Louise Brooks Society: November 2021

Monday, November 29, 2021

Louise Brooks Collectibles For Sale

Looking for some nifty Louise Brooks gift items for your collection? The Louise Brooks Society has a limited number of the following items for sale. Each are in very good or like new condition, and are currently for sale on eBay. Your purchase helps support the LBS.

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Louise Brooks Lulu keepsake box Pandora's Box + bonus items

VIEW ON EBAY

Store jewelry and other precious mementos in this special Louise Brooks / Pandora's Box keepsake box! This artfully crafted black hardwood box features a beautifully designed inset square ceramic tile and a velvet-lined interior to protect special keepsakes. This box measures 5.5” x 5.5” x 2.25” with a 4.25” x 4.25” ceramic tile inset and is made of solid hardwood with a high-gloss lacquer finish. Fully velvet-lined interior with a felt-covered bottom to protect surfaces.

The inset square ceramic tile depicts a scene from Pandora's Box, in which the character Lulu (played by Louise Brooks) dances with the lesbian Countess Geschwitz (played by Alice Roberts). The winner of this one time only auction will also receive a mini Lulu pinback button and a "Fearless" Louise Brooks magnet measuring 4.0" x 3.25".

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Louise Brooks Hollywood Glamour note card box set \ Out-of-print from Fotofolio

VIEW ON EBAY

Offered here is a hard-to-find Hollywood Glamour Fotofolio box set of ten beautiful and sexy notecards; I bought this set some 15 years ago or more. This set, which likely dates from the 1990s or very early 2000s, is complete with ten notecards and envelopes, and is in like new / very good + condition. Louise Brooks is the featured image on the box. Inside, are 2 copies each of 5 different Hollywood stars, featuring famous images of Louise Brooks, Gloria Swanson, Greta Garbo, Katherine Hepburn, and Marilyn Monroe. I believe the images come from the famous John Kobal collection. These cards are collectable and this set is a must have for collectors of any of these five movie stars.

I have a second box set available via direct purchase at $25.00 (including shipping). Please email LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com if you are interested.

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Louise Brooks as Lulu ceramic tile keepsake coaster

VIEW ON EBAY

Offered here is a square tile coaster measuring 4.25" x 4.25" depicting the silent film star Louise Brooks. This beautiful tile is 1/6-inch thick, and has four felt pads on the bottom to protect surfaces from scratches. This square ceramic tile depicts the character Lulu (played by Louise Brooks) from the German silent film, Pandora's Box. The image is based on a vintage graphic.

I have a second tile available via direct purchase at $17.50 (includes shipping). Please email LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com if you are interested.

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Louise Brooks Pandora's Box ceramic tile keepsake coaster

VIEW ON EBAY

Offered here is a square tile coaster measuring 4.25" x 4.25" depicting the silent film star Louise Brooks. This beautiful tile is 1/6-inch thick, and has four felt pads on the bottom to protect surfaces from scratches. This square ceramic tile depicts a scene from Pandora's Box, in which the character Lulu (played by Louise Brooks) dances with the lesbian Countess Geschwitz (played by Alice Roberts).

I have a second tile available via direct purchase at $17.50 (includes shipping). Please email LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com if you are interested.

Tuesday, November 23, 2021

Books For Sale - Louise Brooks and related interest

Looking for something good to read? Want to learn more about Louise Brooks and her films? The Louise Brooks Society has a small number of new & gently used books for sale of interest to the dedicated fan. Some are hard to find, some less so. Each are in very good or better condition. THE FOLLOWING LIST FEATURES A FEW NEW TITLES AND REDUCED PRICES. Your purchase helps support the LBS.

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Louise Brooks, the Persistent Star (softcover 1st edition)
by Thomas Gladysz
-- This 296 page book brings together 15 years work by the Director of the Louise Brooks Society. Gathered here are the author's best articles, essays, and blogs about the silent film star and her films—Beggars of Life, Pandora’s Box, and Diary of a Lost Girl—each are discussed, as are many other little known aspects of Brooks’ legendary career. With many rare illustrations.

