NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

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EP Millstone
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by EP Millstone »

scsu1975 wrote: January 18th, 2023, 12:46 pm . . . In the scene below, Director Alan Crosland (standing, wearing the suit) watches filming as the “fog” is sprayed on the set in front of the “blind” beggar (played by Gustav von Seyffertitz) . . .

Just want to give a shout out to Gustav von Seyffertitz, Vincent Price's favorite silver screen villain! Price relished pronouncing his name:

Goos-TOV Von Sy-fur-TITS!

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"Start every day off with a smile and get it over with." -- W.C. Fields
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by scsu1975 »

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All the Brothers Were Valiant, directed by Irvin V. Willat, starred Malcolm MacGregor as Joel Shore, Billie Dove as Priscilla Holt, and Lon Chaney as Mark Shore. The film was released in January of 1923 at seven reels, and is presumed lost.

Plot: Mark Shore sets out aboard the “Nathan Ross,” and says goodbye to his brother Joel and Joel’s sweetheart Priscilla Holt.

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Joel is the last of a long line of able seamen of the House of Shore. Priscilla feels that Joel is not the man his brother is.

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Mark departs from the “Nathan Ross” in the Gilbert Islands, and disappears. Asa Worthen, owner of the ship, offers Joel the captain’s position. Joel accepts, and marries Priscilla.

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Priscilla accompanies Joel on a voyage south, but soon grows bored. When the crew capture their first whale, the smell of boiling blubber sickens her. The ship reaches Cape Horn, and the crew puts in to the island of Tubuai for food and water. There, they are stunned when Mark appears.

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Mark tells Joel his tale. He had been drinking gin one night and had wandered away from the ship. He had met up with a group of islanders and had taken part in their festivities. He took up with a native girl.

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Before he knew it, the ship had sailed away without him. Then a party of pearl fishers had tried to steal his girl. Mark had climbed aboard their ship, killed a man, and remained on board. By the time the ship reached its destination, Mark had killed the other two men who were on board.

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Then he had buried what pearls were on the ship, and whatever pearls were found on a nearby island. Natives had attacked him, and his girl was killed attempting to save his life.

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He had taken the pearling schooner to Tubuai and learned that the “Nathan Ross” was in port.
Now Mark wants Joel to help him get the pearls, but Joel refuses.

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Joel had promised Worthen he would never endanger his ship, and their business was whaling, not pearl fishing. Mark calls his brother a coward. News of the pearls soon spreads about the ship, and the crew begin to mutter. Mark makes a play for Priscilla, and she is amazed when Joel does nothing about it.

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Mark, along with the first and second mates, demand that Joel turn the ship around and go for the pearls. When Joel refuses, they lock him in his cabin.

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Eventually, there is a revolt on the ship. Joel punches Mark in the jaw. The crew members fight. Mark is reformed by his brother’s show of courage, and goes to his side. During the battle, Mark falls overboard. Joel leaps into the water after him, but is unable to save his brother. Joel returns to the ship, where order has been restored. The report of Mark’s death is entered in the ship’s log, where Priscilla underlines the first word of the statement “All the Brothers were Valiant.”

The cast spent time aboard a whaling ship named the “Carolyn Frances,” and an actual whale hunt was filmed. Billie Dove wrote a letter to her friend, Myrtle Gebhart, describing her experiences aboard ship (if you are squeamish, you can avoid this part): “We eat with the crew,” Dove wrote, “in the so-called “mess salon” – my dear, such a whale smell! It doesn’t mingle well with that lily-of-the-valley perfume that you gave me before I left Hollywood. … The crew of our boat, mostly Norwegians, get $100 for every whale they bring into Trinidad, so you can imagine how keen they are when the harpooning begins. … When the whale saw us, he made an awful fuss, diving and blowing and leaping forty feet in the air. The gunner stationed at his gun mounted on a platform in the bow pulled the trigger releasing the ninety-two-pound harpoon which carried in its head a nine-pound charge of shrapnel. The first shot drove in the harpoon but slightly and away went Mister Whale. With our engines set at half speed, he towed us forward at the amazing speed of ten miles an hour … then the gun was reloaded, and the second harpoon pierced the side of the whale, and the shrapnel exploded, killing him.”

