Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, to screen on Silent Movie Day

This year, the annual Silent Movie Day will take place on September 29. Celebrations -- in the form of screenings -- are taking place all over the United States, as well as in Europe. Click on their Facebook page to see if a theater near you will be screening a film -- and if they are, GO! From what I saw, there are Buster Keaton, Clara Bow, Harold Lloyd, Douglas Fairbanks and other silent films being screened in theaters..... even Joan of Arc and The Phantom of the Opera.

To mark the occasion, the Little Theater in Rochester, New York will screen the most recent restoration of Pandora's Box. The Little Theater opened in 1929, the same year Pandora's Box was released. Over the years, it has become the area's leading venue for classic films. In the 1960s and 1970s, while Louise Brooks was living in Rochester, she would sometimes go to the Little Theater to watch movies.*

The Little Theater (240 East Ave. in Rochester) will screen Pandora's Box twice on September 29th, at 10:30 in the morning and 7:00 in the evening. More information, as well as ticket availability, can be found HERE. According to the Little Theater website: 

"One of the masters of early German cinema, G. W. Pabst had an innate talent for discovering actresses (including Greta Garbo). And perhaps none of his female stars shone brighter than Kansas native and onetime Ziegfeld girl Louise Brooks, whose legendary persona was defined by Pabst’s lurid, controversial melodrama Pandora’s Box.

Sensationally modern, the film follows the downward spiral of the fiery, brash, yet innocent showgirl Lulu, whose sexual vivacity has a devastating effect on everyone she comes in contact with. Daring and stylish, Pandora’s Box is one of silent cinema’s great masterworks and a testament to Brooks’s dazzling individuality.

Restored from the best surviving 35mm elements at Haghefilm Conservation under the supervision of the Deutsche Kinemathek with the cooperation of George Eastman Museum, the Cinémathèque Française, Cineteca di Bologna, Národní filmový archiv, and Gosfilmofond."

* For instance: In March of 1966, Brooks went to the Little Theater to see Lord Love a Duck starring Roddy McDowell. And in late August of 1969, she went to see The Loves of Isadora, a film Brooks thinks highly of.

More about Pandora's Box can be found on the newly revamped Louise Brooks Society website on its Pandora's Box (filmography page).

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Louise Brooks, the Kansas Cleopatra

Louise Brooks, the Kansas Cleopatra . . . apparently so. 

A seller on eBay is currently offering a "LOUISE BROOKS the Kansas Cleopatra" t-shirt for sale. The seller (not me) says the shirts were manufactured between 1990 and 1999 -- hence the "vintage" description and the $60.00 asking price! The artwork looks like an adaption of the famous Eugene Robert Richee photograph. 

This Made in the USA t-shirt bears a JERZEES label, and according to the back of the label originates from the Russel Corp. from Alexander City, Alabama. Here are a couple of screen grabs.

While browsing this item, eBay suggested some similar items including a couple different Brooks & Dunn t-shirts (they are a country music act, and not similar at all), as well as another "vintage" Louise Brooks t-shirt featuring another Richee image. And what's more, the seller is asking $199.99 !

The seller of this item (not me) says the shirt dates from 1994. It bears a FRUIT OF THE LOOM label and was made in the USA. Beneath the image of Brooks are two lines of text which read, "Louise Brooks 1928 by Eugene Robert Richee / © 1994 The Kobal Collection Fotofolio"

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The Street of Forgotten Men, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1925

The Street of Forgotten Men, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1925. The film underworld romance set among fake beggars and their “cripple factory” in the slums of the Bowery in New York City. The film is based on an O. Henryesque short story by George Kibbe Turner which appeared in Liberty magazine on February 14, 1925, just two months before the film went into production. The film is notable as the first in which Louise Brooks had a role, that of a moll (companion to a gangster). More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

The Street of Forgotten Men was well regarded upon release, with star Percy Marmount singled out time and again for a fine dramatic performance often compared to the efforts of Lon Chaney. Director Herbert Brenon was also praised for his realistic depiction of Bowery life. Brenon, who the year before had directed Peter Pan (1924), went on to helm such classics as Beau Geste (1926), The Great Gatsby (1926), and Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928). His Sorrell and Son (1927) was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director at the 1st Academy Awards.

The New York Daily News praised the film, noting “The Street of Forgotten Men dips into the dark pools of life. It shows you the beggars of life — apologies to Jim Tully — and in showing them it shows them up.”

