text on either of these pages? And tell me if the page featuring the image from The Canary Murder Case (shown below) is about the film itself?





Friday, July 17, 2015

Two Louise Brooks films online under different titles

It's kinda strange, but someone has posted two Louise Brooks films on the Internet Archive but under different titles. The two films are Beggars of Life (1928) - retitled The Lawless Train, and The Canary Murder Case (1929) - retitled The Voice from Beyond the Grave. The retitling is crudely done. The images below are not the videos themselves, just screen grabs of the retitled screens.







Thursday, October 31, 2013

Happy Halloween from the Louise Brooks Society

Happy Halloween from the Louise Brooks Society . . . .


Monday, February 18, 2013

Philo Vance Murder Case Collection

First the good news. The Warner Bros. Archive Collection has released the Philo Vance Murder Case Collection, a 2-disc, 6-film collection featuring the famous suave dilettante detective. Philo Vance was the creation of writer S.S. van Dine, who authored a series of bestselling novels which were turned into popular films. The set includes The Bishop Murder Case (1930), The Kennel Murder Case (1933), The Dragon Murder Case (1934), The Casino Murder Case (1935), The Garden Murder Case (1936), and Calling Philo Vance (1940).

The bad news is that the set does NOT include the first film in the series, The Canary Murder Case (1929), which features William Powell as Philo Vance and Louise Brooks as the Canary. Not only did The Canary Murder Case start it all, cinematically speaking, it is also one of the better films in the series.

Why Warner Bros. Archive chose not to include The Canary Murder Case isn't known. That film was released by Paramount Pictures, as was The Greene Murder Case (1929), the second film in the series. The films included in the Philo Vance Murder Collection were released by Warner Bros., M.G.M, and First National. So, maybe it is a matter of rights. Other Philo Vance films are also absent from the collection. Most notable among them is the zany Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939), starring Grace Allen and Warren William.

Despite the set's incompleteness, I think it is worth checking out, especially if you enjoy period detective films like The Thin Man (which also starred William Powell) or original Perry Mason film series. Wikipedia has an informative page on the various Philo Vance books and films. Here is a brief clip from The Canary Murder Case.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Louise Brooks envelope

Like other Louise Brooks fans, I keep an eye on eBay, where I occasionally have the luck to win something I've bid on. Recently, I won a batch of Louise Brooks clippings, some of which came from a vintage scrapbook. Good stuff.

To my surprise, the clipping arrived in a hand drawn envelope featuring a delightful image of Louise Brooks. I like it so much I had to share it. Thank you to the artist, who I assume was the eBay seller.


Oh, and here is one of the clippings I won, a photo spread for The Canary Murder Case (1929) in which Brooks starred as the Canary. What's unusual about this clipping is that it contains an image (middle right) of the actress smiling.


Friday, December 14, 2012

Recommended New Releases for the Louise Brooks Fan

It’s that time of the year when critics, journalists, bloggers and others issue their "Best of" lists - the year’s recommended new releases in the world of books, movies, music and more. Here's the best of 2012 with a twist, exceptional new releases for fans of the silent film star Louise Brooks.

Like last year, 2012 saw the release of a small but distinguished number of new releases related to the legendary silent film star. Prominent among them is Laura Moriarty's widely acclaimed bestselling novel, The Chaperone, as well as a handful of DVD's including the first ever DVD release of Brooks' last film, Overland Stage Raiders. Fans of the actress will want to check out all of these recent releases.


In 1922, only a few years before becoming a famous silent-film star, fifteen-year-old Louise Brooks left Wichita, Kansas to study dance in New York City. Accompanying Brooks was her thirty-six-year-old, somewhat stodgy neighbor, who acted as chaperone. Based on these few facts, Laura Moriarty has penned a captivating, quietly powerful, and moving historical novel about these two woman and the summer they spent together which changed them both. Both critically acclaimed and a New York Times bestseller, this new book is highly recommended. Also available as an audio book read by actress Elizabeth McGovern. (Riverhead)



DVD-R: God's Gift to Women, directed by Michael Curtiz

It's no secret that Louise Brooks appeared in mostly mediocre sound films. With her career in decline, the one-time silent era star took what roles came her way in the sound era. God's Gift to Women, one of three films she made in 1931, is easily the actress' best talkie. It is also an enjoyable pre-Code romp, a comedy about romance with an impressive cast that includes Frank Fay, Laura La Plante, Joan Blondell, Charles Winninger, Yola d'Avril and Margaret Livingston (Brooks' voice double in The Canary Murder Case). Brooks doesn't have a very big part in this farce, but she makes an impression in a bedroom scene when some of the film's pulchritude gets into a cat fight.  (Warner Archive)


BOOK: Valentina come Louise Brooks. Il libro nascosto, edited by Vincenzo Mollica and Antonio Crepax.

