Showing posts with label Rochester. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rochester. Show all posts

Friday, January 27, 2023

Street of Forgotten Men & Transactions of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers, part two

In a previous post, I mentioned that in the course of my research into the history of The Street of Forgotten Men (Louise Brooks' first film), I came across a rather interesting article in the January 1926 issue of  Transactions of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers, a trade journal. I thought the article interesting because it not only touched on Louise Brooks' life story, but it also illuminates the experience faced by motion picture exhibitors in the silent film era.

The previously mentioned article, “An Exhibitor’s Problems in 1925,” was authored by Eric T. Clarke, the Director of the Eastman Theatre in Rochester, New York (Louise Brooks' future home). The article focused on how an exhibitor went about selecting appropriate films for their venue. Notably, The Street of Forgotten Men was mentioned in Clarke’s article. 

The following year in the same journal, Clarke followed up his article with a similar piece, "An Exhibitor’s Problems in 1926,” and again, The Street of Forgotten Men was mentioned! I think Clarke's January 1927 article is interesting, as it gives a thoughtful, man-in-the-trenches, perspective -- something we don't often see. Double click on the individual pages to call up a larger version of the image.

 

 





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.

Monday, January 23, 2023

Street of Forgotten Men & Transactions of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers, part one

In the course of my research into the history of The Street of Forgotten Men (Louise Brooks' first film), I came across a rather interesting article in Transactions of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers, a trade journal. I think the article interesting because it not only touches on Louise Brooks' life story, but it also illuminates the experience faced by motion picture exhibitors in the mid-1920s, the silent film era.

The article, “An Exhibitor’s Problems in 1925,” was authored by Eric T. Clarke, the Director of the Eastman Theatre in Rochester, New York. (Louise Brooks future residence.) The article focused on how an exhibitor might select appropriate films which might draw an audience. Clarke’s 16-page piece was, in fact, the text of an earlier talk given before the S.M.P.E. (Society of Motion Picture Engineers), to which was added the transcript of the discussion which followed Clarke’s address. 

Notably, The Street of Forgotten Men, and its merits as a film, were mentioned in Clarke’s article, as were some of the other films in circulation in 1925. Double click on the individual pages to call up a larger version of the image.









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.

Sunday, July 12, 2020

Remembering Jack Garner, film critic and friend of Louise Brooks

Word came one week ago of the passing of Jack Garner, the longtime Rochester Democrat and Chronicle film critic and friend to Louise Brooks. (Read that post HERE.) Since then, Jack has been on my mind. I met him only once, but considered him a friend and am grateful for the many kindnesses he showed me and my Louise Brooks Society. There is more I want to say.... but first let me offer my sincere condolences to his wife, Bonnie. I never met her, regrettably, but through Jack's many Facebook posts, I feel I knew her at least a little bit. Jack and Bonnie were married nearly 50 years, which is a beautiful thing.

Jack Garner at the Little Theater in Rochester, NY - via radio station WXXI
There is more I would like to say about Jack..., especially his unique friendship with Louise Brooks. As mentioned, Jack was a longtime writer for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. As a local Rochester journalist, Jack enjoyed a special friendship with Louise, and wrote about the actress on a number of occasions. A search through the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle archive turns up more dozens of hits while searching under the combined terms of "Jack Garner" and "Louise Brooks".

The earliest piece I came across by Jack was dated April 9, 1980. On that date, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle ran a syndicated article by Bob Thomas on Kenneth Tynan's recently released book, Show People, which included Tynan's famous New Yorker profile of Louise Brooks, "The Girl in the Black Helmet." Jack added an adjunct article offering the local angle on Tynan's widely reviewed and bestselling book, namely Brooks' thoughts on being profiled by one of the most famous critics in the world. Jack's article, "He writes divinely", quotes Brooks extensively. And it is filled with gems of information from " 'I wrote 92 letters to him,' Miss Brooks said yesterday", to "College students ring my bell and ask me to write their term papers. I get lots of interesting offers like that." 


