Beggars of Life, starring Louise Brooks, releases today on DVD

Something we have all been waiting for . . . . Beggars of Life, the sensational William Wellman directed film starring Louise Brooks, releases today on DVD / Blu-ray through Kino Lorber.

An American silent film classic, Beggars of Life (1928) stars Louise Brooks as a train-hopping hobo who dresses like a boy to survive. After escaping her violent stepfather, Nancy (Brooks) befriends kindly drifter Jim (Richard Arlen). They ride the rails together until a fateful encounter with the blustery Oklahoma Red (Wallace Beery) and his rambunctious band of hoboes, leading to daring, desperate conflict on top of a moving train. Based on the memoir of real-life hobo Jim Tully, and directed with adventuresome verve by William Wellman (The Ox-Bow Incident), Beggars of Life is an essential American original.

Special Features: Digitally restored from 35mm film elements preserved by the George Eastman Museum | Audio commentary by actor William Wellman, Jr. | Audio commentary by Thomas Gladysz, founding director of the Louise Brooks Society | Booklet essay by film critic Nick Pinkerton | Musical score compiled and performed by The Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, employing selections from the original 1928 Paramount cue-sheet

The film is available directly from Kino Lorber, as well as through amazon.com, B&N and other outlets.

But wait, that's not all. . . .  Also out is Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film, by Thomas Gladysz.

This first ever study of Beggars of Life looks at the film Oscar-winning director William Wellman thought his finest silent movie. Based on Jim Tully’s bestselling book of hobo life—and filmed by Wellman the year after he made Wings (the first film to win the Best Picture Oscar), Beggars of Life is a riveting drama about an orphan girl (screen legend Louise Brooks) who kills her abusive stepfather and flees the law. She meets a boy tramp (leading man Richard Arlen), and together they ride the rails through a dangerous hobo underground ruled over by Oklahoma Red (future Oscar winner Wallace Beery). Beggars of Life showcases Brooks in her best American silent—a film the Cleveland Plain Dealer described as “a raw, sometimes bleeding slice of life.”

With 15,000 words of text, more than 50 little seen images, and a foreword by actor William Wellman, Jr., son of the legendary director. The book is available directly from the author, as well as through amazon.com, B&N and select independent bookstores.

"I can say (with head bowed modestly) that I know more about the career of director William A. Wellman than pretty much anybody anywhere -- always excepting my friend and co-author John Gallagher -- but there are things in Thomas Gladysz's new book on Wellman's Beggars of Life that I didn't know. More important, the writing is so good and the research so deep that even when I was reading about facts that were familiar to me, I was enjoying myself hugely." -- Frank Thompson, co-author of Nothing Sacred: The Cinema of William Wellman

"Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film is a quick, satisfying read, illustrated with promotional material, posters and stills as well as press clippings. In these pages, Gladysz takes us through the making and the reception of the film and clears up a few mysteries too.... Beggars of Life is a fascinating movie, made by some of the silent film industry's most colourful characters. This highly readable book will deepen your enjoyment and understanding of a silent Hollywood classic." -- Pamela Hutchinson, Silent London

"I cannot help but give this an enthusiastic two thumbs up. It really is the perfect companion, before or after you have seen the film. The volume might be slim, but, it is packed with information and rare photographs. It has been impeccably researched and beautifully executed.... This is a thorough examination of the film from start to finish and written in a breezy style that is not only informative, it is a very entertaining read." -- Donna Hill, Strictly Vintage Hollywood

Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, shows in Manila, Philippines September 3

Pandora's Box (1929) will be shown in Manila on September 3 at 5:30 pm as part of the 11th annual International Silent Film Festival Manila. The screening is co-sponsored by the Goethe-Institut Philippinen. Scoring the film is the Philippine band Sandwich, led by local rock icon Raymond Marasigan. More info follows.

