Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Jean Marsh, RIP -- April 15, 2025

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Jean Marsh has died. Upstairs, Downstairs is the second Masterpiece Theater series that I can remember. The first was the Lord Peter Wimsey story Clouds of Witness. Jean Marsh and Eileen Atkins created Upstairs, Downstairs. Marsh played the maid Rose. Later, she reprised the role in a 2010 revival of the series. Eileen Atkins played a major role in the revival.

Monday, April 14, 2025

Harold Lloyd -- The First of the Popular Demand Series -- April 14, 2025

Moving Picture World, 04-April-1925

Harold Lloyd engaged Ralph Spence, who was famous for writing witty subtitles, to work on his newest movie, For Heaven's Sake. In 1937, Spence wrote the famous Sh! The Octopus. Associated Exhibitors was re-releasing Harold Lloyd's short film "Now or Never."

Moving Picture World, 04-April-1925

Sam Taylor, who co-directed several of Harold Lloyd's features, was hired to direct the first Harold Lloyd picture to be released by Paramount. 

Sunday, April 13, 2025

Rin-Tin-Tin -- The Wonder Dog of the Screen -- April 13, 2025

Seattle Star, 06-April-1925

Rin-Tin-Tin was the biggest dog star of all. During the last days of World War One, Lee Duncan, an American soldier who loved dogs, found Rinty and his sister with their dying mother in a damaged German kennel. Duncan tried to bring the puppies to America, but the female died. Duncan trained Rinty and got him into the movies, where he showed great natural talent.

Seattle Star, 06-April-1925

"Pretty Doggy Actor."

Seattle Star, 06-April-1925

Note that the name of the theater in Seattle is the "Blue Mouse." There was a chain of Blue Mouse Theaters.

Thursday, April 10, 2025

The Great Gatsby 100 -- April 10, 2025

Saint Louis Post-Dispatch, 25-April-1925

100 years ago today, F Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby was published. I used to read it every year or two. Gatsby was neglected for years, and then people called it The Great American Novel.

Saint Louis Post-Dispatch, 25-April-1925

"THE GREAT GATSBY is vital, glamorous, ironical, compassionate. It is a living thing as spontaneous as THIS SIDE OF PARADISE, yet mature."

Baltimore Sun, 18-April-1925

Motion Picture Magazine, September, 1926

The first film adaption of Gatsby was a 1927 silent starring Warner Baxter as Jay Gatsby. The caption for this image from the September, 1926 Moving Picture Magazine says "The Great Gatsby has been a successful character.  He was a best seller when he made his first public appearance between the covers of the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel.  Then he made his stage debut and there was a continual line at the Broadway box-office.  And now he is to try his fortune on the screen.  Warner Baxter, judging from this photograph, will do well by Gatsby."  The movie is lost, but all accounts say that Baxter did not do well by Gatsby.


Motion Picture Magazine, February, 1927

Neil Hamilton, who later played Commissioner Gordon on the Batman television show, played Nick Carraway.  Lois Wilson played Daisy Buchanan.  Hale Hamilton played Tom Buchanan, Georgia Hale played Myrtle Wilson and William Powell played George Wilson. I find the latter hard to picture. 


Photoplay, February, 1927


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The second film adaption, made in 1949, starred Alan Ladd as Jay Gatsby.  I have never seen this version, but most of the stills that I have seen make it look like a film noir. 

Betty Field played Daisy Buchanan, Barry Sullivan played Tom Buchanan, Macdonald Carey played Nick Carraway, Shelley Winters played Myrtle Wilson, and Howard Da Silva played George Wilson. 

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The third theatrical film version of the story came out in 1974.  The 18-March-1974 cover of  Time Magazine featured Robert Redford as Jay Gatsby and Mia Farrow as Daisy Buchanan, and referred to the "supersell" of the movie.  I thought the movie was ok, but rather slow.

Sam Waterston played Nick Carraway and one of my favorites, Bruce Dern, played Tom Buchanan.  Karen Black was very good as Myrtle Wilson. Scott Wilson played George Wilson. 

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The fourth theatrical film version of the story came out in 2013.  Baz Luhrmann directed and Leonardo DiCaprio played Gatsby and Carey Mulligan played Daisy. The movie didn't do anything for me. 

Tobey Maguire played Nick Carraway and Joel Edgerton played Tom Buchanan.  Isla Fisher played  Myrtle Wilson. Jason Clarke played George Wilson. 

Wednesday, April 9, 2025

Educational Players Do Their Stuff on the Air -- April 9, 2025

Moving Picture World, 04-April-1925

Radio station KFWB went on the air in March, 1925. It was founded by Warner Brothers and served as a publicity arm for the studio. KFWB no longer belongs to Warner Brothers, but it is still on the air.

Educational Players Do
Their Stuff on the Air

JACK WHITE'S Mermaid Comedy Company, together with performers appearing in other units producing comedies for distribution through Educational Film Exchanges, Inc., last week staged a very successful exploitation tieup when stars of the various companies broadcast a program from the recently opened radio station KFWB at Los Angeles, operated by Warner Brothers.

The program was opened by Eddie Nelson, now starring in Mermaid Comedies, who delivered a monologue and some of the vaudeville chatter which he used on the Orpheum Circuit in the West, where he is known as "The Sunkist Kid." This was followed by the Mermaid Quartette which sang two numbers.

Following this came Clem Beauchamp, an assistant director and a promising lyric tenor, who delivered two songs. The O'Neal sisters, Zelma and Bernice, then sang two of their latest songs, "When You and I Were Young, Maggie," a la 1925, and "Log Cabin." Zelma O'Neil sang a special comedy number, "I'm a Pickford That Nobody Picked," one of her successes from Harry Carroll's "Pickings," the show in which she was appearing when Jack White discovered her. Miss O'Neal is a Cameo star.