Dorothy Evans of the Sacramento Union summed-up the feelings of many critics when she noted that the film’s “theme goes deeper than the average motion picture”. Roberta Nangle of the Chicago Tribune echoed her, “It is a startling tale of Bowery life, of the soiled, tawdry ladies and broken men of the underworld”. An exclamation point was added by A. F. Gillaspey of the San Francisco Bulletin, “For fine dramatic detail, for unusualness, for giving us a glimpse into a world we never see and into the other sides of characters we simply pass in pity on the streets, The Street of Forgotten Men is a photoplay revelation.”

Exhibitor’s Trade Review stated the film was tied for fifth among the year’s biggest “profit takers,” as reported by exhibitors. Commercial success was matched by critical acclaim. The National Board of Review named The Street of Forgotten Men one of the 40 best pictures of 1925; it was also picked one of the best films of the year by the Houston Chronicle, Pittsburgh Gazette Times, San Francisco Call & Post, Tacoma Times, and Topeka Daily Capital.

Though her role was small and she was not listed in the credits, Brooks received her very first notice for work in a film. In August, an anonymous critic for the Los Angeles Times wrote, “And there was a little rowdy, obviously attached to the ‘blind’ man, who did some vital work during her few short scenes. She was not listed.” At the time, this reference to Brooks was the extant of any attention she would receive for being in the film. Brooks, however, is depicted in at least two publicity stills issued by Paramount. Both show moments from the bar fight, a turning point in the film. Seemingly, neither of the stills were published in the United States, though both were published abroad, one in Brazil, and another in France.

Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia (including Tasmania), Bermuda, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Ireland, Jamaica, Korea, New Zealand, Panama, South Africa, and the United Kingdom (including England, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In the United States, the film was presented under the title La Calle de los Olvidados (Spanish-language press), A Rua dos Homens Esquecidos (Portuguese-language press), and Az Elfelejtett Emberek Utcája (Hungarian-language press).

Elsewhere, The Street of Forgotten Men was shown under the title L’école des mendiants (Algeria); Die Straße des Grauens (Austria); De School der Bedelaars (Belgium); O mendigo elegante and Um mendigo elegante (Brazil); La calle del olvido (Chile); La calle del olvido (Cuba); Ulice zapomenutých mužu (Czechoslovakia); Tiggerkongen (Denmark); De Straat der Ellendigen (Dutch East Indies); De Straat der verlaten Wezens (Dutch Guiana); Varjojen lapsi (Finland); L’école des mendiants – primarily, but also on a few occasions as Le roi des mendiants and La rue des hommes perdus (France); Die Straße des Grauens (Germany); Konungur Betlaranna (Iceland); 或る乞食の話 or Aru kojiki no hanashi (Japan); L’école des mendiants (Luxembourg); La calle del olvido (Mexico); De School der Bedelaars and De Vakschool der bedelaars (Netherlands); Varjojen lapsia (Norway); Vidas Perdidas (Portugal); Улица забытых людей (Soviet Union); La calle del olvido (Spain); and Skuggornas barn (Sweden).

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

— According to one newspaper article, some of the names or ‘monackers’ scrawled on the beggars’ lockers include Bridgeport White Eye and Easy Money Charlie, as well as London Tip, Ed the Flop, Chicago Stick, Handsome Harry’ and Diamond Dick.

— The role of Portland Fancy was played by Juliet Brenon, the niece of the director.

— In one scene, Mary Brian is shown playing the piano. The sheet music is from Peter Pan, which Brian had starred in the year before under the direction of Brenon.

— The dog in the film was played by Lassie, who also appeared in Tol’able David and other silent films. According to the New York Times, Lassie was a star, earning $15,000 a year as a canine actor. The article noted “It is said that the death of Lassie in The Street of Forgotten Men was so impressive that persons were convinced that she must have been cruelly beaten.”

— A 1926 article in the New York Times reported that the film may have inspired a group of beggars to feign handicaps. “The police are investigating the speakeasy. It was recalled that several months ago a motion picture, The Street of Forgotten Men . . . showed just such an establishment for equipping ‘cripples’ as that described by Williams, and the police thought the movie idea might have been put to practical use.”

 — The first ever book on the film, The Street of Forgotten Men: From Story to Screen and Beyond, was published by the Louise Brooks Society in 2023. The book is authored by LBS Director Thomas Gladysz, and features forewords by film preservationist Robert Byrne and Oscar Honoree Kevin Brownlow. (Purchase on amazon.)