AUTOGRAPHED copies available direct from the author @ $22.50 (includes shipping & handling within the USA). To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

The English-language edition is also available from Open Trolley (Indonesia) and MightyApe (New Zealand)

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Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film (softcover 1st edition)
by Thomas Gladysz
-- This first ever study of Beggars of Life looks at the film Oscar-winning director William Wellman thought his finest silent movie. With more than 50 little seen images, tons of information, detailed credits, trivia, and a foreword by William Wellman, Jr. A must read for every fan.

AUTOGRAPHED copies available direct from the author @ $13.50 (includes shipping & handling within the USA) / A very few copies signed by both Gladysz and William Wellman Jr. are also available @ $75.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA). To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

The English-language edition is also available from Open Trolley (Indonesia) and MightyApe (New Zealand)

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Now We're in the Air (softcover 1st edition)
by Thomas Gladysz
-- This companion to the once "lost" 1927 film tells the story of the film’s making, its reception, and its discovery by film preservationist Robert Byrne. With two rare fictionalizations of the movie story, more than 75 little seen images, detailed credits, trivia, and a foreword by Byrne. A must read for the discriminating fan. Your purchase helps support the LBS.

~~A few autographed copies available direct from the author @ $18.50 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)~~ Sorry, sold out

The English-language edition is also available from Open Trolley (Indonesia) and MightyApe (New Zealand)

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The Diary of a Lost Girl Louise Brooks edition (softcover)
by Margarete Bohme (author) and Thomas Gladysz (editor)
-- The 1929 film, Diary of a Lost Girl, is based on a controversial and bestselling book first published in Germany in 1905. Though little known today, it was a literary sensation at the beginning of the 20th century. By the end of the 1920s, it had been translated into 14 languages and sold more than 1,200,000 copies - ranking it among the bestselling books of its time. Was it - as many believed - the real-life diary of a young woman forced by circumstance into a life of prostitution? Or a sensational and clever fake, one of the first novels of its kind? This contested work - a work of unusual historical significance as well as literary sophistication - inspired a sequel, a play, a parody, a score of imitators, and two silent films. The best remembered of these is the oft revived G.W. Pabst film starring Louise Brooks.

This corrected and annotated edition of the original English language translation brings this important book back into print after more than 100 years. It includes an introduction by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society, detailing the book's remarkable history and relationship to the 1929 silent film. This special "Louise Brooks Edition" also includes more than three dozen vintage illustrations.

AUTOGRAPHED copies available direct from the author @ $25.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA) To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

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LIMITED SUPPLY, NEW LOWER PRICES

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Louise Brooks: Portrait of an Anti-Star (softcover 1st printing)
edited by Roland Jaccard
-- hard-to-find first book on the actress, contains writings by and about Louise Brooks and the Lulu character along with 90 illustrations, edited by the noted French film critic and writer. This scarce 1986 copy was AUTOGRAPHED in Paris by Roland Jaccard. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one autographed copy available
$200.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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The Chaperone (hardcover 1st edition)
by Laura Moriarty
-- The Chaperone is a captivating novel about the woman who chaperoned an irreverent Louise Brooks to New York City in 1922. The basis for the celebrated motion picture from PBS Masterpiece and the team that brought the world Downton Abbey. This first edition copy is AUTOGRAPHED by Laura Moriarty. Your purchase helps support the LBS (who supplied the cover image). To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one copy available
$50.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Una acompañante en Nueva York (softcover, 1st printing)
by Laura Moriarty
-- The Spanish-language edition of The Chaperone, Laura Moriarty's captivating novel about the woman who chaperoned an irreverent Louise Brooks to New York City in 1922. The basis for the celebrated motion picture from PBS Masterpiece and the team that brought the world Downton Abbey. Your purchase helps support the LBS (who supplied the cover image). To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one copy available
$15.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Lulu (softcover 1st edition)
by Samuel Bernstein
-- This engaging novel tells the story of the "the laughing girl with the black helmet of hair and the sexy bangs." A good read. These copies are in like new condition and are AUTOGRAPHED by the author. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