Lige Conley, Mermaid star, followed with a display of his versatility in rendering a piano, banjo and saxophone solo. At this point the entire radio program was tied up with the showing of two Mermaid Comedies in Los Angeles, when it was announced that Conley could be seen at Loew's State in "Fast and Furious" and in "What a Night" at the California.

Joseph Diskay, the tenor, a favorite with radio fans, contributed his services to the program and sang two numbers, and Miss Hilda Goldman, operatic soprano, also popular with radio fans on the West Coast, obliged with selections.

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

World's Finest Theater Organ -- April 8, 2025

Moving Picture World, 24-April-1925

During the silent era, big first run theaters often had orchestras. Little flea pits often had pianos. In between, many theaters used organs to accompany films. Some of the big theaters used them for matinees. Robert Morgan was one of the manufacturers.

Sunday, April 6, 2025

Richard Chamberlin, RIP -- April 6, 2025

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Richard Chamberlin died in late March. I never watched Doctor Kildare, but I read a reprint of the Mad Magazine version. I never saw Shogun or The Thornbirds. I loved Richard Lester's Three Musketeer movies, where he played Aramis.

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Peter Weir's The Last Wave was the first Australian New Wave (sorry) film that my fiancée attended. We saw it at the Bridge Theater. It made a deep impression on both of us.

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He seems to have had a propensity for the works of Alexandre Dumas, père.

Saturday, April 5, 2025

Spencer Tracy 125 -- April 5, 2025

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Actor Spencer Tracy was born 125 years ago today, on 05-April-1900. He was a great actor, but he was troubled by alcohol, infidelity, depression and guilt about his son's deafness. His relationship with Katherine Hepburn seems to have helped him.

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Friday, April 4, 2025

Film Rental $4 Per Week -- April 4, 2025

New York Clipper, 01-February-1908

L Hetz of 302 East 23rd Street in New York City offered to rent films out for $4 per reel per week, including three changes, "and good films at that." They offered better services for $5 or $6.

Thursday, April 3, 2025

Larry Semon Meets Dorothy Dwan at the Train -- April 3, 2025

Photoplay, April, 1925

Comedian Larry Semon married his leading lady, Dorothy Dwan in New York City on 23-January-1925.

Moving Picture World, 04-April-1925

Wichita Falls Times-Record-News, 28-April-1925

Wednesday, April 2, 2025

Val Kilmer, RIP -- April 2, 2025

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Val Kilmer died. He was way too young, but he had been sick for a while. He had a great range, from Philip II of Macedon to Batman to Jim Morrison. I have managed to avoid seeing the Top Gun movies.

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Thursday, March 20, 2025

Fun in the Healy Manner -- March 20, 2025

Brooklyn Citizen, 08-March-1925

Comic Ted Healy (not "Healey") and his wife Betty appeared at the EF Albee vaudeville theater in Brooklyn. Their act included stooges. Ted went on to lead the Three Stooges during their early existence.

Brooklyn Citizen, 08-March-1925

The act was called "Fun in the Healy Manner." It included "song, dance and nut comedy and clowning."

Hartford Courant, 29-March-1925

"...a philosopher and a flapper..."

Wednesday, March 19, 2025

Buster Keaton -- An Ocean of Laughs! -- March 19, 2025

Iola Register, 09-March-1925

The Navigator is one of Buster Keaton's funniest feature films. His face in the drawing does not look quite right.

Modesto Herald, 21-March-1925

Note that the text of the items above and below is the same.

Modesto Herald, 22-March-1925

Modesto Herald, 22-March-1925


Tuesday, March 18, 2025

This is Undoubtedly the Greatest Charlie Chaplin Comedy Ever Produced -- March 18, 2025

Film Daily, 27-March-1925

100 years ago this month, in March, 1925, Charlie Chaplin was preparing to release his first starring film for United Artists, a company he had helped to found in 1919 with Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and DW Griffith. It took Chaplin a while to finish his previous contract with First National.
 
Film Daily, 08-March-1925

Monday, March 17, 2025

Happy Saint Patrick's Day, 2025 -- March 17, 2025

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Happy Saint Patrick's Day, everyone.

Beautiful Irish-born actress Maureen O'Sullivan says "Erin go bragh."

Sunday, March 16, 2025

Harry Langdon is Scratching His Head -- March 16, 2025

Photoplay, March, 1925

Harry Langdon stepped into big shoes when he was assigned to what was labelled as Charlie Chaplin's old dressing room at the Mack Sennett studio. Others named on the sign are Betty Compson, Ford Sterling, Syd Chaplin, Charlie Murray, I can't read it and Harold Lloyd.

Film Daily, 15-March-1925

100 years ago this month, Mack Sennett didn't have any really big stars, so he used the dreaded "All-Star" label.

Saturday, March 15, 2025

Lon Chaney -- A Thriller de Luxe -- March 15, 2025


Los Angeles Times, 11-March-1925

My fiancée, who is now my wife, and I used to go to San Francisco's Avenue Theater, on San Bruno Avenue, where Bob Vaughn accompanied silent movies on the Mighty Wurlitzer every Friday night.

Every year around Halloween, the Avenue showed The Phantom of the Opera with Lon Chaney. 

San Francisco Examiner, 26-October-1980

We went just about every year, so we probably attended this showing.

Indianapolis Times, 27-March-1925

Carl Laemmle, President of Universal, decided that the film should have its premiere at San Francisco's Curran Theater on Geary near Mason. The Curran now hosts mostly musical theater. I saw Pacific Overtures, Wicked and many others there.