More about The Street of Forgotten Men can be found on the newly revamped Louise Brooks Society website on its The Street of Forgotten Men (filmography page).

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Prix de beauté, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1930

Prix de beauté, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1930. In her last starring role and last European film, Louise Brooks plays a typist stuck in a dull job who wins a beauty contest. Like Pandora’s Box and Diary of a Lost Girl, Prix de beauté is a tragedy in which misfortune befalls the character played by Brooks. In a sense, the film can be seen as the third in a European trilogy starring the actress. The film is notable for being the first sound film to feature Brooks, although her dialogue and singing were dubbed, as well as one of the earliest French sound films. 

More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

Production of Prix de beauté was problematic. Intended as silent film and based on a story by G.W. Pabst and Rene Clair (with the French Clair as the intended director), funding for the project fell apart, and its production delayed. This was at the time when the European cinema was transitioning to sound. Eventually, Prix de beauté was released as a “talkie” under the direction of Augusto Genina, an Italian, with the Polish-born Rudolph Maté acting as cinematographer.

In June, 1930 Morris Gilbert wrote an article on the changing French film industry for the New York Times. He noted that a handful of American stars were appearing in French productions, including “Louise Brooks, a product of young Hollywood, is starring in the French Prix de beauté.” Gilbert’s mention was one of the first the film received in the United States.

That same month, writing in the British journal Close-Up, Charles E. Stenhouse gave the film one its first English-language reviews. Stenhouse wrote, “Louise Brooks [was] looking very photogenic as Miss France but not acting as well as when directed by Pabst. Never has one of Pabst’s discoveries achieved more than when under his inspiring influence. Greta Garbo! Brigitte Helm! And now Louise Brooks! The big trick in Prix de beauté is its remarkable ending, which redeems the previous passages whose very mediocrity emphasizes the ending’s splendour. An exceptional one and for once not a happy one. . . . A trick – but really one of beauty and irony, and at last a morsel of true sound-film technique.”

Variety reviewed the film on September 3, 1930. Writing about the Berlin screening, Magnus gave Prix de beauté a mixed notice. “In itself this talker is neither better nor worse than most others. . . . It shows the right conception for facts, a natural way of looking at things and reality. . . . This talker is very interesting, if only for the scene when the little girl has sunk back dead in her chair and her tune-picture continues singing from the screen. . . . Owing to bad synchronization this talker is a failure. . . . The acting is very good. Louise Brooks looks charming and she knows how to move.”

Miss Europa, as it was titled in Germany, did poor business, and reportedly only played for five days in August 1930. The film played across Europe — from Iceland to Poland, as well as in now former French colonies, like Algeria and Haiti. The film was not shown in the United States until decades later.

Under its French title, documented screenings of the film took place in Algeria, Belgium, Haiti, Japan, Madagascar, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey.

Elsewhere, Prix de beauté was shown under the title Vanidad (Argentina); Miss Europa (Austria); Miss Europa (Brazil); El Premio Fatal (Cuba); Miss Europa and Der Schönheitspreis (Czechoslovakia) and Miss Európa (Slovakia); Miss Europa (Danzig); Miss Europa (Denmark); Beauty Prize and Miss Europe (England); Miss Europa and Preis der Schönheit and Der Schönheitpreis (Germany); A szépsvg vására or Szépségvásár and Miss Europa (Hungary); Fegurðardrottning Euröpu (Iceland); Miss Europa and Premio di bellezza and Regina di bellezza (Italy); ミス・ヨーロッパ or Misu yōroppa (Japan); Premija par skaistumu and Skaistuma godalga (Latvia); Miss Europa (Der Schonheitspreis) (Luxembourg); Miss Europa and Schoonheidsprijs (The Netherlands); Skjønhetskonkurransen (Norway); Kobieto nie grzesz and Nagroda pieknosci and Nie Grzesz Kobieto (Poland); Miss Europa (Der Schonheitspreis) and Weib, sündige nicht (Poland, German language publication); Prémio de Beleza (Portugal); Nagrada za lepoto and Zrtev velike ljubezni (Slovenia); Premio de belleza (Spain, including Catalonia); Miss Europe (Switzerland); Güzellik Kiraliçesi and Güzellik Kirali-çasi and Küzellik Kirali-çasi and Güzellik Ödülü (Turkey); Nie Grzesz Kobieto! (Ukraine); Приз краси and Приз за красоту (U.S.S.R.); Vanidad (Uruguay, 1977); Vanidad (Venezuela).

