J. Peterman winter coat

I remember seeing these "Louise Brooks" winter coats (so-named) in the J. Peterman catalogs a number of years ago. Now, one of them has turned up on eBay. I think they were a popular item, as the company carried them for a few years running. "Composed of softest wool and cashmere and accented with sumptuous shearling on a huge collar and decadent cuffs, secured with a single outer and inner button and lined in coppered bronze satin . . . ." Just in time for the cold winter months.

Reading

Any film buff who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area will want to check out a new book, Theatres of San Francisco, by Jack Tillmany. Recently, I had a chance to meet the author during his book signing at the historic Castro Theater.


Jack Tillmany documents the city's many theatres through a remarkable selection of vintage images drawn from the author's personal archive.This new book paints a detailed picture of the golden age of going to the theatre in San Francisco. This volume reminds us that almost every neighborhood in the City boasted its own beloved theatre. Ironially, the one theatre closest to my San Francisco residence - the Searchlight, is not depicted. The Searchlight opened in 1916 at 1596 Church Street, and operated under nearly a dozen names during the next 50 years. Though the building still stands, no photographs of the building as a theater are known.

"Only a handful of the 100 or so neighborhood theatres that once graced these streets are left in San Francisco, but they live on in the photographs featured in this book. The heyday of such venues as the Clay, Noe, Metro, New Mission, Alexandria, Coronet, Fox, Uptown, Coliseum, Surf, El Rey, and Royal was a time when San Franciscans thronged to the movies and vaudeville shows, dressed to the hilt, to see and be seen in majestic art deco palaces." Also included is the Granada, where all of Louise Brooks' Paramount features were shown.

Are you The American Venus of Eau Claire?

Yesterday's trip to the library was worthwhile. I looked at two newspapers on microfilm, the Eau Claire Leader (from Eau Claire, Wisconsin) and the Hannibal Evening Courier-Post (from Hannibal, Missouri). Both papers yielded Denishawn material (some articles, some distinct advertisements, and reviews), as each city was a destination on the Denishawn tour during the years Louise Brooks was with the company.

While looking through the Hannibal newspaper around the time of Denishawn performance, I came across this remarkable advertisement.



Along with the Denishawn dates, I had also requested a couple of months of microfilm of the Eau Claire Leader, on the off-chance I might run across some film reviews in that Wisconsin paper. And in fact, I did come across material on local screenings of The American Venus and A Social Celebrity. I found articles promoting each film, and some advertisements. Each were no doubt supplied by the studio, and were nothing I hadn't seen before. I one unsual item I did run across was this advertisement promoting a local beauty contest to be held in conjunction with the screening of The American Venus.



Such contests were held elsewhere (I have run across a few such instances), but this promotion has a local angle to it. Very nifty!

Watching and listening

The other day, I watched a somewhat interesting silent film called Sex in Chains (1928). William Dieterle directed and starred in this social drama, which had been banned by the German government because of its subject matter - sexual relations between male prisoners. (Needless-to-say, the sexuality is oblique.) The film centers on a young man who's incarcerated for causing an accidental death and who develops sexual relations with a fellow inmate. Also in the film was Carl Goetz, who, less than one year later, would play Schigolch in Pandora's Box.

[ Under the title, "Gay-Themed Films of the Silent Era," Kino released Sex in Chains as part of a set of four films that were controversial in their day.The set also included G.W. Pabst's Diary of a Lost Girl, Carl Theodor Dreyer's Michael, and Richard Oswald's  Different from the Others. ]

I also recently listened to a BBC radio documentary about Charlie Chaplin, which was narrated by Robert Downey, Jr. "Smile: The Genius of Charlie Chaplin" aired earlier in the week and can be listened to again at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/documentaries/#chaplin Part two of this recommended program airs on Tuesday, December 6th. Check it out.

Hairstyle Keeps Bobbing Along

An article in today's Hartford Courant, "Hairstyle Keeps Bobbing Along," mentions Louise Brooks. The article begins, "Aeon Flux, opening Friday, is set 400 years in the future. But the hairdo Charlize Theron sports as the title character is as old as the Roaring Twenties. Theron's dramatic black symmetrical hairstyle can be traced all the way back to Louise Brooks, the dark-haired star of silent films of the 1920s and '30s who was famous for her trend-setting bob hairstyle."  . . . And ends, "Brooks might be taken aback by today's entertainments, but she'd no doubt be thrilled to see her bangs bobbing about on stage and screen."

