Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a memorial day commemorating the tragedy of the Holocaust that occurred during the Second World War. In light of continuing anti-Semitism in the United States and the world, I thought to take a few moments to consider this solemn event and to note a few instances of Jewish presence in the films and career of Louise Brooks. Though the actress herself was not Jewish, Jewish faith and Jewish culture did play a small part in her career. It is important to remember.
To begin, I have included a couple of clippings I have come across in preparation of my forthcoming book, Around the World with Louise Brooks, which should be released this Spring. These initial clipping come from a chapter in the book which looks at Brooks' presence in the ethnic / non-English language press in the United States.
This first clipping comes from The Forward newspaper, which carried the news in Yiddish and English of Brooks’ marriage to Eddie Sutherland, despite the fact that neither were Jewish. Founded in New York City, The Forward (or Forverts) had a circulation of more than 200,000 and was considered for many years the largest Jewish newspaper in the world.
And here is a February 1928 newspaper advertisement, also from The Forward, advertising A Girl in Every Port at the Roxy Theatre in New York City. Most all of Brook's American silent films were advertised in this and other Jewish newspapers, and most all of them contain a bit of Yiddish.
Brooks' films were advertised in Jewish publications not only in the United States, but elsewhere as well. Here is an example from Warsaw, Poland for Pandora's Box, or Lulu. As I noted in an earlier blog, when the film debuted in the Polish capital, the orchestra was led by a noted, local Jewish conductor.
The still below from Pandora's Box clearly shows a Menorah in Lulu's apartment. The actor looming over Lulu is Fritz Kortner, Brooks' co-star in the film and a noted German actor who was also Jewish.
Another prominent Jewish actor in a Brooks' film was Kurt Gerron, who played Dr. Vitalis in Diary of a Lost Girl. He can be seen in the still below kissing Louise Brooks on the cheek. Tragically, Gerron was sent to and eventually died in a Nazi concentration camp. A deeply moving documentary about his life, Prisoner of Paradise: The Story of Kurt Gerron, is available on DVD.
Louise Brooks films were shown all around the world, including in Jerusalem in what was once Palestine. Would you believe, for example, that Brooks' last film, the 1938 Western Overland Stage Raiders, was shown in what is now the nation of Israel in 1942? Below is a simple newspaper listing. I have also found listing for the film showing at the same time in Haifa.
To begin, I have included a couple of clippings I have come across in preparation of my forthcoming book, Around the World with Louise Brooks, which should be released this Spring. These initial clipping come from a chapter in the book which looks at Brooks' presence in the ethnic / non-English language press in the United States.
This first clipping comes from The Forward newspaper, which carried the news in Yiddish and English of Brooks’ marriage to Eddie Sutherland, despite the fact that neither were Jewish. Founded in New York City, The Forward (or Forverts) had a circulation of more than 200,000 and was considered for many years the largest Jewish newspaper in the world.
And here is a February 1928 newspaper advertisement, also from The Forward, advertising A Girl in Every Port at the Roxy Theatre in New York City. Most all of Brook's American silent films were advertised in this and other Jewish newspapers, and most all of them contain a bit of Yiddish.
Brooks' films were advertised in Jewish publications not only in the United States, but elsewhere as well. Here is an example from Warsaw, Poland for Pandora's Box, or Lulu. As I noted in an earlier blog, when the film debuted in the Polish capital, the orchestra was led by a noted, local Jewish conductor.
The still below from Pandora's Box clearly shows a Menorah in Lulu's apartment. The actor looming over Lulu is Fritz Kortner, Brooks' co-star in the film and a noted German actor who was also Jewish.
Another prominent Jewish actor in a Brooks' film was Kurt Gerron, who played Dr. Vitalis in Diary of a Lost Girl. He can be seen in the still below kissing Louise Brooks on the cheek. Tragically, Gerron was sent to and eventually died in a Nazi concentration camp. A deeply moving documentary about his life, Prisoner of Paradise: The Story of Kurt Gerron, is available on DVD.
Louise Brooks films were shown all around the world, including in Jerusalem in what was once Palestine. Would you believe, for example, that Brooks' last film, the 1938 Western Overland Stage Raiders, was shown in what is now the nation of Israel in 1942? Below is a simple newspaper listing. I have also found listing for the film showing at the same time in Haifa.
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