Showing posts with label Wallace Beery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wallace Beery. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Herbert Brenon’s The Spanish Dancer (1923)

My review of the new Blu-ray release of The Spanish Dancer was just published by Film International. My review is titled "Florid in a Good Way: Herbert Brenon's The Spanish Dancer (1923)". This Paramount film, directed by Herbert Brenon, stars the wonderful Pola Negri. Check it out HERE.


Besides directing The Spanish Dancer (1923), Brenon also directed Peter Pan (1924), Beau Geste (1926), The Great Gatsby (1926), Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928) and Louise Brooks' first film, The Street of Forgotten Men (1925). Coincidentally, both the version of The Spanish Dancer found on the Milestone Blu-ray and The Street of Forgotten Men were directed by restored by Robert Byrne, the subject of my previous blog. Byrne is not only a heroic film preservationist, but, he is also a hero to anyone who has an interest in Louise Brooks. 

Besides Pola Negri, The Spanish Dancer also stars the dashing Antonio Moreno (the original, original Latin lover type). Also in the cast are two of Louise Brooks' leading men, Adolphe Menjou and Wallace Beery. Each appeared in two films with Brooks, Menjou in A Social Celebrity (1926) and Evening Clothes (1927), and Beery in Now We're in the Air (1927) and Beggars of Life (1928).

The disc's product description reads: "Pola Negri (The Wildcat) was already an international star. Antonio Moreno (The Searchers) was her equal in terms of talent and sex appeal. The director Herbert Brenon (Beau Geste) was one of the greatest directors of his day and he was assisted by his cinematographer, James Wong Howe (Hud). Together, they created one of the great romance epics of the silent era. Restored by Eye Filmmuseum, The Spanish Dancer (1923) is a joy to behold. The film is action-packed, witty, and romantic with huge sets and a cast of thousands. Brenon keeps the adventure going full steam ahead while Negri and Moreno show why they were huge stars of their day. Includes a new orchestral score by Bill Ware!" There is also an audio commentary by film historian Scott Eyman, an interview with the composer Bill Ware, and a restoration demonstration.

As I say in my article, The Spanish Dancer likely isn't Brenon's very best film (among a treasure chest full of gems), but still, it is well worth watching. Here are a couple more pics from the film, courtesy of Milestone, who sent me a review copy of the disc.

Adolphe Menjou (left) and Pola Negri in a scene from The Spanish Dancer


Kathlyn Williams and Wallace Beery (right) in a scene from The Spanish Dancer

The Spanish Dancer is available on Blu-ray through Milestone and is available on amazon.com and other major retailers.

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. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Happy Christmas from the Louise Brooks Society

 

Happy Holidays from the Louise Brooks Society. Here follows a snapshot of the Louise Brooks bulb which hangs on my X-Mas tree. It is handmade, and crafted by a fan; I believe I purchased it on eBay a number of years ago -- perhaps as long ago as ten or fifteen years ago. Does anyone else have hand made Louise Brooks ornaments?


On Christmas Day in 1927, according to various press accounts, Louise Brooks was a guest at the home of Wallace Beery.


Irene Thirer wrote in the New York Daily News about celebrity plans for celebrating Christmas. Among the guests Mr. and Mrs. Wallace Beery are expected to share the holiday are Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Hatton and "Eddie Sutherland and his lovely wife, Louise Brooks." Other newspapers across the country report the same. Rosalind Shaffer's syndicated Chicago Tribune piece, "Lavish Entertainments Mark Christmas in Hollywood," notes "Mr. and Mrs. Wallace Beery have a venison feast off a dear that Wallace killed for their day's feature. Raymond Hatton, Mrs. Hatton, Louise Brooks and Eddie Sutherland, her husband, dine with the Beerys."