At the time, Jack's by-line described him as the "D&C Popular Arts Editor." But no matter what he covered, if there was a Louise Brooks' angle, Jack seemed to include it. For an April 1980 article on Erte, Jack spoke with the famous designer, writing He also remembered designing for Louise Brooks, when she was in George White's Scandals, on Broadway. 'She was very, very charming'." Jack's article continued, "Miss Brooks, an acclaimed star of early films, lives in retirement in Rochester. When told of Erte's comment, she remembered: 'When I was in Scandals in 1924, George White went over to Paris and had Erte design the costumes for the chorus girls. They arrived in enormous boxes at great expense backstage. I don't know what Parisian dressmakers thought, but the dresses didn't fit at all. They were all too small."


Other articles and snippets of conversation with Brooks followed over the years. There was the time in 1982, for example, when the George Eastman House hosted its Festival of Film Artists. Receiving awards were Joan Bennett, Maureen O'Sullivan, Luise Rainer and Sylvia Sydney, all of whom attended the special event, and three actress kept away by illness, Myrna Loy, Dolores Del Rio, and Louise Brooks. In his follow-up piece on the event, Jack wrote, "Before Friday night's awards, Rainer asked me to escort her for a visit with another recipient, Louise Brooks, who is ill in bed in her North Goodman Street apartment." Jack noted that the "two great actresses hit it off marvelously...." while mentioning a few topics of their conversation. Garner also reported that Brooks had been visited by Sylvia Sydney, accompanied by John Springer, and Joan Bennett, sister of Brooks old friend, Barbara Bennett.

Louise Brooks passed away in Rochester in August of 1985, and Jack Garner's reportage led the paper's multi-article, mutli-page coverage, which began not surprisingly on page one. "Her Rochester Years, Remembered by Film Critic Jack Garner" was one of a small handful of fascinating articles.


It would be great if the many articles about Brooks by Jack (and others) at the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle were gathered up into a book, something under the title Lulu in Rochester. I think I once suggested something to that effect to Jack, but he explained that it was the paper and not himself that owned the copyright on the material. Nevertheless, it would make for a fascinating read. Long live Louise Brooks.

                                 And long live Jack Garner.

Sunday, July 5, 2020

Jack Garner, longtime film critic and friend to Louise Brooks, dies

Jack Garner, longtime Rochester, New York film critic and friend to Louise Brooks and the Louise Brooks Society, has died at the age of age of 75. Garner was the longtime film critic for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. Garner began reviewing films for the paper in 1977, beginning with the original Star Wars. A decade later he was chosen the chief film critic for Gannett newspapers, and provided reviews for more than 100 newspapers. He retired in 2007, though continued writing freelance arts columns. The Democrat and Chronicle ran an article earlier today noting his passing and recounting Garner's career, "Jack Garner, legendary film critic and institution in Rochester arts world, dies at 75." The Rochester NPR station, WXXI, also carried a remembrance. Read or listen to it HERE. Another local station, WHAM, also carried the news.

Jack Garner at the Little Theater in Rochester, NY - via WXXI

Garner's longtime residence in Rochester made him a local legend. He was a trustee at the Eastman Museum, and the second recipient of the museum's prestigious George Eastman Medal of Honor. Earlier this year, Garner was elected an Honorary Trustee of the Little Theatre. Garner's residence in Rochester also brought him into contact with the city's famed silent film star, Louise Brooks. Garner spoke with Brooks a number of times before her passing, and visited her at her Rochester apartment. He wrote a number of article for the Democrat and Chronicle about Brooks, and on a number of other occasions, quoted Brooks in articles on other films stars she new. Garner's journalism related to Brooks constitutes a noteworthy body of work on the actress. Garner also wrote the introduction to Peter Cowie's 2006 book, Louise Brooks, Lulu Forever.