On this day in 1925, first reports of the so-called 'draped nudes'

On this day in 1925, first reports of the so-called 'draped nudes' scandal appear in the New York Mirror.

On this day in 1925

On this day in 1925, the first reports of the so-called 'draped nudes' scandal appear in the New York Mirror.

1920's hand fan for sale

A 1920's hand fan - depicting Louise Brooks and other Paramount stars - is for sale on eBay. Very nifty.

Not real but still true

What I found and didn't find

Returned to the library today. I looked at some microfilm of the Commercial Appeal, and dug out some good material (an article, a review, and some advertisements) relating to the November, 1922 Denishawn performance in Memphis, Tennessee. While looking for later film reviews, I stumbled upon a review of a personal appearance Fay Lanphier made in Memphis in June, 1926. (Lanphier, who was crowned Miss America in 1925, appeared along with Louise Brooks in The American Venus. That film, which screened in Memphis in late February, 1926, was the high point of Lanphier's career. She would appear in only one other film, a Laurel and Hardy short from 1928.) Here is a nifty advertisement promoting Lanphier's appearance.



Along with the Memphis Commercial Appeal, I also looked at microfilm of the Wellington Daily News. This small Kansas town hosted Denishawn in 1924, but before that, in 1921, a 14 year old Louise Brooks danced there. According to the Barry Paris biography, "In September there was a five-night engagement at the Wheat Show in Wellington." I decided to scour the September issues of the Wellington newspaper in hopes of finding some reference to Brooks. But nothing turned up.

What I found was that at the beginning of September, 1921 - starting on Labor Day, Wellington hosted a Golden Jubilee and Home Coming. People came from all over for the celebrations, which featured various entertainments and pageants. It was at this event that  Brooks likely danced. (A 1924 article in the Wellington paper, which appeared around the time of the Denishawn performance, mentions Brooks having given "a balloon dance at the Kansas Pageant at the Wellington Fall Festival a number of years ago.") A Wheat Festival did take place, but not until the end of September in Wichita.

Prix de Beauté on DVD

Bruce Calvert reports that he received the new Kino on Video catalog yesterday, and noticed that Kino has announced that Prix de Beauté (1930) will be released on DVD in Spring 2006. It looks like next year - the Brooks centennial - is shaping up to be a big year for all things Brooksie!

Lulu play in Chicago

The Silent Theater Company in Chicago, Illinois is currently staging LULU at City Lit Theater, which is located at 1020 West Bryn Mawr in Chicago. Performances run Fridays and Saturdays at 10:30 pm and Sundays at 8:00 pm through December 18th, 2005. Tickets are $15 and are available through the box office; call 773-544-1749.



From the press release: "LULU marks the inaugural production for Silent Theater Company. This new company is dedicated to pushing the envelope and stretching the limits of what we conceive theatre to be today.  This production was originally produced as part of The Journeymen Theater Company's 2002 season. It received critical success including being 'Highly recommended' by the Chicago Reader. Now, tonika todorova, artistic Director for Silent Theater Company, revisits her work. She states: 'The journey of this woman is as captivating as it is reflective on society and its attitude toward the amoral.'

LULU is adapted from German playwright Frank Wedekind's 1894 Lulu cycle Earth Spirit and Pandora's Box and follows the escapades of the unbearably sexy Lulu who causes many to destroy themselves while pursuing the maddening passion she inspires.

LULU is beautiful, narcissistic and young. She is a woman who possesses a thrilling combination of powerful sexuality and candid innocence that has made her the object of ardent admiration since childhood. As Lulu passes through Berlin's high society, she exercises a cruel power over the many men and women who love her to the point of obsession, exploiting them before she herself can be used. But her beauty is cursed, and her power short-lived; it is she who will ultimately be destroyed by her lovers.

LULU presents its story in complete silence. It takes the silent film genre, combined with German expressionism and portrays it on stage to accent with gesticulation and body language, what words sometimes fail to express. And on Christmas Eve, the concupiscent nature of Lulu reminds us that every man's desire to sin deserves to be answered. On Christmas Eve, Lulu finally gets her wish.

LULU includes: Brendan Greenwood Balfe, Nicholas DuFloth, Lauren Ashley Fisher, Gillian Hastings, Curtis M. Jackson, Matthew Massaro, Al an Pelesi , Marvin Eduardo Quijada, Joe Vonderhaar and Kyla Louise Webb. Lighting design by:  Jennifer Larkin. Set design by: Rick Gleeson.LULU is directed by tonika todorova with original music by Isaiah Robinson."