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Tonka of the Gallows and other points of interest and revelation at this year's San Francisco Silent Film Festival

There are a number of really fine films being shown at this year's San Francisco Silent Film Festival. Some of them may be familiar to silent film buffs (like the Buster Keaton and Lon Chaney films), while others are likely not (Victor Fleming's Wolf Song (1929), starring Gary Cooper and Lupe Velez, or the films from Bali and Japan). For me, it's those little known gems which prove themselves a revelation. And make attending this world class festival necessary. I detailed the schedule of films in an earlier LBS blog HERE.

I haven't seen all the film which will be shown, but I have seen a handful of them. The Ukiah Daily Journal just published my article on one of the films which will be shown, Clarence Brown's The Signal Tower (1924). Louise Brooks devotees might take note that the film's two stars, Virginia Valli and Wallace Beery, also appeared in later Brooks' films. Valli appeared in Evening Clothes (1927), while Beery appeared in another "train film," Beggars of Life (1928). Both actors are pictured below in one of the film's most dramatic scenes.


The director of Beggars of Life was William Wellman. His earlier film, You Never Know Women (1926), will also be shown at the Festival. Long thought lost, this backstage story is a bravura work - and according to his son, the success of this film got Wellman assigned to direct Wings (1927), the first film to win the Oscar for Best Picture. I enjoyed You Never Know Women immensely. If you can't attend the Festival, be sure and track down the DVD, recently released by Kino. It is brilliant! Really brilliant stuff!


For me, the one film I saw that proved a revelation was Tonka of the Gallows (or Tonka Šibernice), from 1930. It is a Czech film which stars Ita Rina, an attractive Slovenian ingénue. This rarely seen gem -- a parable of the cruelty that comes from small-mindedness -- tells the story of a country girl who becomes a prostitute in Prague where an act of selfless generosity -- spending the night with a condemned man -- marks her as a pariah. This exceptionally filmed film also has a Louise Brooks connection. Prague-born actor Josef Rovenský, Thymian’s father in Diary of a Lost Girl (1929), plays the condemned man in Tonka of the Gallows. The SFSFF sums things up when it states "Made as sound was taking over the industry, Tonka of the Gallows is a tour-de-force of silent-era filmmaking from Czechoslovakian director Karel Anton, who here has made his best work, always tempering style to serve the larger story." Tonka of the Gallows is a moving film, one which I hope to see many times in the future.


G.W. Pabst, who directed Louise Brooks in both Diary of a Lost Girl and Pandora's Box (1929), directs another of the films to be seen at this year's festival, The Love of Jeanne Ney (1927). Set against Russia’s post-revolution civil war, the story follows Jeanne Ney (Édith Jéhanne) who flees to Paris when her diplomat father is killed after receiving a list of Bolshevik agents from the duplicitous opportunist Khalibiev (Fritz Rasp) -- a list that contains the name of Jeanne’s lover (Uno Henning)! Rasp played the villainous seducer of Thymian in Diary of a Lost Girl. He has one of the more memorable faces in early German film.

 

Ahead of time, I also had the chance to see the Monta Bell directed Light of Old Broadway (1925), starring Marion Davies, as well as Brownie's Little Venus (1921), starring Baby Peggy, but found both not as enjoyable as I have other films starring either Davies or the diminutive Baby Peggy. King Baggot's The Home Maker (1925), starring Alice Joyce, was interesting from a sociological point-of-view. It tells the story of a frustrated housewife who must go to work when her less than successful husband is disabled. She is a success, and the tables are turned.

One other film which I enjoyed a great deal and which also proved to be something of a revelation was the John Stahl directed Husbands and Lovers (1924). Lewis Stone is the not-so-doting husband to Florence Vidor’s devoted wife in this splendidly nuanced, briskly directed comedy that features the quintessentially caddish Lew Cody as the other man. For me, Vidor's performance was an eye-opener. She is appealing and has a manner that draws one into her character. I certainly want to see more of her films.


I am looking forward to this year's Festival, which starts later today. I am also looking forward to seeing some films for the first time -- like the Italian diva vehicle Rapsodia Satanica (1917), and the first ever Italian feature, L'Inferno (1911). And though I have seen it before, once a number of years ago after meeting Fay Wray, I am also excited to see the Paramount restoration of Erich von Stroheim's The Wedding March (1928), starring Fay Wray; this special presentation will be introduced by Wray's daughter, Victoria Riskin.