In recent years, numerous screenings of the film have been taken place around the world, including first ever showings under the title Prix de beauté (or Beauty Prize or Miss Europe) in Australia, Canada, United States and elsewhere.

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

— For the European market, Prix de beauté was released in four languages – French, English, German and Italian. Brooks’ voice was dubbed by Hélène Regelly (in French) and Donatella Neri (in Italian).

— On June 15, 1930 Morris Gilbert wrote an article on the changing French film industry for the New York Times. He noted “Louise Brooks, a product of young Hollywood, is starring in the French Prix de beauté.” This marked the first mention of the film in an American publication. Prix de beauté, however, was not shown in the United States until decades later.

— In 1932, Editions Jules Tallandier published an illustrated novelization of the film as part of its Cinema-Bibliotheque series. Boisyvon, who would go on to establish himself as a film historian and critic, wrote the story.

— In 1974, Kenneth Anger produced an Art Deco film festival in San Francisco that featured Prix de beauté.

More about Prix de beauté can be found on the newly revamped Louise Brooks Society website on its Prix de beauté (filmography page).

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The Show Off, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1926

The Show Off, featuring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1926. The film a satiric comedy about an insufferable braggart who disrupts the life of a middle-class family. While remembered today as a Louise Brooks film, The Show-Off is really a vehicle for Ford Sterling, a comedian best remembered for his starring work as a member of the Keystone Kops. As a broad comedian, he is the perfect choice for the role of the titular blowhard Aubrey Piper. Brooks plays a supporting role as the love interest of the boy who lives next door. 

More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

Based on a popular stage play by an acclaimed playwright, The Show-Off was considered a prestige project — and thus drew a significant amount of critical attention along with inevitable comparison to its Broadway namesake. Motion Picture News proclaimed, “The picture is funnier than the play.” However, Billboard magazine disapproved, stating the film “has emerged considerably worse for the wear in its trip from the legit to the silver screen.” The critic for the San Jose Evening News countered, adding “The Show-Off is undoubtedly one of the biggest comedy hits of the year.”

John S. Cohen Jr. of the New York Sun wrote, “Directed by Malcolm St. Clair, the film boasts of exceptional naturalistic acting on the part of Ford Sterling, Lois Wilson, Claire McDowell, C. W. Goodrich, Gregory Kelly and – in one sequence – Louise Brooks . . . . Miss Brooks is best in the scene where she burlesques the pantomime employed by Mr. Sterling to describe his automobile experience.”

Famed author Robert E. Sherwood, named it a “recommended” film in McCall’s magazine. Writing in Life, he said the director “has taken a simple play of average American life and made a genuinely tender, touching, sympathetic picture of it”. Sherwood went on to call the film “a worthy reproduction of a great comedy.” Later, in Mirrors of the Year, an annual published in 1927, The Show-Off was deemed “a remarkable artistic achievement” and one of the best films of 1926.

Along with comparison to the play, criticism of The Show-Off also focused on Brooks. The critic for the Ann Arbor Times News thought Brooks almost “ran away with the picture.” While Peggy Patton of the Wisconsin News said Brooks “adds a dash of color to the offering with her daring personality.”

Other critics, however, disagreed — and a number found fault with her appearance. Dorothy Herzog of the New York Daily Mirror wrote “Louise Brooks spitfires, prisses, oogles and calls it a day of heavy emoting. Miss Brooks is a distinct type, but she seems to suffer from inefficient direction and miscasting. She also appears a trifle rounded, for and aft, in this opera, but this may be due to her skin-tight dresses.”

Norbert Lusk of Picture-Play echoed Herzog’s comments, stating “Lois Wilson tossed aside opportunities for shrewd characterization by wearing Paris frocks as a daughter of the Philadelphia poor. Louise Brooks, another little sister of poverty, likewise offended.” Frank Aston of the Cincinnati Post added an exclamation mark with a bit of snark when he noted, “And henceforth and forever when we think of The Show-Off we shall picture Louise Brooks and her display of hosiery.”

 
Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Australia (including Tasmania), Bermuda, British Malaysia (Singapore), Canada, China, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Hong Kong, Jamaica, New Zealand, Panama, and the United Kingdom (England, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales).