Dove is shown below, looking far from glamourous. In the second still, showing the crew of the “Carolyn Francis,” she is at the center of the group, with Malcolm MacGregor to her right and Lon Chaney the fourth person to her left. In the final still, she is shown with director Irvin Willat:

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Exhibitor’s Herald called the film “an exceptionally interesting story of the sea, one that is well told and full of unusual detail. The sea stuff is particularly well handled and a splendid cast enacts the various roles.” The Film Daily called the film “a delightful, adventurous tale of the water that contains all the elements of popular appeal consistent with the type of entertainment which it offers,” adding “Billie Dove photographs very well and is a pleasing heroine. Lon Chaney give his usual splendid performance.” Exhibitor’s Trade Review wrote “here is a story that will send real thrills up and down the spine. … It is one of the best sea pictures that has come on the screen recently and should give entire satisfaction wherever shown.” Motion Picture News praised the scenes involving whale hunting, writing “one of the most interesting features of this extraordinary picture is the introduction of a whale hunt. Get this straight. It is the real thing. There are real whales. Harpoons are fired into the mammoth bodies of these monsters of the deep and at one point we see a man jump from the boat onto the back of one of them and send a long spear home.”
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laffite
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by laffite »

Marvelous! Bessie is a lovey, the first photos you screened for us.

So that letter is revealed in titles? A long letter for a silent. And yes, gruesome. The letter is one thing but then to have it described below from the critics.

Too bad lost, or presumed so.

Great entry!

Thanks Rich, this thread adds abundance to this forum.
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LawrenceA
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by LawrenceA »

I watched the 1953 version with Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger and Ann Blyth just this past year for the first time. That version was nominated for the Color Cinematography Oscar. I found it pretty forgettable.
Watching until the end.
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dianedebuda
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by dianedebuda »

Too bad that Back Home and Broke (1922) is presumed lost 'cause it sounds like a good story. Was it ever remade?
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sagebrush
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by sagebrush »

[quote=scsu1975 post_id=172032 time=1674676353 user_id=349107]
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All the Brothers Were Valiant, directed by Irvin V. Willat, starred Malcolm MacGregor as Joel Shore, Billie Dove as Priscilla Holt, and Lon Chaney as Mark Shore. The film was released in January of 1923 at seven reels, and is presumed lost.


I have long wanted to see this film. Luckily, there are so many existing photo stills for us to view. :)
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by scsu1975 »

laffite wrote: January 25th, 2023, 3:11 pm Thanks Rich, this thread adds abundance to this forum.
Thank you for checking it out!
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by scsu1975 »

LawrenceA wrote: January 25th, 2023, 3:36 pm I watched the 1953 version with Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger and Ann Blyth just this past year for the first time. That version was nominated for the Color Cinematography Oscar. I found it pretty forgettable.
Thanks for the warning!
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by scsu1975 »

dianedebuda wrote: January 25th, 2023, 4:08 pm Too bad that Back Home and Broke (1922) is presumed lost 'cause it sounds like a good story. Was it ever remade?
Not to my knowledge.
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by scsu1975 »

sagebrush wrote: January 25th, 2023, 5:17 pm I have long wanted to see this film. Luckily, there are so many existing photo stills for us to view. :)
I'm trying to pick out films for which several stills exist.
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EP Millstone
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by EP Millstone »

scsu1975 wrote: January 25th, 2023, 2:52 pm . . . Exhibitor’s Trade Review wrote “here is a story that will send real thrills up and down the spine. … It is one of the best sea pictures that has come on the screen recently and should give entire satisfaction wherever shown.” . . .
Exhibitors Trade Review Synopsis -- fascinating publication!
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

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Coming in February:

Charles Ray in A Tailor Made Man
Alice Brady in Missing Millions
Gloria Swanson in My American Wife
Wallace Reid in Thirty Days ((his final film)
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scsu1975
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by scsu1975 »

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A Tailor Made Man, directed by Joseph De Grasse, starred Charles Ray as John Paul Bart and Ethel Grandin as Tanya Huber. The film was released in October of 1922 at nine reels. A complete copy is held in the Gosfilmofond in Moscow.

Plot: John Paul Bart works as a clothes presser in the tailor shop of Anton Huber.

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John Paul is a reader and a thinker, and has a theory on the psychology of clothes.