And there's also Ernst Lubitsch's The Oyster Princess (1919), starring Ossi Oswaldo, and another early German film, Opium (1919), starring Werner Krauss and Conrad Veidt, and Japanese Girls at the Harbor (1933), which the Village Voice described as “A knockout. Shimizu’s stunning tale of passion, crime, and decadence [is an] exhilarating triumph of ... experimental style [and] also a precious portrait of the great port city of Yokohama.” And there's . . . . .

For those interested, I will be signing copies of Louise Brooks the Persistent Star following the Saturday, 10:00 am showing of the Marion Davies film, The Lights of Old Broadway. My book signing is expected to start around 11:15 am.More information HERE.

Saturday, September 1, 2012

September Schedule at Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum

The Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum in Fremont, California is starting the Fall off right with an eclectic and exciting line-up of films. There is a locally made classic based on a famous story by a one-time San Francisco author, a little seen Jazz Age satire, an early Western, and a non-Western starring an actor best known for his cowboy roles - as well as a selection of early Felix the Cat cartoons. Each features live musical accompaniment.

And that's not all.... There is also the regular Comedy Short Subject Night, a indie film from 2011 described as The Wizard of Oz for dogs, and a Laurel & Hardy Talkie Matinee. All together, it is another exceptional month of early cinema in the East Bay. Here's what's playing.

"Saturday Night at the Movies" with Judy Rosenberg at the piano
Saturday, September 1 at 7:30 pm

William S. Hart and Anna Q. Nilsson star in The Toll Gate (1920, William S. Hart Corp.), the first film produced by Hart’s own company. Directed by his frequent collaborator Lambert Hillyer, Hart plays an outlaw on the run from both lawman and his scheming partner’s henchmen. It is a story of betrayal, revenge and repentance. The feature will be preceded by two shorts, Futuritzy (1928, Pat Sullivan) featuring Felix the Cat, and Line’s Busy (1924, Cumberland Productions) with Billy West.

"Saturday Night at the Movies" with Frederick Hodges at the piano
Saturday, September 8 at 7:30 pm

The myth of D. W. Griffith’s decline as a director following the loss of his production company is disproven in The Battle of the Sexes (1928, Art Cinema Corp.), a comedy/drama of the jazz age featuring a gum-chewing frizzy-haired golddigger, a jazz hound, and a real estate tycoon. The film stars Jean Hersholt, Phyllis Haver, Belle Bennett, Sally O'Neil, and Don Alvarado. The Battle of the Sexes, a film one could easily picture Louise Brooks in, will be preceded by two shorts, Felix Gets the Can (1924, Sullivan) featuring Felix the Cat, and Vacation Waves (1928, Paramount) with Edward Everett Horton.

The Battle of the Sexes (1928, Art Cinema Corp.)
"Laurel & Hardy Talkie Matinee"
Sunday, September 9 at 4:00 pm

This month's Laurel & Hardy Talkie Matinee includes one of their classic features, A Chump at Oxford (1938), in which a Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy go to college as a reward for capturing a bank robber, and two comedic shorts, Mush and Milk (1933) with Our Gang, and Scram (1932) with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.

"Comedy Short Subject Night" with Greg Pane at the piano
Saturday, September 15  at 7:30 pm

Love to laugh? Then don't miss this monthly program featuring some of the most famous comedians of the silent film era. On the bill are The Immigrant (1917, Lone Star) with Charlie Chaplin and Edna Purviance, I Do (1921, Rolin) with Harold Lloyd, The Scarecrow (1920, Comique) with Buster Keaton, and The Finishing Touch (1928, Hal Roach) with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Love to laugh? Then don't miss this monthly program!