A very few copies available
$12.50 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Louise Brooks (hardcover 1st edition)
by Barry Paris
-- Simply put, a must read; the definitive biography of Louise Brooks and likely the best film biography every published. This hardback first edition, with illustrations, was published in 1989. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only two copies available
$30.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Lulu in Hollywood (hardcover 1st edition)
by Louise Brooks
-- Brooks' own collection of autobiographical essays. This hardback first edition, with a photo insert, was published in 1982. Introduction by William Shawn. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only two copies available
$20.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Lulu in Hollywood (softcover)
by Louise Brooks
-- Brooks' own collection of autobiographical essays. This edition, with a photo insert, was published in paperback in the 1980s. Introduction by William Shawn. These copies are in very good condition. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

A few copies available
$10.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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The Show-Off (hardback)
by William Almon Wolff
-- This hard-to-find novel is based on the acclaimed play by future Pulitzer Prize winner George Kelly, which was the basis of the 1926 Louise Brooks film of the same name. A delightful read. Scarce in dust-jacket, which is a little worn.

Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

This book is accompanied by a Show-Off reproduction movie herald (pictured here) created by the Louise Brooks Society in 2006 during the Louise Brooks centennial. This reproduction herald resembles the vintage movie heralds given away during the 1920s. Only two copies of the book / herald set are available
$65.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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The Diary of a Lost One (hardback)
by Margarete Bohme
-- A vintage American hardback edition of The Diary of a Lost Girl, published by the Hudson Press in 1908. In good condition without dustjack (which is extremely rare). Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one copy available
$65.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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The Canary Murder Case (hardback)
by S.S. van Dine

-- A photoplay edition of the classic mystery novel with stills from the 1929 William Powell / Louise Brooks film. In good condition, without the rare dustjacket. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Two copies available
$12.50 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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It Pays to Advertise (hardback)
by Samuel Field

-- This book is a novelization of the famous stage play by Roi Cooper Megrue and Walter Hackett which served as the basis of the 1931 talkie of the same name which starred Norman Foster and Carole Lombard and which included a cameo by Louise Brooks. An uncommon title.

In good condition, without the rare dust jacket. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Two copies available

$12.50 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Il Guanto Rosso (softcover)
by Tadeusz Rozewicz
-- A scarce copy of this 2003 Italian collection of poems by the acclaimed Polish poet, with an image of Louise Brooks on the cover (images supplied by and credited to the LBS). Text in Polish and Italian. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one copy available
$25.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Instantanee (softcover)
by Osvaldo Guerrieri

-- The title of this 2009 Italian-language book translates as "snapshots." And that is what it is, a series of meditations / short essays on various cultural figures including Louise Brooks. A hard-to-find book. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

One copy available.
$15.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Pandoras Schätze: Erotikkonzeptionen in den Stummfilmen von G.W. Pabst (softcover)
by Gerald Koll
-- Louise Brooks adorns the cover and is central to the text of this scarce 440 page, German-language study of the concept of eroticism in the films of director G. W. Pabst. This book contains chapters on both Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl which together run more than 110 pages. Includes illustrations. Published in 1998 by Diskurs Film Verlag. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one copy available
$50.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

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Lulu
by Alban Berg

-- This pair of items includes the softcover libretto for Alban Berg's opera, Lulu. Printed in German in Austria by Universal Edition. Also included is this now scarce 1994 CD, featuring the Lulu Suite by Berg, with Louise Brooks on the cover. Your purchase helps support the LBS. To place an order via PayPal, please send an email to louisebrookssociety AT gmailDOTcom

Only one pair (book and CD) available
$30.00 (includes shipping & handling within the USA)

