Early 1930s Louise Brooks portrait

An early 1930's portrait of Louise Brooks, by Irving Lippman (of Columbia Studios).

Happy birthday Louise Brooks

Dancer, writer, and silent film star Louise Brooks was born on this day in 1906 in Cherryvale, Kansas. And, on that very day, the Cherryvale Daily News ran a small item on the front page of the newspaper. Happy Birthday, Louise !

To celebrate, why not watch a movie like Pandora's Box, or read a book, like the Louise Brooks edition of The Diary of a Lost Girl.

Compare and contrast: two pictures of Louise Brooks

Louise Brooks, circa 1925

Louise Brooks, circa 1927

Louise Brooks Society visits the William S. Paley Collection

The Louise Brooks Society visits the William S. Paley Collection at the De Young Museum in San Francisco. (Brooks and Paley had an affair in the 1920s, and later in life, Paley - the founder of CBS - secretly supported the destitute Brooks as she wrote "Lulu in Hollywood.")

Movies return to the Potrero Theater

According to its Cinema Treasures page, "The New Potrero opened as the Alta Theatre in 1913. The installation of sound equipment in 1930 also brought a new name: the New Potrero Theatre.... They ran no ad in the daily newspaper; a monthly calendar kept neighborhood patrons abreast of what was playing." Because they did not advertise, nor seemingly did they get their showings listed in the local San Francisco newspapers, I doubt that any Louise Brooks film ever screened there.

Louise Brooks on the cover of Doom Patrol

From Show Girl in the 1920s to Valentina in more recent decades, Louise Brooks likeness has long served as an inspiration to cartoonists and comic book artists. This tradition of inspiration continues. A couple of images of Louise Brooks appear on the cover of an issue (number 13) of Doom Patrol (Vertigo), from October, 2010. The story is by Keith Giffen, and the art is by Matthew Clark, Ron Randall, and John Livesay. More information about this particular issue of Doom Patrol can be found at www.comicbookresources.com/?page=user_review&id=2540

Video: The Raconteurs, Steady As She Goes - Louise Brooks

A Louise Brooks tribute video, featuring "Steady As She Goes" by The Raconteurs (Jack White's group).

Louise Brooks and Pandora's Box on TCM tonight!

Tonight, the cable station Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is scheduled to air the 1929 Louise Brooks' film, Pandora's Box, in the United States. Directed by G.W. Pabst, it's considered one of the great films of the silent era. Check your local listings to find when this airs in your area. For more information, check this TCM webpage devoted to the film.

The Great Nickelodeon Show

Louise Brooks fan Russell Merritt, who has introduced her films here in San Francisco,
 is behind this cinematic extravaganza