Big V Riot Squad: November 2022

Thursday, November 24, 2022

Judy Garland -- Thanksgiving 2022 -- November 24, 2022

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Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. I'm grateful for health and life, my family, my students and my coworkers.

The photograph shows Judy Garland dressed as a Pilgrim and a turkey dressed as a turkey.

Monday, November 21, 2022

Universal Joy Week -- November 21, 2022

Film Daily, 12-November-1922

Baby Peggy Montgomery grew to become Century's biggest comedy star, even surpassing her old comrade Brownie the Century Wonder Dog. I like the caricatures of the Century stars, especially Brownie and Queenie the Trick Horse.

Motion Picture News, 25-November-1922

Motion Picture News, 11-November-1922

The Christie Film Company was a major producer of short comedies from 1911 to 1933. Educational distributed their films. Al Christie was the director and Charles Christie ran the business. Life Magazine film critic Robert E Sherwood wrote "The Christies are about the only comedy producers since Sidney Drew died who have been able to strike a happy medium between light farce and slap-stick, and it is to be hoped that they will continue the good work -- for the field is limitless."

Motion Picture News, 25-November-1922

Sunday, November 20, 2022

A Classic Photodrama You Will Long Remember -- November 20, 2022

Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, 30-November-1922

This ad for The Schemers, a Reol Production, is one of the more elaborate designs that I have seen for a race film. That's a pretty girl, but I don't know she was. I wonder if she was Edna Morton. "You will be proud to see what strides have been made by the colored artists who enact the principal roles in this picture."

Twin City Daily Sentinel, 16-November-1922

On 15-April-1922, the Tuskegee Institute, now Tuskegee University, dedicated a monument, “Lifting the Veil of Ignorance,” to its first principal, educator Booker T Washington. Reol Productions made "A Tuskegee Pilgrimage," a short documentary about the ceremonies.

Topeka Daily Capital, 26-November-1921

Spitfire was another Reol production. It starred Edna Morton and Lawrence Chenault. "Go-Get-'Em-Hutch" was a mainstream movie serial.

Vicksburg Evening Post, 22-November-1922

The Crimson Skull was a western directed by Richard E Norman. The all African-American cast starred Lawrence Chenault and Anna Bush. The run at Vicksburg's Princess Theater featured a personal appearance by Steve Reynolds, who many will remember as the hero's one-legged friend and mechanic in The Flying Ace, a later Norman production, and the only one which is known to survive. Why Men Forget was a mainstream film starring Evelyn Brent.

Vicksburg Evening Post, 24-November-1922

"6 Reel Western with Plenty of Action." Fightin' Devil was a mainstream western directed by and starring Robert McKenzie.

Vicksburg Evening Post, 22-November-1922

"Race Talent Score Triumph."

Dallas Express, 25-November-1921

I have mentioned before that I greatly admire John Harris, owner and manager of the Grand Central Theater in Dallas, who had a policy of showing race films. Unfortunately, there were not enough race films in distribution to allow him to show only race films. This week he showed Erich von Stroheim's popular Foolish Wives.

Daily Ardmoreite, 30-November-1922

Springfield Ohio was soon to have its first movie theater for African-American audiences.

Sioux Falls Argus-Leader, 18-November-1922

I could not find any references to race film pioneer Oscar Micheaux's movies, but here is a review of his latest novel. I can't tell if the tone is sincere or snarky. I think it is sincere, but it could be read as snarky.

Saturday, November 19, 2022

F Scott Fitzgerald -- The Beautiful and Damned -- November 19, 2022

Film Daily, 26-November-1922

Warner Brothers promoted their planned adaption of Fitzgerald's second novel, The Beautiful and Damned. I need to read that again.

Marie Prevost played Gloria Gilbert and Kenneth Harlan played Anthony Patch. Prevost later married Harlan in real life.

Friday, November 18, 2022

Universal Changes Name -- November 18, 2022

Moving Picture World, 25-November-1922

The Universal Film Manufacturing Company changed its name to the Universal Pictures Corporation. Management worried that the old name made them sound like a company that produced raw film stock.