I considered Jack a friend, and am grateful for his coverage of the Louise Brooks Society. In fact, he first mentioned the LBS in an article in the year 2000, twenty years ago. His piece, about film websites, described the LBS as "A fine example of a fan page, a thoughtful, artful site devoted to the life and times of a fabled silent movie legend, with rare articles from the '20s and superb photos." It was great exposure for my then 5 year old site: the article also appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer, Nashville Tennessean, Louisville Courier-Journal, Shreveport Louisiana Times, Asbury Park Press, Sioux Falls Argus-Leader, and and numerous other newspapers around the United States.

Over the years, Jack was also kind enough to have written about and reviewed each of my books in the pages of the Democrat and Chronicle, including most recently, my 2018 book, Louise Brooks, the Persistent Star. He also wrote up my DVD audio commentaries on Diary of a Lost Girl and Beggars of Life, giving each favorable notices.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jack Garner in 2015 when I visited Rochester and the Eastman House (now Eastman Museum) on a research trip. We met for dinner, and talked all night about Louise Brooks. That's when he so graciously signed my copy of Louise Brooks, Lulu Forever, "Any friend of Louise is a friend of mine...." The following day, Jack and I and documentary filmmaker Charlottle Siller appeared on WXXI to speak about the silent film star at the center of our lives. I am pictured below on the far left, Charlotte Siller is center, and Jack Garner is at the center right. Host Megan Mack is far right. You can listed to out conversation HERE.


I don't know what else to say about Jack. We remained in touch over the years, and were also friends on Facebook. He was a big guy - standing 6'9". He was also a fine fellow, someone greatly interested in the world, and in jazz. (Some of Garner's interests / journalism is contained in his 2013 book, From My Seat on the Aisle: Movies and Memories. There is also a chapter on Louise Brooks.) He also shared a Pulitzer Prize, for his pre-film critic journalism when he covered the Attica prison riot in 1971. I will always remember Jack, and will be grateful for his support and interest in Louise Brooks and my work.


Saturday, October 5, 2019

Greetings from a Rochester Louise Brooks Fan

The other day, the Louise Brooks Society received an email from Tim Madigan, Professor and Chair of Philosophy at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, New York. Aside from his academic interests, Tim is also a self-professed major fan of Louise Brooks. On October 2, spoke about Louise Brooks at the Rochester Public Library (see previous post).

Tim wrote, "Many thanks for giving my October 2nd talk about Louise Brooks at the Rochester Public Library a shout-out on your website. I have long been an admirer of your work on Brooks and I had some fear and trembling giving a talk about her at the Rochester Public Library, knowing that at least some of the people attending would be far more learned about her life and career than I am. But it turned out to be a nice gathering and I actually reconnected with some folks I hadn’t seen in several years. I also met with Tim Moore, who filled me in on local Brooks activities I was unaware of."

Tim continued, "There was some method to my madness in giving the presentation. At its end I made a modest proposal that the Rochester Public Library have an annual Louise Brooks Event (or Happening), of which mine could be the first. I’d also like to see the library have a dedicated Louise Brooks Room, with photos and other memorabilia (perhaps including, in a case, some of the library books she annotated).... As I mentioned in my talk, like many others I’ve been obsessed with Brooks for decades and often teach about her in my Philosophy through Film courses at St. John Fisher College. I also held a 100th birthday party for her in 2006, complete with a cake with her image on it. And as the attached photo demonstrates, her image can be found throughout my office, including a photo of me visiting her grave at Holy Sepulcher Cemetery."

"I think there were about 40 or so folks in attendance, some of whom remembered seeing Louise when she was still able to walk the streets of Rochester. At some point I hope to type up the remarks I made."

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Reminder - Reluctant Icon Louise Brooks event set for Wednesday, October 2

A reminder that the upcoming Louise Brooks event at the Rochester, New York Public Library. The event, "Reluctant Icon: Louise Brooks (1906-1985)" is set to take place on Wednesday, October 2 in the Kate Gleason Auditorium in Rochester's Central Library. Start time is 6:00 pm, and the event is expected to run one hour.