The much-awaited yearly International Silent Film Festival Manila (ISFFM) is back! Established in 2007 as the very first event of its kind in Asia, the ISFFM promises to bring once more to Manila film buffs and music aficionados an extraordinary experience. This year, the Philippine-Italian Association, the Japan Foundation Manila, Goethe-Institut Philippinen, the Film Development Council of the Philippines, Instituto Cervantes, the British Council, and the Embassies of the United States of America, France and Austria, are extremely proud to present the 11th edition of the International Silent Film Festival in Manila. Scheduled from August 31st to September 3rd at the Shang Cineplex, Shangri-La Plaza, Mandaluyong City, the 2017 ISFFM brings together the very best of silent cinema from its nine member-countries, to be accompanied by the best Filipino musicians on the scene and a French-Vietnamese guest artist.

The Festival reels off at 8:00PM on Thursday, August 31^st  with Instituto Cervantes presenting the classic action/comedy El Golfo (1918), directed by José de Togores. Starring Irene Heredia, Mariano Ozores and Ernesto Vilches, the film tells the story of Enrique Villar, a tramp, who goes through much trouble to win the heart of his lady love. The rock band Talahib will accompany this film with a live performance.

On Friday, September 1st, at 07:30PM, the British Council will present a unique offering. Thanks to the discovery of an alternative print at the Brussels Cinematheque Royale, and advancement in photo-chemical and digital techniques, the British Film Institute has restored the magnificence of Anthony Asquith's Underground, a 1928 silent romance that reveals 1920s London life in the underground tube system. A live musical performance by dub band Goodleaf will accompany the film.

At 9:30PM, also on September 1^st, the Embassy of France to the Philippines will present L'Inhumaine or The New Enchantment (1923), a story of love and deceit directed by Marcel L’Herbier. The film will be scored by the French-Vietnamese harpist Heloïse LaHarpe, together with Ryan Villamor on piano and synthesizer and Aldous Castro on percussion and handpans.

On Saturday, September 2^nd at 03:00PM, the Philippine Italian Association together with the Embassy of Italy will screen the world premiere of an experimental silent film by Filipino-Italian director Ruben Maria Soriquez: Una Famiglia Perfetta or A Perfect Family (2017). The movie will be live-scored by the instrumental rock trio Tom's Story.

At 5:30PM, the Japan Foundation, Manila will feature Hijosen no Onna or Dragnet Girl (1933) by Yasujiro Ozu. This screening will feature a rare performance by Ichiro Kataoka, a noted benshi or silent film narrator/actor/storyteller from Japan, who will provide a live interpretation of the silent film. The screening and narration will be accompanied by The Celso Espejo Rondalla, a group which plays Filipino music on traditional native string instruments.

Ending the night with an 08:00PM screening will be the Philippines with Gym Lumbera's 2-person drama Taglish (2012), which started as a damaged film entitled Tagalog, then English, and finally the present title Taglish. The film will be accompanied by the stoner-metal quartet Kapitan Kulam.

On Sunday, September 3^rd at 03:00PM, the Embassy of Austria will feature Cafè Elektric (1927) directed by Gustav Ucicky. Café Elektric was the last film made and released by Sascha-Film, the first major film studio in Vienna. The live score will be played by one of the most established Filipino bands, Rivermaya.

 At 5:30 PM, Goethe-Institut Philippinen will screen one of silent cinema’s masterworks, Pandora’s Box (1929), by George Wilhelm Pabst. Based on the controversial plays of Frank Wedekind, the film features the dazzling Louise Brooks in her classic bobbed hairstyle as Lulu. Pandora’s Box will be accompanied by the band Sandwhich, led by local rock icon Raymond Marasigan.

Closing the festival at 08:00PM will be the U.S. Embassy's screening of one of the most-revered comedies of the silent era, The General (1926). Co-directed by Clyde Bruckman and Buster Keaton, the film also stars the iconic Keaton as an ill-fated railroad engineer. The film will be scored by a band of veteran musicians -- exponents of Motown, Stax, Funk, Blues and Soul - the Flippin Soul Stompers.

