Thursday, December 7, 2006

The Motor City

Just a brief entry, as I am about to take off for the City of Detroit where I will be visiting family and, over the course of the weekend, introducing Pandora's Box when it's shown at the Detroit Institute of the Arts. If you live in the area, please stop by and say hello and show your love of Lulu. I will be the nervous looking fellow near the front of the auditorium. For more info or tickets see http://www.dia.org/dft/item.asp?webitemid=868  ( An article about these screenings appeared in the Metro Times, the alternative weekly for the Detroit area. The illustration for the article is nifty. Check it out.)  Coincedently, there is a new book out on the historic movie theaters of downtown Detroit, some of which showed Louise Brooks films when they first played in town. . . . . After Detroit, I will be making a quick stop in Rochester, New York where I will be visiting the George Eastman House to see the Louise Brooks exhibit and do a little research, both at the GEH and the Rochester public library. See you all on the other side.

Wednesday, December 6, 2006

RadioLulu updates & stats

Yesterday, I added a half-dozen new tracks to RadioLulu. (I just bought a bunch of mp3 files of interesting and obscure tunes - mostly contemporary music. There's the Clan of Xymox, a rock song about Clara Bow, an instrumental piece inspired by Kevin Brownlow's The Parade's Gone By, etc....) Please tune in and give a listen. Otherwise, here's a recap of the station's November stats:

Total Listening Hours
Last Month: 853
This Month: 1155

Total Station Launches
Last Month: 1400
This Month: 1480

Station Presets
Last Month: 1097
This Month: 1136

Favorite Station Designations
Last Month: 26
This Month: 26

Tuesday, December 5, 2006

Detroit, MI: Pandora's Box

"Pandora's Box" (Germany / 1929), starring Louise Brooks as Lulu, will be shown at the historic Detroit Film Theatre, which is located in the Detroit Institute of the Arts in downtown Detroit. The film will be screened December 8, 9, 10.

From the D.I.A. website: "A cause for celebration is this newly restored print of the classic that New York Times critic A.O. Scott recently called “a tour-de-force of cinematic eroticism.” The legendary Louise Brooks stars as Lulu, the singular “earthly being” who, though endowed with irresistible animal beauty, lacks all moral sense. While devoid of outright malevolence, Lulu, in her pursuit of pleasure, does evil unconsciously, bringing men—and women—to their knees. In the course of the film, Scott writes, Lulu is “a music hall performer and a rich man's bride, a murderess and a victim, a fugitive from justice and an object of desire. The mercurial nature of the sexual appetite is explored in set pieces that are at once frenzied and meticulously controlled. Brooks's performance has rarely, if ever, been matched on screen.” (110 min.) Fri. & Sat. at 7:00, Sun. at 4:00"

Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society (www.pandorasbox.com), will introduce the film. Gladysz will also speak about the actress, her centenary, and her connections to the Detroit area.  For more info or tickets see http://www.dia.org/dft/item.asp?webitemid=868

Additional information on the history of the the 1927 theater can be found at http://www.dia.org/dft/history.asp

Sunday, December 3, 2006

Wichita Eagle articles


There is an article about Louise Brooks in the current issue of the Wichita Eagle. The article, "Late actress still shockingly modern," focusses on Peter Cowie's new book, Louise Brooks: Lulu Forever. The article can be found atwww.kansas.com/mld/kansas/entertainment/movies/16150398.htm?source=rss&channel=kansas_movies   There is also a second, shorter piece on the upcoming mini-festival of Brooks' film in Wichita. That piece can be found atwww.kansas.com/mld/kansas/entertainment/16150399.htm?source=rss&channel=kansas_entertainment

Saturday, December 2, 2006

Chicago (1927)

Tonight I saw Chicago - the silent version from 1927 starring Phyllis Haver as Roxie Hart - and let me tell you, IT WAS TERRIFIC. Haver was really, really good. She played a kind of American Lulu. And, interestingly, this film was actually directed by Cecil D. DeMille. (It is generally creditted to Frank Urson.) The director gave up his screen credit because he was also then directing King of Kings and was concerned that Christian groups would boycott that film if it was known that he had also directed the rather racy Chicago. If you should ever have the chance to see this Jazz Age morality tale - check it out.

Friday, December 1, 2006

BBC radio program on Louise Brooks

A ten minute BBC radio program about Louise Brooks, "Louise Brooks: Silent Film Star and 20th Century Icon" aired on the BBC today. The program features a discussion between British actor and Louise Brooks fan Paul McGann and Erica Carter, the curator of a month-long retrospective of Brooks films at the National Film Theatre. The BBC website has a page about the program at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/01/2006_48_fri.shtml  

The archived radio program can be listened to at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/ram/2006_48_fri_01.ram

More about the Brooks "season" at the NFT can be found at http://www.bfi.org.uk/incinemas/nft/seasons/brooks/   Interestingly, one of the films being shown is The Street of Forgotten Men (1925). Brooks' first screen role was in this once thought lost minor masterpiece directed by Herbert Brenon.

Lulu heading to Iowa

The Silent Theater company will stage their version of Lulu at the North Scott High School Theatre in Eldridge, Iowa.  The company of young actors - many of whom I had the great pleasure of meeting - is currently making their way back home to Chicago on their unique Pandora's Bus. They had been in San Francisco, where they enjoyed a three month run at the Victoria Theater.

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS VEHICLE ON AN AMERICAN HIGHWAY? 


Once they return to Chicago, the company will stage Lulu at the Chicago Center for the Performing Arts on December 11 - 23. Visit this link for more info.
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