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He believes that good clothes create a good impression, but that much depends upon the individual to sustain that impression. Others in the tailor shop include Huber’s daughter Tanya, who is engaged to the radical and intellectual Dr. Gustavius Sonntag, and Peter, a tailor’s apprentice, who is a sour fellow, much like Huber.

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Tanya is the only person who believes John Paul has any good in him. Sonntag believes John Paul is a loafer. One night John Paul puts on a dress suit which he had pressed, and attends a reception at the home of Stanlaw, a patrician. Through a series of misunderstandings, John Paul is accepted as an invited guest, and attracts the interest of Abraham Nathan, President of the Oceanic Steamship Corporation. Nathan invites John Paul to go on a yacht cruise the next day. Meanwhile, the Corporation has been having labor troubles, with agitators attempting to reach Nathan. While on the yacht, the agitators try to climb aboard from a launch, but John Paul saves the day. As a reward, he is given a position with the Corporation, and prospers in high society.

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He attracts the attention of society girls Connie Stanlaw, Claire Nathan, and Bessie Dupuy; but in his heart, John Paul carries a torch for Tanya. Tanya, disgusted with Sonntag, keeps a scrapbook of articles on John Paul. Sonntag, furious with jealousy, sets out to ruin John Paul. Sonntag attempts to obstruct John Paul as the latter tries to prevent a strike.

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John Paul had promised to deliver a document to the workers, which would have prevented the strike. But Sonntag and his thugs waylay him. They chase him through alleyways and along wharves, onto a four-masted schooner and up the rigging. John Paul throws Sonntag from the wharf, beats off the adversaries, and then, with the document folded, he shoves it in his mouth and dives off a cross beam into the water. He eventually reaches the shipyards and prevents the strike. The next morning, a big story appears in the newspaper, courtesy of Sonntag, exposing John Paul as an ex-pants presser. John Paul, in resignation, returns to the tailor shop, where Tanya waits for him. As John Paul is pressing clothes, Nathan comes in and asks “why are you not at your desk at Oceanic offices?” Nathan then reminds the young man that Lincoln was once a rail-splitter, and then went on to become President of the United States. So John Paul returns to the Corporation, and wins Tanya’s hand in marriage.

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In the still below, Ray consults with Director Joseph De Grasse:

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Next, Ray presents the film print to Fred Miller, manager of the California Theatre in Los Angeles. The accompanying photos show the crowds lined up to see the film:

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Critics were impressed across the board. The Film Daily wrote “it is full of good stuff after the first two or three reels, which only tend to drag the story, haven’t very much to do otherwise, and could easily be trimmed a lot. Once, however, the young pants presser gets going in social circles the picture moves splendidly to a real finish, which is heightened by a very clever chase with a lot of Doug Fairbanks thrills in it.” Motion Picture News called the film “one of the finest pictures produced in the history of the silent art. We say this without fear of contradiction.” Motion Picture World wrote “it is one of the best and most human pictures of the year,” adding “the star’s work is wonderful and the climax unusually thrilling.” Exhibitor’s Trade Review wrote “this film is such an extraordinarily fine production that its interest never slackens from start to finish and at the close one doesn’t realize that its running time was beyond the average. Splendidly directed, beautifully photographed, with fast action and perfect continuity throughout, it registers as an attraction that no exhibitor can well afford to overlook.”
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laffite
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by laffite »

scsu1975 wrote: February 1st, 2023, 1:10 pm Image

I would have liked to have seen this one. What great reviews!

I am great on nostalgia and you are bringing these movie back to life. It just occurred to me that you may be posting these movies on the exact day 100 years later. True, or within a few days maybe?. Either is close enough. To bad Gagman66 isn't still around. He would have loved this. You may remember (he never let us forget it) that The Big Parade (1925) was his absolute fave. In the year 2525, if man is still alive, you could post a treatment (as you do here) of that movie as a memorial that absolutely fine man. He was a long time devotee of the silents, and colorized with much expertise many actors/actresses and I believe even scenes from the great films. I realize, though, that TBP may not have played at the Poli.

Splendid work, Rich

P.S. My understanding is that Gagman66 had a heart ailment and may be deceased. If so, RIP.
Sabine Azema in Sunday in the Country
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sagebrush
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Re: NOW PLAYING (100 YEARS AGO)

Post by sagebrush »

I love the photos of the crowds waiting to see the film. So exciting. I think crowds waiting to see a film (even a premiere) now is a scene we won't see much anymore.
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