Thursday, November 17, 2022

A Few of the Thrills in Sherlock Holmes -- November 17, 2022

Casper Daily Tribune, 07-November-1922

John Barrymore played Sherlock Holmes in a loose adaption of William Gillette's play. I didn't enjoy the movie much, but Barrymore certainly looked like Holmes. I like the illustration. Notice that at the bottom of this ad for the America Theater in Casper, Wyoming There is a pass for Mrs Jessie M Haggerty plus one.

Casper Daily Tribune, 08-November-1922

Another ad for the American has an Annie Oakley for M N Castle plus one.

Seattle Star, 13-November-1922

"The shadow of Moriarity on the wall." Thrilling.

Motion Picture News, 04-November-1922

Educational supported Children's Book Week with an ad for the British-produced series of short films which starred Eille Norwood as Holmes.

Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Blackhawk Bulletin 258 -- Harold Lloyd -- November 16, 2022

Blackhawk Bulletin 258, December 1974

I was an avid reader of the Blackhawk Bulletin, even though I rarely had enough money to buy any movies from Blackhawk Films. I would like to have purchased these short comedies with Harold Lloyd.

I was excited to learn that scans of many issues were available at the HMH Foundation Moving Image Archives at USC:
USC HMH Foundation Moving Image Archive » Blackhawk Films’ Catalogs (uschefnerarchive.com)

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

Buster Captures the Program -- November 15, 2022

Moving Picture World, 04-November-1922

First National promoted Buster Keaton's "My Wife's Relations" "and these are just as funny..." with a list of the other films in the series.

Motion Picture News, 04-November-1922

Buster shot "The Electric House" earlier in the series but broke his ankle during production. This delayed its release.

Monday, November 14, 2022

Chaplin With and Without a Necktie -- November 14, 2022

Photoplay, November, 1922

Charlie Chaplin's "The Pilgrim" was the last movie he made for First National. It was four reels long.

Motion Picture News, 18-November-1922

"Chaplin's 'The Pilgrim' Full of Giggles."

Sedan Times-Star, 30-November-1922

A nice image of Chaplin and Jackie Coogan in The Kid.

Sunday, November 13, 2022

Joe Mantegna 75 -- November 13, 2022

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Actor Joe Mantegna was born 75 years ago today, on 13-November-1947. I like his work in Criminal Minds.

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Saturday, November 12, 2022

Get Bulldog Drummond Dead or Alive! -- November 12, 2022

Motion Picture News, 18-November-1922

I am a great fan of Sapper's character Bulldog Drummond. I have read some of the books and seen many of the movies. I try to ignore the racism. The first film adaption of the character was Bulldog Drummond, directed by Oscar Apfel and filmed, for some reason, in the Netherlands. Carlyle Blackwell played Drummond. The movie is probably lost.

Moving Picture World, 11-November-1922

Friday, November 11, 2022

Bad Day at Black Rock -- November 11, 2022

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Happy Veterans Day, everyone. In Bad Day at Black Rock, a streamliner stops in the high desert town of Black Rock. This is the first time the streamliner has stopped there in four years. Spencer Tracy, playing one-armed John J Macreedy, steps down from the train. Everyone in the village is showing signs of paranoia. Macreedy wants to give the Japanese-American father of a friend a medal that his son had earned. Macreedy learns what had happened in the town and does something about it. Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin gave great performances as bad guys in small roles.

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During World War Two, director John Sturges served as a commissioned officer making films for the US Army Air Force.

Spencer Tracy volunteered for the US Navy during the First World War, but the war ended before he finished training. He was honorably discharged in 1919.

During World War Two, Robert Ryan joined the US Marine Corps and served as a Drill Instructor.

Ernest Borgnine served in the US Navy before the war. He reenlisted after Pearl Harbor and served throughout the war.

Lee Marvin served in the USMC and was badly wounded on Saipan.

Thursday, November 10, 2022

El famoso actor cómico Harry Langdon -- November 10, 1922

La Prensa, 17-November-1922

Harry Langdon, who was playing the San Antonio Majestic (Big Time Vaudeville), would be the last of the great silent comics to go into films. He was playing in his act "Después del baile" (After the Ball).

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

The Castro, San Francisco's New Motion Picture Palace -- November 9, 2022

Motion Picture News, 04-November-1922

San Francisco's historic Castro Theater has been in the news lately. Another Planet Entertainment (APE) wants to tear out all the seats in the orchestra level and install a flat floor with four terraces. They want to make the theater more suitable for music shows.