Friday, November 14, 2003

Happy Birthday, Louise Brooks!

Mary Louise Brooks was born on this day in Cherryvale, Kansas in 1906. The Cherryvale Daily News ran a small item on the front page of newspaper.

Thursday, November 13, 2003

Neve Campbell w roli Lulu

[ An article in Polish about Neve Campbell's desire to play Louise Brooks. ]

Neve Campbell w roli Lulu

Neve Campbell ("Krzyk", "Krzyk 2", "Krzyk 3") przygotowuje się do roli w filmie opowiadającym o życiu Louise Brooks, legendarnej gwiazdy kina niemego. Obraz pod tytułem "Lulu" przedstawi okres sławy aktorki, a potem zaskakujące porzucenie przez nią kariery ekranowej. Campbell sama nabyła prawa do scenariusza projektu, a obecnie poszukuje producentów i reżysera.



Louise Brooks urodziła się w 1906 roku w stanie Kansas. Karierę rozpoczynała jako tancerka rewiowa, pojawiała się także na Broadway'u.

Na ekranie zadebiutowała w 1925 roku. Po występie w kilkunastu filmach hollywoodzkich (m.in. "Amerykańskiej Wenus" i "Dziewczynie w każdym porcie") przeniosła się do Europy, gdzie dwoma dziełami (i niezwykle charakterystyczną fryzurą) zapewniła sobie ważne miejsce w historii kina.

Tytułami tymi były zrealizowane w 1929 roku "Puszka Pandory" i "Dusze bez steru" niemieckiego reżysera Georga Wilhelma Pabsta. Louise Brooks stała się jednym z klasyczych wampów ekranowych.

Po powrocie do USA niepokorna i niezależna aktorka zagrała w jeszcze kilku obrazach i... w 1938 roku definitywnie rozstała z kinem. Zarabiała na życie jako tancerka, poświęcała się malarstwu i lekturze, a z czasem została cenioną pisarką. Wśród jej licznych książek znalazła się również autobiografia.

Louise Brooks zmarła na zawał serca w Nowym Jorku w 1985 roku.

Neve Campbell chciała przenieść historię gwiazdy na ekran już od wielu lat. Teraz, gdy kupiła scenariusz "Lulu", który napisali Peter Nickowitz i Bill Oliver, znalazla się bardzo blisko realizacji tego celu.

Kanadyjska aktorka wystąpiła niedawno w opartym na własnym pomyśle filmie "The Company" Roberta Altmana (była także producentką tego projektu) i komedii "Churchill: The Hollywood Years" z Christianem Slaterem.

Wśród kolejnych planów Campbell są m.in. thriller "Blind Horizon" z Valem Kilmerem oraz dramat "When Will I Be Loved" Jamesa Tobacka.

Monday, November 10, 2003

Empty Saddles / Overland Stage Raiders

The other day, I got a flier in the male from Grapevine Video. Among their new offerings is a "Louise Brooks Double Feature" dvd-r featuring Empty Saddles and Overland Stage Raiders. The item number is #LBDFDVD abnd it retails for $14.95.

As was announced earlier, Grapevine is going out of business. So, if you are interested in this release or any of their earlier dvd-r or vhs items, the time to order is now. More info at http://www.grapevinevideo.com

Sunday, November 9, 2003

Nude on eBay

There is an image for sale on eBay which is described as "NUDE LOUISE BROOKS AS ZIEGFELD GIRL, photo."

To my eyes, this is not actually Brooks, but just someone who merely resembles her. (The face doesn't quite resemble the actress, and her partially exposed breast seems too big. Brooks had small breasts, like "little pears.") Many Ziegfeld Follies girls wore bobs, and many posed for this sort of cheesecake photo.

What do you think ? There are a couple of copies of this image for sale, both from the same seller. Here is a link for those interested.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3637182104&category=2211

Saturday, November 1, 2003

Recent research

I managed to borrow a few years of the Musical Courier, a performing arts trade journal. That publication yielded some articles, reviews and advertisements for Brooks' appearances with the Denishawn dance company. I also found some brief reviews of Brooks' films when they showed in NYC.