The Show-Off was shown elsewhere under the title Moi; Moi… (Belgium); O Mostrador and O Fanfarrão (Brazil); El Fachendoso (Cuba); Se chlubit (Czechoslovakia); De Windbuil (Dutch East Indies); Aubrey, sa oled kangelane! and Rahamehest (Estonia); Storskrytaren and Suurkerskuri (Finland); Moi; Moi… (France); Il Vanitoso (Italy);  駄法螺大当り or Dabora dai tōri (Japan); El Fachendoso (Mexico); Før og efter Byllupet (Norway); El Fachendoso (Spain); and Moi (Switzerland).

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

— The Show-Off (1924) was authored by Philadelphia-born George Kelly (1887–1974), an American playwright, screenwriter, director, and actor. Besides being the uncle of the Oscar winning actress Grace Kelly (the future Princess Grace of Monaco), George Kelly was considered by some (Robert Benchley, Alexander Woollcott, and others) as one of the finest  dramatists of the 1920s — alongside the likes of Sherwood Anderson and Elmer Rice. Besides The Show-Off, Kelly was best known for Craig’s Wife (1925), which won the Pulitzer Prize and was made into a motion picture on three occasions. His first play, The Torch Bearers, was also highly regarded.

— The Show-Off is one of two films that co-starred the popular Broadway actor Gregory Kelly (no relation), who died shortly after The Show-Off finished production. Gregory Kelly was the first husband of actress Ruth Gordon.

More about The Show-Off can be found on the newly revamped Louise Brooks Society website on its The Show-Off (filmography page).

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

In Memory of Louise Brooks

A dear friend, who once met Louise Brooks and spoke with her regularly and who now wishes to remain anonymous, sent me this snapshot of Louise Brooks' grave in Rochester, New York. It nearly brought me to tears. It is a beautiful image. I love the memory stones. My dear friend also told me he said a few words on my behalf to Louise.... There are good people in the world still.

Mary Louise Brooks (November 14, 1906 - August 8, 1985)

As a kind of coda to this blog, I would recommend everyone check out Jan-Christopher Horak's 2020 blog post, "The Last Days of Louise Brooks". It's a honest snapshot of the actress in her last days.

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Love ’Em and Leave ’Em, starring Louise Brooks, SELLS OUT at BFI in London

Louise Brooks is a star.... today, more than ever!

Just a week ago, the A Girl in Every Port (1928) screening at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) drew so many people that it had to moved to a larger room at the famed New York City museum. That's according to the great Ben Model, musical accompaniest extraordinaire, who performed at the screening. (Read my earlier blog about the event HERE.)

Now comes word that the Love ’Em and Leave ’Em (1926) screening at the BFI (British Film Institute) in London set for August 18 has SOLD OUT in advance. (Read my earlier blog about that event HERE.) If you were lucky enough to buy tickets, you'll be able to see something rare -- a 78 minute, 16mm print from the BFI National Archive on the big screen, along with an introduction and live piano accompaniment.

With the forthcoming release of two new (and different ) Blu-ray releases of Pandora's Box (1929) later this year, and the additional screenings of that same film both earlier and later this year, things are really beginning to pick-up. Heck, this acclaimed silent film is even being screened on HBO Max. (For more on the two new releases of Pandora's Box, see this earlier LBS blog post HERE.) 

And lest we forget, The Canary Murder Case (1929), also starring Louise Brooks, was also released earlier this year. (See this earlier blog posting HERE.) As was an omnibus of the Louise Brooks inspired Dixie Dugan novels. (Read more about that book HERE.)

But wait, there's more....

Also set for release either later this year or early next year is a disc of Louise Brooks films (yes, that's plural) which have never been released on disc before. As a matter of fact, some of these films have rarely if ever been shown in a theater in 100 years! (Read a little more about that release HERE.)

But wait, there's still more....

The world has been clamoring for an e-book edition of Lulu in Hollywood, and it should get its wish sometime late next year ...  also in the works is a "new edition" of Brooks' classic book of film lit. (On April 8, 2024, Lulu in Hollywood was included in the Los Angeles Times list of the "50 best Hollywood books of all time -- as noted in the Lulu in Hollywood Wikipedia page which I created earlier this year.)

As both of these just mentioned forthcoming projects are still "in the works" I can't say more, except to mention that the Louise Brooks Society is involved in each ... as well as others. And hey, did your know that the pioneering Louise Brooks Society website will be celebrating its 30th anniversary next year! I have been hard at work revising and expanding the site. As of today, the site encompasses some 250 pages of material. Please check it out at www.pandorasbox.com

And if you want to keep informed of everything going on in the world of Louise Brooks, please subscribe to this blog.

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 © 2024. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.