This year's film's festival experience will have a unique addition, an exhibit at The Atrium of the Shangri-La by partner organization Para sa Sining, from August 31^st to September 3^rd.  This community of creative collaborators will also present contemporary films of the silent film genre by their member-filmmakers.

On September 3^rd at 2:00PM, 7:15PM and 9:30PM, the group will present Musika x Pelikula,  during which their films will be scored by live musical performances from young and upcoming Filipino artists.

The 11th International Silent Film Festival is made possible in partnership with Shangri-La Plaza, Para sa Sining,  the National Film Center of The Museum of Modern Art of Tokyo, the Embassies of Italy, Japan, and Spain, Filmoteca de España, Institut Français, JEC Philippines and Marks & Spencer London . All screenings will be open to the public on a first come, first served basis. Watch and listen as we score the silents again!

Louise Brooks Film Series in Helsinki, Finland

Vintage dressmaker Irma Romero alerted the Louise Brooks Society to a Louise Brooks series at KAVI (the National Audiovisual Institute) in Helsinki, Finland.

Romero, a Louise Brooks devote and a longtime member of the LBS, also sent this picture of the KAVI program which features Brooks.

KAVI is set to show Beggars of Life on October 12 and 15, Diary of a Lost Girl (Kadotetun päiväkirjassa) on October 19 and 21, Prix de beaute on October 27 and 29, and Pandora’s Box (Pandoran lipas) on November 27 and December 1.

I visited the KAVI website and found this information in Finnish, authored by Kirsi Raitaranta.

Louise Brooks, kimaltava tähdenlento
12.10.2017 to 01.12.2017

Modernin tanssin merkittävässä Denishawn-tanssiryhmässä ja Broadwayn Ziegfeld Follies -revyyssä kunnostautunut Brooks (1906–1985) sai sopimuksen Paramount-yhtiölle. William Wellmanin mestariteoksessa Beggars of Life (1928) pojaksi naamioitunut Brooks pakenee murhasyytettä maankiertäjien seurassa. Vaiherikkaalla matkalla määritellään lopulta myös rakkaus, kun kovakasvoinen Oklaholma Red näkee totuuden: “I’ve heard about it – but I never seen it before. It must be love.”

Pabst löysi hehkuvan Lulunsa Howard Hawksin elokuvasta A Girl in Every Port, jonka esitimme keväällä. Pandoran lippaassa (Die Büchse der Pandora, 1929) Brooksin amoraalinen roolihahmo on viaton ja sensuelli – nainen, joka ei tunnusta rajojaan. Elokuva perustuu Franz Wedekindin näytelmiin, joissa ekspressionismi yhdistyy melodraamaan. Pabst tutki totuutta kuitenkin viileästi uusasiallisuuden hengessä, realistisesti ja vähäeleisesti tuoden samalla esiin yhteiskunnallisia epäkohtia ja kaksinaismoraalia.

Pabstin Kadotetun päiväkirjassa (Das Tagebuch einer Verlorenen, 1929) Brooks esittää viatonta tyttöä, joka saa lapsen raiskauksen seurauksena. Perhe keskittyy varjelemaan mainettaan, hylkää tytön kasvatuslaitokseen ja antaa lapsen pois. Tyttö kuitenkin karkaa ja päätyy elättämään itseään ainoaksi jäävällä vaihtoehdolla. Moraliteetti ottaa kantaa paremman luokan hurskasteluun ja näkee hyveen ”syntisissä”.   

Augusto Geninan Miss Europa (Prix de beauté, 1930) valmistui siirtymävaiheessa mykästä äänielokuvaan. Sen kerronta on kuitenkin ilmeistä mykkäelokuvaa, ja Orionissa nähdäänkin Bolognassa restauroitu mykkäversio. Brooksin esittämä Lucienne valitaan missikisoihin, ja hänelle avautuu uusia mahdollisuuksia. Mustasukkainen poikaystävä pyrkii rajoittamaan naisen elämää ja valintoja.

UPDATE 8/19/2017: Here is Irma Romero's translation of the above text in English. Thank you Irma!