Some of the newspapers I have been looking at of late include the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, St. Louis Times, Milwaukee Leader, and Louisville Courier-Journal.

Friday, October 3, 2003

Greta Garbo biography by Barry Paris

Finished reading Barry Paris' excellent biography of the Swedish-born actress Greta Garbo. In many ways, she is as elusive a personality as Louise Brooks. But, her mystery - her appeal - comes from somewhere else. After having read Barry Paris' biographies of both film stars, I am certain there was more going on in Brooks' head (as well as deeper motivations) than in Garbo's. 

Reading Garbo got me onto a Garbo jag. I am wanting to read more. Scouring the bibliography in the back of Paris' book led me to track down and purchase over the internet two early books on the actress, The Private Life of Greta Garbo by Rilla Page Palmborg (published in softcover in London in 1931), and Greta Garbo: The Story of a Specialist by E. E. Laing (published in London in hardcover in 1946). I am looking forward to receiving each of these books.

p.s. When I saw Barry Paris a few years ago, he gave me a special Garbo bookmark which was made by a friend of his. I keep it in my copy of his book. It measures approximately 2.5 inches wide by 8 inches tall, and is reproduced below. 

Tuesday, September 2, 2003

LBS Research update

My quest to uncover more articles and reviews related to Louise Brooks' career as a dancer and film actress continues. Some of the publications I have been looking at lately (on microfilm via inter-library loan) are the Kansas City Star, Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Pittsburgh Dispatch, Houston Chronicle, Salt Lake Telegram, Syracuse Post-Standard, Miami Herald, Minneapolis Star and Indianapolis Star. I was able to find some material in each of these papers. The Pittsburgh Dispatch, it might be noted, is now defunct. It ceased publishing not too long after Louise Brooks and the Denishawn dance company passed through town. Other newspapers I have looked at in my research have also closed, have changed names, or have merged with another publication. 

My goal is to survey the leading newspapers in the 20 largest cities in America in the 1920's. I have also looked at - or plan to look at - newspapers from each region of the United States. All together, the accumulated results should offer a representitive critical perspective on Brooks and her films.

Thursday, August 28, 2003

Ramon Novarro bio

I just finished reading an excellent film biography, Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro, by Andre Soares. It is one of the most sympathetic biographies I have read in a long time. I really liked this book. It is well written and well researched. And is highly recommended. (And if you haven't seen the original Ben-Hur, go out and rent it today. It is excellent. I have seen it at least a half-dozen times.)

Here is a description of the book from its publisher. "Ramon Novarro was for years one of the top lead actors in Hollywood - the first Latin-American performer to become a Hollywood superstar. Born Ramón Samaniego to a prominent Mexican family, Novarro arrived in Hollywood in 1916 as a refugee from the civil wars that rocked Mexico in the early 20th century. By the mid-1920s, he had become one of MGM's most important leading men, going on to star in a series of now classic films including The Student Prince, Mata Hari, and the original version of Ben-Hur. He shared the screen with the era's most important leading ladies such as Greta Garbo, Myrna Loy, Joan Crawford, and Norma Shearer and become Rudolph Valentino's main rival in the "Latin Lover" category. But despite his considerable professional accomplishments, Novarro's most enduring claim to fame is his tragic death - his bloodied corpse was found in his house on Halloween 1968 in what has become one of the most infamous scandals in the vast lore of Hollywood.

Novarro was a life-long bachelor who had carefully cultivated his image as a man deeply devoted to his family and to his religious convictions. His murder shattered that image as it was revealed to the general public that the dashing screen hero had been not only homosexual, but had been killed by two young male hustlers. Since then, his death has achieved near mythic proportions. Increasingly outlandish stories have become accepted as truth, obscuring Novarro's notable professional legacy.

Beyond Paradise presents for the first time a full picture of the man who made motion picture history - from his amazing rise to stardom to the destructive conflicts faced by this traditional Catholic Mexican man who was also a gay film star. Compellingly told and impressively researched - including original interviews with Novarro's surviving friends, family, co-workers and the two men convicted of his murder - Beyond Paradise provides a unique insight into the groundbreaking life and career of one of the most important early Hollywood stars - a man whose myth continues to fascinate today."
Powered By Blogger