Friday, November 19, 2021

Louise Brooks and the Surrealists

"Louise Brooks is the only woman who had the ability to transfigure no matter what film into a masterpiece. The poetry of Louise is the great poetry of rare loves, of magnetism, of tension, of feminine beauty as blinding as ten galaxial suns. She is much more than a myth, she is a magical presence, a real phantom, the magnetism of the cinema." -- Ado Kyrou, author of Le Surréalisme Au Cinéma (1963)

It is known that the Surrealists took notice of Louise Brooks. She had the look - a bit transgressive (though they didn't use that word back then), and strikingly beautiful, but in an iconic, modern sense. It's known that Philipe Soupault, the French Surrealist poet, mentioned the actress in his journalism and even reviewed Diary of a Lost Girl. (A couple of images of the actress adorn the poet's collected writings on the cinema, Ecrits de cinema 1918-1931.)

Kiki of Montparnasse

It's also known that Man Ray was smitten by the actress. His paramour in the 1920s, Kiki of Montparnasse, resembled Brooks. Man Ray first noticed Brooks in Paris in 1929 and 1930, when she was all the rage and her films, Prix de Beaute, Loulou, Diary of a Lost Girl, and Beggars of Life dominated Parisian screens. The photographer and the film star met in Paris in late 1958, when Brooks was being celebrated at the Cinematheque Francaise; at the time, Man Ray recounted how he had seen her image in Paris years before. The artist was fond enough of Brooks that he sent her a small painting in memory of their meeting and in memory of his memory.

The Louise Brooks film that might well have introduced the actress to the Surrealist was likely A Girl in Every Port, which writer Blaise Cendrars called "the first appearance of contemporary cinema". The film debuted in Paris at the Ursulines. The Ursulines theatre opened in 1926 with films by André Breton, Man Ray, Fernand Léger, René Clair and Robert Desnos, and over the years, showed both mainstream and experimental cinema. At one point, the theatre also showed G.W. Pabst's Diary of a Lost Girl, which starred Brooks and also enjoyed a successful run in Paris.

Perhaps Man Ray also saw A Girl in Every Port at the Ursulines when it shared the bill with a short Man Ray film, L'Etoile de Mer, during the months of October, November, and December of 1928. L'Etoile de Mer (The Starfish) was scripted by the surrealist poet Robert Desnos and stars Desnos and Alice Prin. Better known as Kiki de Montparnasse, Prin famously sported Louise Brooks-like bobbed hair and bangs.

The pairing in Paris of A Girl in Every Port with a Surrealist film was not a one-time thing. Something similar also took place in Barcelona, Spain -- as seen in the advertisement below when A Girl in Every Port (under the Catalonian title Una xicota a cada port) was paired with the Salvador Dali - Luis Bunuel film, Le Chein Ansalou (An Andalusian Dog). Notably, A Girl in Every Port is described as an avant-garde film.

I have written about the Surrealists and Brooks before, but mention it again because I have just today come across another connection - this time to Salvador Dali. If I understand it correctly, the Spanish book, Por qué se ataca a la gioconda? (Ediciones Siruela, 1994), collects Salvador Dali's miscellaneous writings. (The book was reissued by Ediciones Siruela in 2003.) According to the publisher: "From the early years, and especially in the moments of greatest creativity - between 1924 and 1945 -, Dalí worked in parallel in the fields of literature and painting, which together contribute to the creation of a universe of shapes and symbols that he will not leave until the end of his days. The texts collected in this anthology correspond to different times that go from 1927 to 1978; they were published in the French magazine Oui and this edition rescues them in their entirety. The chronological order of the articles makes it easier to follow the evolution of the artist's ideas. His obsessions are his main thematic source: eroticism, death and rot, which articulate a very peculiar universe appearing recurrently throughout his life. . . . In his writings he mixes philosophical ideas with seemingly irrelevant anecdotes and is also concerned with surrealism and some of its problems, such as object, automatism or dream, without neglecting other topics such as photography and cinema."