"Saturday Night at the Movies" with Bruce Loeb at the piano
Saturday, September 22 at 7:30 pm

Based on the famous Bret Harte story, Salomy Jane (1914, California Motion Picture Corp.) tells a story of love, murder, and mistaken identity all of which whirls about its female heroine. The title role is played by Beatriz Michelena, a noted San Francisco singer, who began her film career with Salomy Jane and went on to star in eleven features for the San Rafael-based CMPC between 1914 and 1917. House Peters, William Nigh and an uncredited Jack Holt are also in the cast.

Salomy Jane was first shown at the Edison Theater, the current home of the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, on August 30, 1915. This special 2012 screening 105 years later, featuring a 35mm print from the Library of Congress, is co-sponsored by the Anne T. Kent California Room, Marin County Free Library, with assistance from the California Film Institute. The feature will be preceded by two shorts, Felix Dopes It Out (1925, Sullivan) featuring Felix the Cat, and Cactus Nell (1917, Keystone) with Polly Moran and future Oscar winner Wallace Beery (Louise Brooks co-star in two films).

"Saturday Night at the Movies" with Jon Mirsalis at the Kurzweil Keyboard
Saturday, September 29 at 7:30 pm

In the little seen Lazybones (1925, Fox Film), Buck Jones departs from his better known cowboy roles in this simple story of a young farmer who raises an abandoned baby. Besides the square jawed Jones (who starred in Empty Saddles, featuring Louise Brooks), the cast also features lovely Madge Bellamy, quirky Zasu Pitts, and Jane Novak - Hart's one time fiancé and the sister of Eva Novak. Credit for a deft handling of material and the film's continuing appeal go to acclaimed director Frank Borzage and renowned writer Frances Marion. Lazybones will be preceded by two shorts, Felix in Love (1922, Sullivan) featuring Felix the Cat, and Gymnasium Jim (1922, Mack Sennett, later reissued as Love’s Intrigue) with Billy Bevan and Mildred June.

Lazybones (1925, Fox Film), Buck Jones
For more info: The Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum is located at 37417 Niles Blvd. in Fremont, California. For further information, call (510) 494-1411 or visit the Museum's website at www.nilesfilmmuseum.org/.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

More about Jim Tully, author of Beggers of Life

In the 1920s and 1930s, author Jim Tully was a household name. His writing - a singular brand of rough and tumble realism - was both popular and critically acclaimed. In his heyday, Tully's books appeared on bestseller lists, were adapted for the stage, and were made into movies.

On August 1st, the Cinefamily theater in Los Angeles screened the 1928 film, Beggars of Life, which stars Louise Brooks. The film was based on a celebrated 1925 novelistic memoir by Tully, a once popular "hobo author."


Over the last few years, Kent State University Press in Kent, Ohio (Tully's one-time home) has been reissuing this forgotten writer's long-out-of-print books. So far, they've released Circus Parade (with a foreword by the late comix artist Harvey Pekar), Shanty Irish (with a foreword by film director John Sayles), The Bruiser (with a foreword by critic Gerald Early), and Tully's breakthrough work and what's likely his best remembered book, Beggars of Life (with an introduction by series editors Paul Bauer and Mark Dawidziak).

Last year saw the release of Bauer and Dawidziak's outstanding biography, Jim Tully: American Writer, Irish Rover, Hollywood Brawler. That book includes a foreword by documentary film maker Ken Burns, who has called the book a "wonderful, hugely important biography."

And also last year, the Akron Summit Library hosted an event with Paul Bauer and Mark Dawidziak called "Jim Tully: Rediscovering a Lost Ohio Writer." And here it is in its entirety. The video lasts one hour and seventeen minutes. Check it out.



Three films were made from Jim Tully books, including Beggars of Life (1928), Way For a Sailor (1930), and Laughter In Hell (1933). Beggars of Life is the only silent film among the three. This William Wellman directed feature starred Wallace Beery, Richard Arlen and Louise Brooks. Way For a Sailor was John Gilbert's second talkie. It also featured Wallace Beery, and Tully himself. Laughter In Hell is described as a chain-gang melodrama. It stars Pat O'Brien.
  
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