This Italian book was the companion publication to "Valentina Movie," an exhibit held this past summer at the Palazzo Incontro in Rome. It featured the work of the late Italian comix artist Guido Crepax, a longtime admirer of Louise Brooks. The exhibit detailed the influence the actress had on the creation and development of Crepax's best known creation, Valentina, a popular character who appeared in numerous comic strips, graphic novels, books, and spin-off films. Whether or not you read Italian, the dedicated fan will want to own this illustrated book. (Fandango Libri)





Louise Brooks' film career came to an end in 1938 with a supporting role in Overland Stage Raiders, a B-western starring a young John Wayne. This new release marks the film's first official release on DVD and Blu-Ray. (It had been released on VHS some years ago, and is now hard to find.) Said to be only for the John Wayne or Louise Brooks completist, Overland Stage Raiders (presented here in a 1950's revival print) is worth watching at least once. Brooks, 32 years old and sporting a new look, is still alluring and holds her own in what is essentially a guy's film. (Olive Films)





While a young man in the early 1980s, Berkal had the almost unique experience of meeting and befriending  the then older and reclusive Louise Brooks. The story of that friendship is chronicled in this self-published, ebook-only release. (It is also referenced in Barry Paris' 1989 biography.) Benevolent Siren is a brief recounting, which in the end leaves you wanting more. (Smashwords) Also keep in mind Youthful Places, a small collection of poetry also by Berkal. It contains "MLB," a poem about and dedicated to the actress. (Amazon Digital Services)




DVD/BluRay: La Canarina Assassinita (Canary Murder Case), directed by Malcolm St. Clair. 

The Canary Murder Case (1929), with Brooks in the title role of the "Canary," has not yet been released on DVD in the United States. But it has been, at least twice, in Italy. This new release is the latest out of Europe. Not seen at time of review. (Ermitage Cinema) Also keep in mind Mystery Movies Series of 1930's Hollywood, by Ron Backer. This recommended book opens with The Canary Murder Case and details the many subsequent Philo Vance films which followed. (McFarland)






This collection of academic essays on popular German literature of the late nineteenth century includes "Taking Sex to Market: Tagebuch einer Verlorenen: Von einerToten and Josefine Mutzenbacher, Die Lebensgeschichte einer wienerischen Dirne, von ihr selbst erzählt," by the English academic Elizabeth Boa. The essay, by a noted German scholar whose fields of interest include Frank Wedekind, looks at the book which was the basis for the 1929 Louise Brooks' film, The Diary of a Lost Girl.  That book was Margarete Bohme's Tagebuch einer Verlorenen, a controversial bestseller which sold more than 1.2 million copies. In its review of this new book, the Times Literary Supplement said, "The essays are often fascinating and always informative. The best of them make their arguments against the forgetting of their once-bestselling authors exciting. They share a passion for getting to the bottom of why, in or outside Germany, we know so little about books that were, in the main, not just flashes in the pan, as they often endured for up to a century." That's true for Boa's take on Bohme's still valuable and provocative work. (Camden House)

ALSO KEEP IN MIND....


Colleen Moore was the cute-as-a-button silent era actress who first achieved stardom in Flaming Youth (1923). It was in that film, in which Moore plays a flapper, that the actress first sported bobbed-hair. That was also a couple years before Louise Brooks entered films and made her own mark. Both actresses were known for their signature look, a straight bob with bangs, and that fact has led some to wonder who first wore the iconic hair style. Codori discusses that question and more in this appealing biography. (McFarland)




Mae Murray, popularly known as "the girl with the bee-stung lips," was a fiery presence in silent-era Hollywood. Renowned for her sultry beauty, Murray rocketed to stardom as a dancer with the Ziegfeld Follies before entering films. She appeared in The Delicious Little Devil (1919), Jazzmania (1923), and most famously, The Merry Widow (1925). With the coming of sound, her career went into decline, and eventually Murray found herself nearly destitute. The parallels with Louise Brooks' career are striking. This highly recommended biography, featuring much original research, includes never before published observations about Murray drawn from Brooks' letters to Kevin Brownlow.  (University Press of Kentucky)

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Canary Murder Case released on DVD in Italy

Yesterday, I reported on the forthcoming release of Overland Stage Raiders (1938). Louise Brooks last film will be released on DVD and BluRay in early October. The release of Overland Stage Raiders by Olive Films marks the first time this B-western starring John Wayne will be available on DVD.



Now come word that another hard-to-come-by Brooks' film, The Canary Murder Case (1929), will be or already has been released on DVD in Italy.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Canary Murder Case author featured in new book

The 1929 Louise Brooks film, The Canary Murder Case, is based on bestselling book of the same name by S.S. Van Dine, a once-popular and critically esteemed author of detective fiction. Though little read today, Van Dine is considered an important figure in the development of the modern detective story. 

Van Dine is one of three writers featured in a new book, Making the Detective Story American: Biggers, Van Dine and Hammett and the Turning Point of the Genre, 1925-1930 (McFarland), by J.K. Van Dover. This 221 page study also examines the fiction of  Earl Derr Biggers and Dashiell Hammett during a crucial five year period when these three authors helped transform the detective story into the genre we know today.

Making the Detective Story American is well written, thoroughly researched, and a good read! Further consideration of this recommended new book can be found on examiner.com, along with some vintage newspaper advertisements for the film. Making the Detective Story American: Biggers, Van Dine and Hammett and the Turning Point of the Genre, 1925-1930 is available through online retailers and Indiebound.
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