Por qué se ataca a la gioconda? contains a piece written in Paris in 1929. It is a surreal piece, touching on factual and the dreamlike. Dali's piece reads in part, "Transcurren dos minutos de intervalo. Sobre la hoja cae un granito de arena que permanece inmovil en el centro di la hoja. Los cinco minutos expiran sin otra modificacion. Rene Clair, el realizador del popular film de vanguardia Entr'acte, ha comenzado a filmar Prix de beaute, con Louise Brooks. Sera una peli cula documental sobre el desnudo de Louise Brooks. Rene Magrite acaba de terminnar un lienzo donde "hay" un personaje que se encuentra a punto de perder la memoria, un grito de pajaro, un armario y un paisaje."

In translation, it reads, "Two minutes apart. A grain of sand falls on the leaf and remains motionless in the center of the leaf. The five minutes expire without further modification. Rene Clair, the director of the popular avant-garde film Entr'acte, has begun filming Prix de beaute, starring Louise Brooks. It will be a documentary film about Louise Brooks' nude. Rene Magrite has just finished a canvas where "there is" a character who is about to lose his memory, a bird's cry, a closet and a landscape."

I will end this post with a chance discovery from a while back of an article about Beggars of Life (as Captaires de Vida) which by chance rests next to an article about Dali (pictured center of page). It comes from a Catalonian newspaper.

I wonder if any of the Surrealists wrote any poems about Louise Brooks? Does anyone know? I know they wrote about Charlie Chaplin.

Monday, November 15, 2021

Some nifty videos gathered to the Louise Brooks Society YouTube channel

As I mentioned recently, I have recently been refurbishing the Louise Brooks Society's YouTube channel (as well as its Vimeo channel). In doing so, I have come across a bunch of interesting videos. In fact, I have come across some many worth bookmarking that I have organized a bunch of thematic playlists on YouTube which I would like everyone to browse. And please don't forget to like and subscribe. Two playlists I think everyone will like are "Louise Brooks - Documentaries and related material" as well as "Silent Film Era." There are 16 others to explore.

Here are a few other individual videos that I want to call to everyone's attention. I likes 'em.

"Buster and Louise" is a student film from 2009 by Jessica Polaniecki, who now works in the animation field. She once created and animated the Krampus puppet for a Christmas episode of Anthony Bourdain's show No Reservations. I wonder if she knew Bourdain was a fan of Louise Brooks? BTW, Jessica has done a lot of cool work. Check out her webpage HERE. ["Buster and Louise" can be found in the "Odds n Ends" playlist, along with 11 other videos of related interest.]

In this video short from FilmStruck, Alicia Malone discusses G.W. Pabst's storied career across his multitude of silent & talkie masterpieces - including the two films he made with Louise Brooks. ["Director G. W. Pabst" can be found in the "Director G. W. Pabst" playlist, along with 10 other videos of related interest.]

Including this little gem, "Pabst Plays Pabst" from Filmarchiv Austria in which the grandson of G.W. Pabst, Daniel Pabst, is seen accompanying various films by his illustrious grandfather. ["Pabst Plays Pabst" can be found in the "Louise Brooks - Musical Accompaniment to Films" playlist, along with 19 other videos of related interest.]

"Lulu - The Song" is one of the earlier musical tributes to Louise Brooks. Jen Anderson is an Australian composer, and this lovely song, which is part of a Pandora's Box soundtrack, dates from 1993. In 2006, I had the pleasure to meet Jen Anderson when she performed her soundtrack to the 1919 Australian silent film, The Sentimental Bloke, at the Pacific Film Archive in Berkeley, California. ["Lulu - The Song" can be found in the "Louise Brooks - Homage to Lulu (musical)" playlist, along with 26 other videos of related interest.]

Frank Wedekind is famous as the author of the Lulu plays, as well as Spring Awakening. But did you know he had a sister who sang opera and made a handful of recordings? Her name was Erika; according to her Wikipedia page, she was one of the "first female coloratura sopranos in Germany and an outstanding representative of her field. She gave more than a thousand performances in Germany, Prague, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Budapest, Stockholm, Paris and London before becoming an internationally sought-after singing teacher between 1914 and 1930. From 1930 she lived in seclusion in Switzerland, where she died in Zurich in 1944 at the age of 75. Because she was so successful, she was able to help support Frank Wedekind, who often struggled in his career. ["Erika Wedekind sings Mignon Styrienne 1908" can be found in the "Frank Wedekind / Lulu" playlist, along with 25 other videos of related interest.]