For more information and additional images see www.silenttheatre.com Should any readers of this LiveJournal attend the play in Chicago I would ask that they post their impressions.

Some neat Louise Brooks pics

Some neat Louise Brooks pics can be found at http://editorial.acionline.biz/  Once there, search for "Louise Brooks." This commercial photo archive also has pics of other silent film stars like Nazimova, Garbo, Clara Bow, Esther Ralston and others.

Believe it or not

This falls under believe it or not . . . . An article in today's North Adams Transcript (the newspaper serving the Northern Berkshires in Massachusetts) called my attention to a bizarre website called The Bone Trade which claims to possess genetic samples from various deceased movie stars - including Louise Brooks.



The website specializes in necrobilia, with their stated aim being "the 'resurrection' of actresses from the Golden era of silent cinema." The small specimens collection claims genetic material from the likes of Garbo, Nazimova, Clara Bow, Colleen Moore, Gloria Swanson, Pola Negri, Olive Thomas, etc.... "To do this we are securing a large body of quality genetic material from a variety of sources which is subjected to rigorous testing to ensure its validity . . . .We intend to work closely with science organisations to perfect safe and reliable human duplication techniques. We are already in discussion with several studios interested in becoming parents to these new stars of old." What will they think of next?

North Carolina and New Jersey

Yesterday, I looked through microfilm of two newspapers, the Charlottle Observer (from Charlotte, North Carolina) and theJerseyman (from Morristown, New Jersey). And in each, I found material about a Louise Brooks' appearance with the Denishawn Dance Company as well as her later role in The American Venus (1926).

Denishawn appeared in Charlotte in February, 1923 - and the substantial review which ran in the Observer noted "Denishawn Company Plays to Large House Here." I found that review, an earlier article, and some advertisements. That coverage was dwarfed by what appeared in the Jerseyman. This small town New Jersey newspaper gave the troupe a substantial front page review of their late April, 1924 performance. Prior to that, the paper had devoted two other front page stories to Denishawn - each noting their upcoming engagement. I also uncovered two distinct advertisements for their appearance at the Morristown High School Auditorium. (This Denishawn event - like many others - was a benefit. This engagement benefitted "the Fund for the Installation of the greatest Carillon of Bells now in this country, recently erected at Morristown." The performance raised more than $2,000.)



Along with the Denishawn material, I also found a few items relating to the screening of  The American Venus in Morristown. (Especially interesting are reviews of this film from New Jersey newspapers, as the film was partially shot at the Atlantic City Miss America contest of 1925.) Among the material I found in the Jerseyman was an article entitled "How Fay Lanphier Was Chosen 'Miss America' and 'American Venus'." No doubt supplied by the studio, it addressed the controversy over Lanphier's selection as Miss America and her awarding of a movie contract (by Walter Wanger) to appear in The American Venus.

A Russian rarity

A Russian postcard depicting Louise Brooks is for sale on eBay. The card dates to 1928! It is amazing to think that Brooks' modest fame travelled as far as the U.S.S.R. (Interestingly, the portrait of Brooks is by M.I. Boris, who before he moved to New York City was at one-time a court photographer in the Austrio-Hungarian Empire!) Also, please note: this card has been trimmed

Today

Today would have been Louise Brooks 99th birthday. Happy birthday Louise, our Lulu.

Beyond the Rocks

I enjoyed Beyond the Rocks (1922), which I saw this afternoon at the Castro Theater in San Francisco. The story, by Elinor Glyn, was melodramatic and the weakest aspect of the film. It was great to see the film's two stars - Rudolph Valentino (who had little to do) and Gloria Swanson (who looked great in her various changes of clothes). Bevan Dufty, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors who also happens to be Swanson's step-son, introduced the film with a few anecdotes about her step-mother. Has anyone else seen this film elsewhere?

Louise Brooks and the New Woman in Weimar Cinema

"New Histories of Photography 11: Louise Brooks and the New Woman in Weimar Cinema" is currently scheduled to be on view at the International Center of Photography from December 8, 2006 - February 25, 2007. The International Center of Photography is located at 1114 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street in New York City. The exhibit will likely be on view at the George Eastman House in Rochester during the fall of 2005.

Some neat Louise Brooks pics

Some neat Louise Brooks pics can be found at http://editorial.acionline.biz/  Once there, search for "Louise Brooks." This commercial photo archive also has pics of other silent film stars like Nazimova, Garbo, Clara Bow, Esther Ralston and others.