Rochester resident Tim Moore took these pictures of the some of the library's in-house promotion for the event.

According to the library website: "2019 marks the 90th anniversary of Louise Brooks’ most famous film, Pandora’s Box, a print of which has been newly restored. In this presentation, Tim Madigan will discuss how a young girl from Kansas came to Weimar, Germany to play the iconic role of Lulu in that movie, as well as how she later moved to Rochester, where she spent the rest of her life, becoming a noted chronicler of Hollywood and a figure of mystery. He’ll also discuss her depiction in the 2012 novel The Chaperone and its 2018 movie version, and why she lives on as a modern-day muse.

Tim Madigan is Professor and Chair of Philosophy at St. John Fisher College where he regularly discusses Pandora’s Box in his “Philosophy through Film” course." The event is free and open to the public. More information may be found HERE.


As many Louise Brooks fans should know, Louise herself visited this library on many occasions. She was a great reader of books, and at least a few of the books she checked out (and even annotated) still resides on the library shelves. The Central library also has a small collection of books and movies related to Brooks, including copies of some of the publications of the Louise Brooks Society.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Lulu In Rochester, new play about Louise Brooks and James Card, debuts October 18

Geva Theatre / The Festival of New Theatre in Rochester, New York has announced its schedule of upcoming productions, and one in particular stands out for those interested in Louise Brooks. On Friday, October 18th the festival presents Lulu in Rochester by Allison Gregory. The play, the story of two Rochester icons, was commissioned especially for the 2019 Festival of New Theatre.

I was in touch with Gregory back in February, when she contacted me with a question about the silent film star.  In researching Brooks, Gregory had consulted the Louise Brooks Society website. She wrote, "Thank you for your wonderful website; it is truly a treasure trove for anyone interested in Louise Brooks and silent film of the era.... This website, the many links and books referenced here, and the folks at the Eastman Museum have been hugely helpful." I am looking forward to hearing more about Gregory's new work, and would love to hear from anyone who attends.

Lulu in Rochester
by Allison Gregory
Friday, October 18 at 7pm

Inspired by real-life, Lulu in Rochester follows the fascinating partnership between famously reclusive silent-film star Louise Brooks and acclaimed Eastman Museum film curator James Card. When James persuades his irreverent idol to move to Rochester and watch her celebrated films for the first time, Louise must confront the myths and perceptions that have shaped her life, and shed light on the mystery of why ‘Lulu’ inexplicably disappeared at the height of her fame.

The Festival of New Theatre takes place October 8 through 20 on the Fielding Stage of the Geva Theatre Center, located at 75 Woodbury Blvd. The Festival of New Theatre is a mix of new works by playwrights from across the country. The plays are presented concert-style, with actors at music stands and facing the audience. Admission is free; reservations are required. Call (585) 232-4382 or visit gevatheatre.org for information.

Allison Gregory’s plays have been produced widely and she has received commissions, grants, and development from Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Kennedy Center, South Coast Repertory, Indiana Repertory Theatre, the Skirball-Kenis Foundation, GEVA, Seattle Repertory Theatre, ACT Theater, and elsewhere. Her work has been the recipient of the Julie Harris Playwriting Award.

Monday, September 9, 2019

Reluctant Icon: Louise Brooks at Rochester Public Library

Thanks to Rochester resident Tim Moore for tipping us off to the upcoming Louise Brooks event at the Rochester, New York Public Library. The event, "Reluctant Icon: Louise Brooks (1906-1985)" is set to take place on Wednesday, October 2 in the Kate Gleason Auditorium in Rochester's Central Library. Start time is 6:00 pm, and the event is expected to run one hour.

Tim, a dedicated and longtime Brooks' fan, risked life and limb to take these pictures of the some of the library's in-house promotion for the event.