Louise Brooks, a shining shooting star

Louise Brooks' career could be described as that of a shooting star as her most active part only lasted for a decade. She's best known for her work in the form of the  European collaboration with G. W. Past. She left Hollywood in such a way that left her return unsuccessful.

Having been part of the Denishawn dance group, and the Ziegfeld Follies on Broadway got her noticed and landed her a contract with the Paramount Studios.

In William Wellman' s masterpiece, Beggars of Life (1928), disguised as a boy, Brooks is on a run after being accused of murder where she joins a group of traveling vagrants. On a journey full of adventures , the concept of love is also is discussed when the hard-faced Oklahoma Red sees the light: "I've heard about it- but I never see it before. It must be love."

Pabst found his Lulu in Howard Hawks' film A girl in every port, which we showed earlier in the spring. In Pandora's Box (1929), Louise Brooks' amoral character is sensual and innocent- of a woman who doesn't have limits. The film is based on Frank Wedekind's plays where expressionism meets melodrama. Pabst's cool, minimalistic and realistic approach is also a critique of society's double standards.

In Pabst's Diary of a lost girl (1929), Brooks stars as an innocent girl who gets pregnant after being raped. Her family, intent on saving their image, abandon the girl in a home and give the child away. But the girl escapes and she makes a living in the only possible way she can. The moral of the story is seeing the upper classes' superficiality and the moral higher ground and seeing the good on those who "sin".

Augusta Genina's Miss Europa ( 1930) came out during the transition from silent to talkies. But it's style seems to follow in the line of silent films, therefore Orion will be showing the restored silent Bologna copy. Brooks stars as Lucienne who is selected to participate in Miss Europe contest which opens many doors for her. A jealous boyfriend tries to control and restrict her life and choices.

Brattle Theater announces Louise Brooks screenings in September

The historic Brattle Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts (located at  40 Brattle St.) has announced a short series of screenings featuring two films starring Louise Brooks. Here are the details. Visit the Brattle Theater website for further details including ticket availability.

Beggars of Life
Tue, Sep 5, 2017 at 8:30 PM
Thursday, September 7 at 6:00 PM (double bill with Diary of a Lost Girl)

New Digital Restoration!

(1928) dir William A. Wellman w/Louise Brooks, Wallace Beery, Richard Arlen, Blue Washington, Kewpie Morgan [81 min; DCP]

An American silent film classic, BEGGARS OF LIFE stars Louise Brooks as a train-hopping hobo who dresses like a boy to survive. After escaping her violent stepfather, Nancy (Brooks) befriends kindly drifter Jim (Arlen), and they ride the rails until an encounter with a rowdy band of hoboes led by the blustery Oklahoma Red (Beery) leads to a daring, desperate conflict on top of a moving train. Based on the memoir of real-life hobo Jim Tully, and directed with adventuresome verve by William Wellman, BEGGARS OF LIFE is an essential American original. Features a new original score by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra.

Diary of a Lost Girl
Wed, Sep 6, 2017 at 8:30 PM
Thursday, September 7 at 8:00 PM (double bill Beggars of Life)

New Digital Restoration!

(1929) dir G.W. Pabst w/Louise Brooks, André Roanne [112 min; DCP]
The second and final collaboration of actress Louise Brooks and director G.W. Pabst (Pandora’s Box), DIARY OF A LOST GIRL is a provocative adaptation of Margarethe Böhme’s notorious novel, in which the naive daughter of a middle-class pharmacist is seduced by her father’s assistant, only to be disowned and sent to a repressive home for wayward girls. She escapes, searches for her child, and ends up in a high-class brothel, only to turn the tables on the society which had abused her. It’s another tour-de-force performance by Brooks, whom silent film historian Kevin Brownlow calls an “actress of brilliance, a luminescent personality and a beauty unparalleled in screen history.” – Thomas Gladysz


Don't forget: If you see the movie, why not read my books! Each are available on amazon.com or through select independent bookstores. Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film is also available through Barnes and Noble.