Another video on that same playlist is the Silent Theater adaption of Lulu: a black and white silent play, starring Kyla Webb as Lulu. I am so glad to have found this video, as I was fortunate to see this very performance at the Victoria Theater in San Francisco in 2006. And, I had the chance to meet Kyla. Lulu: a black and white silent play is well worth checking out - but remember, this unusual adaption is a stage play without dialogue, like silent film.

When you can, check out the Louise Brooks Society's YouTube channel. And don't forget to like and subscribe.

Sunday, November 14, 2021

Happy Birthday to Louise Brooks

Louise Brooks, silent film star and 20th century icon, was born on this day in 1906 in Cherryvale, Kansas. Today marks what would have been her 115th birthday. Here are a few pictures to celebrate.

BTW: Louise Brooks' sensational 1928 film, Beggars of Life will be shown today at Film Forum in New York City! See the previous post for more information https://louisebrookssociety.blogspot.com/2021/11/beggars-of-life-screens-in-nyc-on.html

Saturday, November 13, 2021

Beggars of Life screens in NYC on Louise Brooks birthday!

On Sunday, November 14th (which also happens to be Louise Brooks' birthday), Film Forum in New York City will screen Beggars of Life with live piano accompaniment by Steve Sterner. And what's more, the film will be introduced by L.A.-based author / film critic / historian Leonard Maltin (via recorded Zoom). Notably, this is the fourth time in 10 years Film Forum has screened this now classic film. Film Forum is located at 209 West Houston St. west of 6th Ave. in NYC. More information about the event HERE. BTW: Attendees will be required to provide proof of vaccination for entry to the theater (also applies to children 12 and above).

The Film Forum program note reads: " (1928, William A. Wellman) On the run after killing a molesting stepfather, dressed-as-a-boy Louise Brooks is befriended by Richard Arlen and falls in with Wallace Beery’s band of hoboes. Long-thought-lost silent classic, with Brook’s best pre-German work and dazzling location work on speeding trains. DCP. Approx. 81 min."

One of the Film Forum's previous screening took place in 2012. At the time, I wrote a piece for Huffington Post titled, “Beggars of Life with Louise Brooks Screens in New York.” The late great film critic Roger Ebert read my article and tweeted about it, stating he wished that this classic film would be released on DVD by Kino. And a few years later it was!

If you can't attend this event and want to see the film, hurry and search out some of the few remaining Blu-ray copies of the 2017 Kino release. It is my understanding that the DVD is out-of-print. The few remaining copies of this outstanding disc can be found HERE. And what's more, the Kino Lorber release (pictured on the right) features two commentaries, one by the son of the film's director, William Wellman, and one by myself, Thomas Gladysz.

This DVD was named one of the best of the year by three noted critics — not bad for a silent film! Additionally, my commentary was singled out or mentioned by a handful of media outlets including the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, Films in Review, Combustible Celluloid, Film International, and Home Media Magazine.

“Brooks scholar Thomas Gladysz provides a very informative commentary on this excellent restoration.” — PopMatters

“Gladysz, who’s the founding director of the Louise Brooks Society, also goes into great detail about the studio production of the film, and the stories of its stars.” — Texas Public Radio (NPR).

Want to learn more about what is widely considered Brooks best American film? Then let me recommend my 2017 book, Beggars of Life: a Companion to the 1928 Film (pictured left).

This 106-page first ever study of Beggars of Life looks at the film Oscar-winning director William Wellman thought his finest silent movie. With 15,000 words of text, more than 50 little seen images, and a foreword by actor William Wellman, Jr., son of the legendary director.Autographed copies are available directly from me, or they are also available online at the following sites.

