Norma Talmadge and Marion Davies at Vitaphone Varieties
April 13th, 2007 by Andre Soares
Jeff Cohen in “Then As Now” at Vitaphone Varities:
“It’s always interesting to compare studio-manufactured publicity with actual period reviews, but — interestingly, New York Nights fared just as well in the eyes of imaginary and actual reviewers. And this in spite of the fact that a seemingly unfounded legend has long since attached itself to the film (and [silent-era superstar Norma] Talmadge) that suggests her voice was so tainted by a distinctive Brooklyn accent that the film was all but laughed off the screen by public and critics alike — accounting for it’s [sic] failure at the box office. Nonsense, apparently.”
Also in the same lengthy and eclectic post:
“[U.S.] cable subscribers who were treated to the recent airing of Marion Davies‘ 1927 Metro comedy The Red Mill would surely be uniform in their praise of how unbelievably beautiful the film looked — unblemished, sparkling and with clarity and depth all too sadly rare in films of this vintage. Similarly, opinions may vary as to the film’s content and mirth value — and it’s interesting to note that period reviews were equally divided among those who felt the film near cinematic perfection, and those who found it uneven fare at best. Any silent (or early sound) film that turns up today in such glowing form is cause for celebration, but I couldn’t easily find such forgiveness for the score prepared for the film’s revival.”
Colleen Moore Research Project
Norma Talmadge and Constance Talmadge at the Donnell Media Center
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