And if you see the movie and want to see it again, be sure and pick up a copy of the outstanding Kino Lorber DVDs or Blu-ray. Each features an audio commentary by me, Thomas Gladysz, and each is available through amazon.com

NitrateVille Radio podcast features Louise Brooks & Beggars of Life

The latest NitrateVille Radio podcast with Mike Gebert features an interview with yours truly (Thomas Gladysz) about the new DVD / Blu-ray release, Beggars of Life (1928), starring Louise Brooks. Here is some further information about the podcast and how to listen.

....

NitrateVille Radio Episode 10: Cinecon, with Stan Taffel and Michael Schlesinger • Beggars of Life, with author Thomas Gladysz

I went to France and all I got was a cold, but the podcast must go on, so in this episode I talk about one of the top festivals of the year, coming over Labor Day weekend, and a major silent film video release coming out August 22.



(01:58) Labor Day weekend brings the 53rd annual Cinecon in Hollywood, and I talk to Stan Taffel and returning guest Michael Schlesinger about how they dig through the studio vaults to find rarities to show at Los Angeles' best fest for the film buff who's seen everything. They talk about working with the studios to identify titles for restoration and making sure those restorations actually get seen, and about guests like Norman Lloyd, Patricia Morrison and Marsha Hunt, our last links to the golden age of Hollywood.

Here's the link to the Cinecon site, for tickets, the schedule, hotel info and more. Here's the Cinecon Facebook page.



(24:13) A stark, exciting tale of hobo life, starring Wallace Beery, Richard Arlen and Louise Brooks (disguised as a boy), Beggars of Life was William Wellman's followup to his big hit Wings and one of those great late silents from the last moment (1928) the form would exist. Kino Lorber's release of the George Eastman House restoration, with music by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, is a vast improvement on grey market releases and allows this film to be seen as it should be.

Thomas Gladysz, founder of the Louise Brooks Society (an acclaimed scholarly fan page that has existed since 1995), provides a commentary track on the Kino release and has also written a companion book, Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film. I talk to him about this film, which among other things, stands out as Brooks' best work in America and likely the film that attracted the attention of G.W. Pabst for Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl.



Here's the Kino blu-ray and DVD, which will be released August 22. Here's Gladysz's book, available now.

Listen above, or subscribe at iTunes, Soundcloud, or Stitcher on your mobile device, to make sure you hear every episode.

https://soundcloud.com/user-368963594/10-cinecon-beggars-of-life-with-author-thomas-gladysz

Early reviews of Beggars of Life, the book and DVD (starring Louise Brooks)

Both the KINO Lorber DVD / Blu-ray of Beggars of Life, as well as my book, Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film, are receiving good early reviews.

Glenn Erickson of DVD Savant wrote that the new Beggars of Life DVD was "A happy discovery!" and "a major late-silent-era gem on the order of Von Sternberg’s Docks of New York," adding it "has a rich pre-Code feel." Erickson noted, "It’s also a key movie in our education/adoration of the maverick actress Louise Brooks, the erotic sensation too hot and too independent for Hollywood," and stated, "Kino and their producers Robert Sweeney and Bret Wood have given us an exemplary disc of a great silent movie."

Regarding the bonus material, Erickson added, "Two academic commentaries are in place. William Wellman Jr.’s track is of course centered on his father’s career, while Thomas Gladysz of the Louise Brooks Society, takes his commentary into star-worship mode. Gladysz also contributed a track for Kino’s Diary of a Lost Girl, and is no slouch with the facts. It’s a very good listen."

Gary Tooze of DVDBeaver also reviewed the new KINO Lorber release, stating that Beggars of Life was "An American silent film classic" and "an essential American original," while adding " I was very impressed. I thought it was quite brilliant.... Very strongly recommended!"

DVDBeaver had this to say about my contribution: "Kino adds two commentaries - the first by William Wellman, Jr. who discusses his director father and the making of the film. I thoroughly enjoyed all the details exported in the second commentary by Thomas Gladysz, founding director of the Louise Brooks Society. It is fascinating."