Or, buy the English-language edition from Open Trolley (Indonesia)

Here is what others have said about my book:

"I can say (with head bowed modestly) that I know more about the career of director William A. Wellman than pretty much anybody anywhere -- always excepting my friend and co-author John Gallagher -- but there are things in Thomas Gladysz's new book on Wellman's Beggars of Life that I didn't know. More important, the writing is so good and the research so deep that even when I was reading about facts that were familiar to me, I was enjoying myself hugely." -- Frank Thompson, co-author of Nothing Sacred: The Cinema of William Wellman

"Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film is a quick, satisfying read, illustrated with promotional material, posters and stills as well as press clippings. In these pages, Gladysz takes us through the making and the reception of the film and clears up a few mysteries too.... Beggars of Life is a fascinating movie, made by some of the silent film industry's most colourful characters. This highly readable book will deepen your enjoyment and understanding of a silent Hollywood classic." -- Pamela Hutchinson, Silent London

"I cannot help but give this an enthusiastic two thumbs up. It really is the perfect companion, before or after you have seen the film. The volume might be slim, but, it is packed with information and rare photographs. It has been impeccably researched and beautifully executed.... This is a thorough examination of the film from start to finish and written in a breezy style that is not only informative, it is a very entertaining read." -- Donna Hill, Strictly Vintage Hollywood

"Read your book. I love it. It is thorough and extremely interesting. The art work is compelling." -- William Wellman, Jr., author of Wild Bill Wellman

"Gladysz has written a brief but informative book .... offers a profound and true insight." -- Jack Garner, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

"For this film, including details on what is known about the original recorded soundtrack, I highly recommend Thomas Gladysz's book Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film." -- Rodney Sauer, Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra

"There is an affordable and highly recommended book that goes perfectly with the blu ray. Gladysz, director of the Louise Brooks Society, has written a companion book to the movie that features a wealth of information, insight, and photos. It really puts this film into historical perspective and helps to further understand and more deeply appreciate its status as a screen classic." -- James Neibur, film historian and author

Friday, November 12, 2021

Edinburgh artist Sarah E. Wilson creates Louise Brooks art

The other day, I was alerted to a small exhibit going on at an independent fashion boutique called Hoochie Coochie in Edinburgh, Scotland which featured -- among other things -- imagery of various movie icons such as Anna May Wong, Gloria Swanson, Audrey Hepburn, Jane Russell, and notably Louise Brooks. The pieces on display (at a space called Hoochie Coochie) are the work of a contemporary Edinburgh-based artist named Sarah E. Wilson. For those fortunate enough to live in the area and take in the show - which runs through November 28th, Hoochie Coochie is located in the Tollcross area of Edinburg at 48 Home Street, EH3 9NA.

I had trouble finding out more about this show, which came to my attention through a press release and my google news key word alert. And so, instead, I went looking for information about the artist and found her website, which features a number of images of her work, including portraits of Brooks and other early film stars. Check it out at http://www.sarah-ewilson.co.uk/ Or, check out her page on Saatchi Art.

A statement on the artist's website reads, "My work and research centres round the subject of vintage glamorous film starlettes from an era when everything was just that little bit more fabulous. Scottish artist, painter, eco-friendly printmaker. Influenced by Picasso, Klimt, Schiele and members of the art deco movement."

Looking around her website, I found a handful of works depicting Brooks - see the "Paintings and Artworks" page. Among those I spotted were these two, which I found appealing. (I also like the green-tinted Swanson image on her homepage.)

There are other works which depict Brooks, so be sure and look around this artists's ~~studio~~ website. "A Fair Lady", which depicts Audrey Hepburn is also rather appealing, as is the Harlow piece.

The "Sold" page contains that ravishing Swanson piece, as well as three other Brooks pieces - and nifty work depicting Evelyn Brent, Audrey Tatou, and others. The "Toyobo Prints" page contains an Alla Nazimova.

I reached out to the artists to ask her about her interest in early films stars, in particular Louise Brooks, and how she came to find inspiration in their likenesses. But alas, I have not heard back.