Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Louise Brooks stars again in Beggars of Life

If you live in or near Los Angeles, don't miss the special, August 1st screening of Beggars of Life at the Cinefamily theater (611 N Fairfax Avenue) in Los Angeles. Cinefamily has arranged to show a rare 35mm archival print of the film from the George Eastman House. If you have only seen this superb 1928 William Wellman-directed film on YouTube, or on the poor quality DVD's floating around the web, then you were likely disappointed by how dark and fuzzy those versions of Beggars of Life look. The George Eastman House print is bright and clear. This is the print to see! To find out more about the August 1st screening of Beggars of Life, starring the one and only Louise Brooks, check out this article on examiner.com




If you need another bit of incentive to attend this special event, then know that the Cinefamily Theater has arranged to obtain an autographed hardback copy of Laura Moriarty's new novel, The Chaperone, to give away as a door prize. Cool! If you happen to attend this special screening, please post a comment or two in the comments field below.

Monday, July 30, 2012

Beggars of Life screens August 1st in L.A.

If you live in or around Los Angeles, don't miss a special, August 1st screening of Beggars of Life at the Cinefamily theater, 611 N Fairfax Avenue, in Los Angeles. At this special event, Cinefamily has arranged to show the rare 35mm archival print of the film from the George Eastman House. This is the print to see! If you have only seen this superb 1928 William Wellman directed film on YouTube, or on DVD-R, then you were likely disappointed by how dark and fuzzy those versions of Beggars of Life look. The George Eastman House print is bright and clear. A bit of it can be seen in the video embedded below.


BEGGARS OF LIFE (presented by The Silent Treatment) from Cinefamily on Vimeo.

Cliff Retallick, who plays for the Silent Movie Theatre and Cinefamily, will accompany the film. Cliff also plays for I UCLA and the Hammer Museum's Billy Wilder Theatre as well as the American Cinematheque and both the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica and The Egyptian in Hollywood.

If you need another bit of incentive to attend this special event, then know that the Cinefamily Theater has arranged to obtain an autographed hardback copy of Laura Moriarty's new novel, The Chaperone, to give away as a door prize.

To find out more about the August 1st screening of Beggars of Life, starring the one and only Louise Brooks, check out this article on Huffington Post.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Cool pic of the day: Louise Brooks in Pandora's Box


Cool pic of the day: Louise Brooks in Pandora's Box
There is something inelegant yet appealing about this screen capture.

Friday, July 27, 2012

The German Bestseller in the Late Nineteenth Century

A just published book, The German Bestseller in the Late Nineteenth Century (Camden House, 2012), contains a reference to the "Louise Brooks edition" of Margarete Bohme's The Diary of a Lost Girl. The book is a collection of essays on the literature of the time.

One of the essays included in The German Bestseller in the Late Nineteenth Century is titled "Taking Sex to Market." It is by Elizabeth Boa, a UK scholar described as "One of the most respected Germanists of her generation." Boa is a scholar of modern German literature and who has written on Frank Wedekind and Franz Kafka and others.

In the footnotes to her essay, Boa references the "Louise Brooks edition" of  Bohme's bestselling book, Tagebuch einer Verlorenen (translated into English as The Diary of a Lost One, aka The Diary of a Lost Girl). It made my day when Boa described this edition as "splendid." (See below.)


The "Louise Brooks edition" of Bohme's The Diary of a Lost Girl is also included in the bibliography of this new book, which I am looking forward to getting a hold of.  

More info on "Louise Brooks edition" of The Diary of a Lost Girl can be found here. And here are a few of the other reviews of the book which have appeared since it was published in 2010.

"Long relegated to the shadows, Margarete Böhme's 1905 novel, The Diary of a Lost Girl has at last made a triumphant return. In reissuing the rare 1907 English translation of Böhme's German text, Thomas Gladysz makes an important contribution to film history, literature, and, in as much as Böhme told her tale with much detail and background contemporary to the day, sociology and history. He gives us the original novel, his informative introduction, and many beautiful and rare illustrations. This reissue is long overdue, and in all ways it is a volume of uncommon merit." -- Richard Buller, author of A Beautiful Fairy Tale: The Life of Actress Lois Moran

"Gladysz provides an authoritative series of essays that tell us about the author, the notoriety of her work (which was first published in 1905), and its translation to the screen. Production stills, advertisements, and other ephemera illustrate these introductory chapters. In today’s parlance this would be called a 'movie tie-in edition,' but that seems a rather glib way to describe yet another privately published work that reveals an enormous amount of research — and passion." -- Leonard Maltin

"Read today, it's a fascinating time-trip back to another age, and yet remains compelling. As a bonus, Gladysz richly illustrates the text with stills of Brooks from the famous film." -- Jack Garner, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

"Thomas Gladysz is the leading authority on all matters pertaining to the legendary Louise Brooks. We owe him a debt of gratitude for bringing the groundbreaking novel, The Diary of a Lost Girl - the basis of Miss Brooks's classic 1929 film - back from obscurity. It remains a fascinating work." -- Lon Davis, author of Silent Lives


Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Snapshot highlights: San Francisco Silent Film Festival

The marquee of the historic Castro Theater in San Francisco.The theater opened in 1922, and many of
Louise Brooks' silent films screened there in the later 1920's.