According to the library website: "2019 marks the 90th anniversary of Louise Brooks’ most famous film, Pandora’s Box, a print of which has been newly restored. In this presentation, Tim Madigan will discuss how a young girl from Kansas came to Weimar, Germany to play the iconic role of Lulu in that movie, as well as how she later moved to Rochester, where she spent the rest of her life, becoming a noted chronicler of Hollywood and a figure of mystery. He’ll also discuss her depiction in the 2012 novel The Chaperone and its 2018 movie version, and why she lives on as a modern-day muse.

Tim Madigan is Professor and Chair of Philosophy at St. John Fisher College where he regularly discusses Pandora’s Box in his “Philosophy through Film” course." The event is free and open to the public. More information may be found HERE.


As many Louise Brooks fans should know, Louise herself visited this library on many occasions. She was a great reader of books, and at least a few of the books she checked out (and even annotated) still resides on the library shelves. The Central library also has a small collection of books and movies related to Brooks, including copies of some of the publications of the Louise Brooks Society.

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Notes on Louise Brooks' notebooks

As the three previous blogs note, I recently took the opportunity to visit Rochester, NY and its world famous George Eastman Museum. The purpose of my visit -- a trip five years in the planning -- was to spend time at the museum with which Louise Brooks was closely associated for many years.

Back in October of 2010, I published a piece on examiner.com titled "Louise Brooks Journals to be Revealed, and Perhaps Published". My piece was occasioned by the announcement by the then George Eastman House that it had unsealed Brooks' private notebooks. Before her death, the actress had bequeathed her notebooks to the museum with instructions they remain sealed for 25 years. That was five years ago. This was my first opportunity to check out the notebooks for myself.

As my 2010 article stated, "Brooks kept journals from 1956 until her death in 1985. According to an Eastman House archivist, there are 29 research journals -- which contain her notes and thoughts while she conducted research for her book and other writing projects -- ranging in size from 20 to 120 pages. All together, these working journals approach 2000 pages of hand-written text. Notably, Brooks went back and reworked material in various notebooks over the years. She also added a table of contents to the cover of each volume."

I enlisted the help of Rochester resident Tim Moore, and allotted myself two and one-half days to read / skim / survey the material -- which literally was nearly 2000 pages of mostly handwritten, sometimes difficult to read material. There was also some typewritten material inserted into binders or pasted onto the pages of the notebooks. After I was done, I felt I barely scratched the surface. 
 
Inside the Eastman Museum, where I read Louise Brooks' notebooks
The material in the notebooks is largely just that -- notes. More than anything, Brooks compiled filmographies of many of the leading movie personalities of her time (this was in the day before IMDb, as well as before many of the film books we know were even published -- think the ubiquitous "The Films of ....." series). One almost gets the impression that Brooks had the idea to write some sort of grand history of film as a way of understanding her small part in its history.

Brooks also listed and took notes from the books she was reading. Often times she would transcribe passages out of biographies, memoirs, and film histories. Brooks recorded the titles of many if not most of the films she viewed and where she saw them, either at the Eastman House or on television. (Back in the late 1950s and early 1960s, silent films and films from the early 1930's turned up on broadcast TV more often than they do today.) The actress also recorded key information about each film -- year of release, director, actor -- along with her thoughts on what she had seen.

There are passages on the Talmadge sisters, Garbo, Pola Negri, Clara Bow, Marion Davies, Tallulah Bankhead, Leni Riefenstahl, Humphrey Bogart, Grace Moore, Shirley MacLaine and Warren Beatty, and numerous others -- along with encounters with director Jean Renoir (at a party in Paris in the 1950s) and Roddy McDowell (when the actor came to her apartment to photograph her). In the margin, Brooks' recorded the fact that G.W. Pabst had called her on the telephone while she was living in New York City in 1948.