My new book, Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film, has also been receiving good reviews. By the way, the book is available on amazon.com as well as through select independent bookstores.

"I can say (with head bowed modestly) that I know more about the career of director William A. Wellman than pretty much anybody anywhere -- always excepting my friend and co-author John Gallagher -- but there are things in Thomas Gladysz's new book on Wellman's Beggars of Life that I didn't know. More important, the writing is so good and the research so deep that even when I was reading about facts that were familiar to me, I was enjoying myself hugely." — Frank Thompson, co-author of the forthcoming Nothing Sacred: The Cinema of William Wellman

"Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film is a quick, satisfying read, illustrated with promotional material, posters and stills as well as press clippings. In these pages, Gladysz takes us through the making and the reception of the film and clears up a few mysteries too.... Beggars of Life is a fascinating movie, made by some of the silent film industry's most colourful characters. This highly readable book will deepen your enjoyment and understanding of a silent Hollywood classic." — Pamela Hutchinson, Silent London

"I cannot help but give this an enthusiastic two thumbs up.  It really is the perfect companion, before or after you have seen the film.  The volume might be slim, but, it is packed with information and rare photographs.  It has been impeccably researched and beautifully executed.... This is a thorough examination of the film from start to finish and written in a breezy style that is not only informative, it is a very entertaining read." — Donna Hill, Strictly Vintage Hollywood

"Read your book. I love it. It is thorough and extremely interesting. The art work is compelling." — William Wellman, Jr., author of Wild Bill Wellman

courtesy of DVDBeaver

To Save Lulu, a poem by Charlotte Mandel

Just recently, I was alerted to a poem, "To Save Lulu" by Charlotte Mandel, which I came across on Mezzo Cammin: a Journal of Formal Poetry by Women, where it was first published.

To Save Lulu

Watching Louise Brooks as Lulu in Pandora's Box, 1929

All I need is a sharp-spined umbrella
to shelter her helmet of short black hair,
her tottering grace on little girl pumps
out from the crowded pub reeking of spilled
porter, damp wool, weeks-old sweat, the hoarse rasp
of cockney: "Take Me To the Garden, Maude"
slurred bass "Shut it you gobs"   slammed fists   Swung door
into night's grainy fog gaslights glow of decay

I shiver in my thin hoodie and Nikes
hands bare useless
                          Man-shape of sooty mold
follows the wavering dance of the girl's form
graceful even as she trips on wet cobbles

Two shadows blend into darkness—her door
opens   clangs shut   this is how she's earning
her living she will be bloodied by Jack
killer stabbings and
                         if only I'd got
to him in the street
                         if only I could
pierce the screen with a sharp-spined umbrella


I wrote to the author, who responded "I was introduced to Louise Brooks by an article by H.D. (Hilda Doolittle) in the avant garde magazine Close Up - the article is titled “An Appreciation” writing about director Pabst then working on Pandora’s Box. Likely you’re familiar with Close Up - H.D.’s article is reprinted in: Close-Up 1927-1933: Cinema and Modernism. (Ed. Anne Friedberg, James Donald, and Laura Marcus. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1998)." Mandel added "As an H.D. scholar, I’ve published a series of articles on the role of cinema in the life and work of H.D. Some are online on the H.D. Society website: http://www.imagists.org/hd/abouthd.html".

Charlotte Mandel's tenth book of poetry, To Be the Daylight, is forthcoming this year from White Violet Press, imprint of Kelsay Books. Previous titles include Through a Garden Gate with color photographs by Vincent Covello, published by David Robert Books, and two poem-novellas of feminist biblical revision—The Life of Mary and The Marriages of Jacob. Her awards include the New Jersey Poets Prize and two fellowships in poetry from New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She edited the Eileen W. Barnes Award Anthology, Saturday's Women. Critical essays include articles on the role of cinema in the life and work of H.D., on Muriel Rukeyser, May Sarton and others. Visit her at www.charlottemandel.com.