Louise Brooks seemed to be just about everywhere at the recently concluded San Francisco Silent Film Festival. Her likeness, at times, was hard to miss, and Brooks' name could be heard on nearly everyone's lips. That's because the film for which the actress is best known today, Pandora's Box, was the centerpiece film of the 17th annual Festival, which was held July 12 through July 15 at the Castro Theater in San Francisco. 

The 2012 SFSFF Program, which includes my
essay of the history of Pandora's Box
The centerpiece event took place on Saturday, July 14th, when the Festival screened a new, frame-by-frame, digital restoration of Pandora's Box, G.W. Pabst's classic retelling of Frank Wedekind's Lulu plays. The restoration, which runs 143 minutes, has been shown only twice before anywhere in the world. Fans gathered from all over for this historic event, with more than 1400 people packing the sold out Castro Theater.

Highly anticipated, this very special screening did not disappoint. I was there, and I can state this gorgeous print was a revelation. I have seen Pandora's Box many times, both in theaters and on DVD: consequently, I feel I am familiar with this silent masterpiece. Yet, sitting in the Castro, watching Pandora's Box on the theater's big, big screen, I felt I saw things in this new print I have never seen before.

As the star of the Festival's centerpiece film, Brooks  graced the cover of the Festival program. The program also contains an essay detailing the history of the film's critical reception, as well as a shorter piece on the story behind the film's restoration.

Besides appearing on the cover of the program, images of Brooks' were also featured in a slideshow projected before the screening of Pandora's Box, while related music - like the theme songs to such Brooks' films as Beggars of Life and Prix de Beaute - was played in the background.
And that's not all. I also I spotted at least a couple of women dressed as the actress, each sporting sharp black bobs. With all that said, here are some snapshot highlights of the 17th annual San Francisco Silent Film Festival.

Thrilling! Brooks' larger than life image graced the screen of the Castro Theater
during the slide show which preceded Pandora's Box. That is Brooks in a scene
from the lost 1926 film, American Venus. In 2007, the San Francisco
Silent Film Festival screened its few surviving fragments.
These two slides also graced the screen of the Castro Theater. Since the late
1980s, Pandora's Box has screened at least eight times at the Castro!
Brooks is a favorite in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Before the film, San Francisco Silent Film Festival Artistic Director
Anita Monga (far right) introduced some of individuals involved in the
restoration of Pandora's Box.

After the film, Pandora's Box received a standing ovation.

On the left is David Ferguson. That's me in the middle. And on the right is
Angela Holm. David and Angela were the team behind the restoration of
Pandora's Box. David described me as the "keeper of the flame." Thank you.
But, it was David and Angela who did a wonderful job.
Swedish musician Matti Bye (center) chats with Angela Holm and
David Ferguson following the historic screening. Bye performed his
original score to Pandora's Box.
Here I am with acclaimed English actor Paul McGann (Withnail and I,
Doctor Who, etc...). Paul was on hand to narrate a couple of films at the
Festival. Paul is a silent film enthusiast, as well as a BIG Louise Brooks film.
Needless-to-say, we had a lot to talk about.
It was great to see old friends at the Festival. At left, I am standing with longtime
Louise Brooks Society member Camille Scaysbrook. She is originally from
Australia, and we've been emailing each other for at least a decade! And on the right,
I 'm with filmmaker Hugh Munro Neely, who directed the Emmy nominated
documentary, Louise Brooks: Looking for Lulu.

Here I am with renowned film critic / film historian Leonard Maltin. Notice his
pin, which Leonard pointed out was an usher's film for Publix, the chain of
theater's owned by Paramount (Louise's primary studio).
William Wellman Jr. also attended the Festival, and introduced his Father's
Academy Award winning 1927 film, Wings. His Father also directed Louise
Brooks in the 1928 film, Beggars of Life.
Some of the Louise Brooks related merchandise for sale at the Festivals -
including autographed copies of Laura's Moriarty's novel, The Chaperone (left),
and the popular "Fearless" branded merch. There were also DVDs and books.
Following Pandora's Box, I signed copies of my Louise Brooks edition
of The Diary of a Lost Girl. I also put out some Louise Brooks collectibles.
Sitting next to me is my wife and LBS Associate Director Christy Pascoe.

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Pandora's Box with Louise Brooks at the Castro Theater

It looks like tonight historic screening of Pandora's Box with Louise Brooks at the Castro Theater in San Francisco is going to sell out. That's 1400 Louise Brooks fans gathered together "spellbound in darkness." I can't wait!


Friday, July 13, 2012

Booksigning for Louise Brooks edition of Diary of a Lost Girl

For those interested, I am signing copies of my book, the "Louise Brooks edition" of THE DIARY OF A LOST GIRL, at the Castro Theater on Sat, July 14th, as part of the annual SF Silent Film Festival. My signing follows the Festivals presentation of a new restoration of Pandora's Box. This is a likely last signing for the book, as I only have 20 copies left of the book. More could be printed, and it is available through regular sources, but 20 is all I have left...... just saying.

Joining me at the signing table will be Hugh Munro Neely, the director of the great documentary film, Louise Brooks: Looking for Lulu.

My book signing is part of  a great line-up of author signings (by film historians, biographers, etc....) taking place throughout the festival. More info on the San Francisco Silent Film Festival blog.

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