Brooks watched films by D.W. Griffith and Erich von Stroheim (her opinion on the director changed over time), as well as those starring Marlene Dietrich, like The Blue Angel and I Kiss Your Hand Madame. She also saw Dinner at Eight, William Wellman's The Public Enemy, and G.W. Pabst's Threepenny Opera. On October 29, 1959 she saw Empty Saddles, a 1936 B-western in which she had a supporting role. Brooks wrote "First film I ever heard my voice." Brooks was also taken with John Barrymore's performance in Maytime (1937). There were others, many others.

Brooks watched television programs and listened to the radio. If something stood out, she noted it. On September 28, 1960 she recorded watching Fred Astaire on NBC. Brooks also noted having seen the poet W.H. Auden on television in 1958 (two pages of her commentary on Auden followed), or listening to a local radio program on the critic H.L. Mencken. She also seemed to have a liking for Mitch Miller, and recorded hearing him on the radio at least a couple of times.

On occasion, Brooks was also a list maker. There was one listing the twelve painting she had completed up to that time. There was another listing books she intended to read about the 1920s. There was one noting "geniuses I have known: Chaplin, Gershwin, Graham, Thalberg, Gish, Garbo". There was another from the early 1970's listing where she had lived and for how long:

"18  Kansas
21  New York
9  Hollywood
16  Rochester
1  Europe - Chicago"

The notebooks also contain a number of clipping, which most often were obituaries of individuals she had known, including actor Addison (Jack) Randall, NYMoMA film curator Iris Barry, dancer Ruth St. Denis, and others. Usually, these clipping came from either Variety or TIME magazine, which she seems to have had regular access to. (Brooks also seems to have had access to a run of past issues of Photoplay magazine, as she often cites it.)

Brooks read a book about the composer George Gershwin, someone she first met and flirted with during her brief time with the George White Scandals, and recorded and dated an impressionistic memory: "at Scandals 1924 rehearsals George took off coat -- played in vest -- sometimes with a cigar in his mouth LB 1968". In her notebooks, she took notes on Gershwin's upbringing, on his many compositions, and on his early death on July 11, 1937, adding in parenthesis "[Two weeks before at the Clover Club George asked me to dance and seemed brilliantly healthy.]"

There was a good deal of surprising material. For a while, Brooks was deeply interested in existentialism, which was in vogue in the 1960s. She recorded reading a couple of books on the subject, as well as one or two by Jean Paul Sartre. She disliked Simone de Beauvoir, and said so in the pages of her notebooks. [Curiously, Sartre records in his own journals that one of his very first dates with de Beauvoir was when he took her to see A Girl in Every Port, which co-starred Brooks.]

Brooks also wrote her observations on Elizabeth Taylor and on Marilyn Monroe, thoughts on George Raft, and pasted in a clipping on Andy Warhol. She watched television coverage of Queen Elizabeth's 1957 visit to the United States and Canada, and wrote pages and pages about it. She also wrote many pages of material on Henry Kissinger, the Kennedys, and Zen thinker Alan Watts (which tied into her interest in existentialism). English writers John Ruskin and Lewis Carroll, and American novelists F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway are also referenced time and again.


On the outside of the Rochester Public Library, which Brooks visited often.


One of the binders which the Eastman House inherited from Brooks contains even earlier notes, loose leaf pages dating from as early as the 1940s. There are pages and pages of notes on the French philosopher Henri Bergson from 1941, on the English writer George Meredith from 1943, on Lord Byron and the qualities of great poetry from 1948, on Gandhi's Autobiography from 1949, on the letters of Marcel Proust from 1955. There are also scattered notes on art, and on modern painters.

Considering Brooks may never have achieved her high school degree (she left to join Denishawn after her sophomore year in school), these notebooks reflect an intellectually curious mind. Brooks was striving to understand. She was fascinated by authority figures -- either spiritual or political or literary or cinematic or romantic. George Bernard Shaw was a major obsession. It seems to me, Brooks attempted to understand the world and herself through the pages of literature, and in the biographies and histories of great individuals and momentous times. Her notebooks are a record of her striving.

I also came across this recipe: "Brooks' cookies 18 March 1973"

1 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 table spoon milk
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
dates and nuts. lemon rind
350 degrees 45 minutes cut to squares

During my two and a half days reading Brooks' notebooks, I took lots of notes, and transcribed a few passages. That is all researchers may do. (Recording devices like scanners or cameras are not allowed.) The material above represents a summation of my notes.

Cut into the sidewalk in Rochester, not far from Brooks' Goodman
Street apartment and the Eastman Museum

Monday, December 7, 2015

Snapshots from Louise Brooks' Rochester, NY (part 3)

I recently had the pleasure of visiting Rochester, New York in order to conduct some research on Louise Brooks at the George Eastman House Museum. During my four day visit, I had the chance to meet friends, talk on the radio, and walk the streets of a city Louise Brooks once called home. I also spent two and a half days reading through Brooks' notebooks. (More on that at a later date.)

While I was in Rochester, I had the chance to visit a few sites of interest to fans of Louise Brooks. My thanks to Rochester resident Tim Moore who was my valued guide. All of the snapshots below were taken by myself, unless otherwise noted. Here are yet more of them, in no particular order.

No doubt Louise Brooks read this inscription on the front of the Rochester Public Library more than once. After reading
her notebooks which record her intellectual journey, I believe she held this notion close to her heart.
 
The entrance of the old Sibley department store building, where Louise Brooks once encountered two-time
co-star Richard Arlen (Rolled Stockings and Beggars of Life).
Another view of the George Eastman House. No doubt, Brooks walked the path past the house many times.
Brooks' grave in Rochester. The small picture of the actress was left by an earlier visitor.
Thanks to Tim and Cathy for driving to the grave on a cold, rainy day. (Photo by Tim Moore.)
Tim and Cathy provided the wreath. They were generous guides and are great fans.

Sunday, December 6, 2015

Snapshots from Louise Brooks' Rochester, NY (part 2)

I recently had the pleasure of visiting Rochester, New York in order to conduct some research on Louise Brooks at the George Eastman House Museum. During my four day visit, I had the chance to meet friends, talk on the radio, and walk the streets of a city Louise Brooks once called home. I also spent two and a half days reading through Brooks' notebooks. (More on that at a later date.)

While I was in Rochester, I had the chance to visit a few sites of interest to fans of Louise Brooks. My thanks to Rochester resident Tim Moore who was my valued guide. All of the snapshots below were taken by myself, unless otherwise noted. Here are more of them, in no particular order.

The curtain at the Dryden Theater, where I saw the Marion Davies' film "Show People," with musical accompaniment by
the great Philip Carli. (Later we went out out drinks and a bite to eat.) Louise Brooks saw more than a few movies here.
Inside the Dryden with my new friend Emily Freitag. What a treat it was to meet here after being internet friends for years!
We sat in seats bearing plaques for James Card and his wife. (Photo by Tim Moore.)


A plaque outside the Dryden honoring James Card, founding curator of film at the Eastman Museum
(and Louise Brooks friend and champion).
A selection of books in the Eastman Museum gift shop.
Out to dinner with Rochester film critic and Brooks' longtime friend Jack Garner. He signed my copy of Louise Brooks: Lulu Forever - for which he wrote the intro. (My copy is also signed by author Peter Cowie.) Jack told me many stories of his long friendship with Brooks. (Photo by a young waitress who is interested in LB.)
Inside another local restaurant with a wall honoring local hero Louise Brooks. (Photo by Tim Moore.)
The wall of honor (though oops the top left image is of Clara Bow)
 



My trusted guide Tim Moore. Few know as much about Brooks' time in Rochester as he does.

One afternoon, we had lunch at Starry Nights. Much earlier, it was a liqueur store where
Louise Brooks may have got her gin. (Photo by Tim Moore.)


To be continued ......
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