Actress Dorothy Janis Dies: One of the Last Silent Screen Performers
Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Janis in The Pagan
Dorothy Janis, who made a few film appearances at the dawn of the sound era and was the widow of bandleader Wayne King, died Wednesday morning in the Phoenix suburb of Paradise Valley, according to musician Lew Williams, who received the news from Janis’ granddaughter. Janis, one of the last surviving performers to have played at least one major role in silent films, was either 98 or 100, depending on the source.
A pretty, petite brunette with sensuous lips — according to (possibly made-up) reports from the period, she was half-Native American — Dorothy Janis was born in Dallas on Feb. 19, 1910 or 1912. Her most notable movie role was that of [...]
by Andre Soares | March 11, 2010
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Tags: Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Janis, Harry Garson, John Howard Lawson, Lummox, Michael Ankerich, Ramon Novarro, Silent Films, The Pagan, The White Captive, W. S. Van Dyke
BERLIN: SYMPHONY OF A CITY at Filmforum
The Los Angeles Filmforum will be hosting the Munich Film Museum’s Stefan Droessler on Friday March 12, 8:00 pm at the The Echo Park Film Center. As per the Filmforum press release, the Museum "has an ongoing program of restoration of film works and issuing exemplary DVD editions through the Edition Filmmuseum label."
At Filmforum, Droessler will "present the issues and process involved in their restoration of the pioneering film work of Walther Ruttmann, followed by a presentation of the classic poetic documentary masterwork Berlin: Symphony of a City [1927]. The presentation will include photos, scans of paintings, and Ruttmann’s short films OPUS I-IV, and will last about 60-80 minutes, followed by intermission [...]
by Andre Soares | February 28, 2010
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Tags: Berlin: Symphony of a City, Classic Movies, Los Angeles Filmforum, Los Angeles Screenings, Silent Films, Walther Ruttmann
Ethnicity in Film: Ramon Novarro
Ethnicity in Film: Luise Rainer, Nancy Kwan
The issue of ethnicity and movie roles came up to me a few years ago, while I was working on a biography of Mexican-born actor Ramon Novarro (above), Beyond Paradise. I’d read much about white performers playing non-white roles, but basically nothing about non-white actors playing white roles. Yet, back in those days it wasn’t that uncommon. Although Novarro, for one, had a Mediterranean look, he clearly had some Indian blood as well. Dolores del Rio and Sessue Hayakawa were a couple of other non-white performers who played a varied of ethnicities — including Caucasian types — in their Hollywood films.
In Novarro’s case, his Mexican background and mixed ethnicity didn’t prevent [...]
by Andre Soares | February 19, 2010
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Tags: Anna May Wong, Classic Movies, Ethnicity in Film, Paul Muni, Ramon Novarro, Sessue Hayakawa, Silent Films, The Son-Daughter
Buster Keaton, Norma Talmadge, Constance Talmadge: Kansas Silent Film Festival
Buster Keaton’s Our Hospitality will be introduced by Keaton’s granddaughter Melissa Talmadge Cox at the opening of the 14th annual Kansas Silent Film Festival at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 26, in White Concert Hall, Washburn University. The Festival continues Saturday, Feb. 27. Admission is free both days.
According to the KSFF press release, Talmadge Cox "will relate how the 1923 film was a family affair, with both her grandparents as the stars (Buster Keaton and Natalie Talmadge) and her great-grandfather (Joe Keaton) and her father (James Keaton) in small roles." Musical accompaniment will be provided by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra of Boulder, Colo. [...]
by Andre Soares | February 16, 2010
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Tags: Buster Keaton, Classic Movies, Constance Talmadge, Douglas Fairbanks, Kansas Silent Film Festival, Norma Talmadge, Our Hospitality, Silent Films, Smilin' Through, The Matrimaniac, The Yankee Clipper, William Boyd
Fritz Lang’s METROPOLIS in Berlin and San Francisco
"Maybe you’ve heard the buzz about Metropolis," reads a newsletter from the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. "The incredible discovery of long-lost footage from director Fritz Lang’s masterpiece. Found in a vault in Buenos Aires, the complete film has been reconstructed and restored by the F.W. Murnau Foundation." The restored 1927 silent classic starring Alfred Abel, Brigitte Helm, and Gustav Fröhlich had its premiere at the Berlin Film Festival on February 12.
Come next July, SFSFF will screen the restored version as part of its 15th anniversary festival. The screening will be accompanied by the Alloy Orchestra.
Back to Metropolis at the Berlin Film Festival: The sold-out screening at the Friedrichstadt Palace was beamed simultaneously to [...]
by Andre Soares | February 16, 2010
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Tags: Alloy Orchestra, Berlin 2010, Berlin Film Festival, Brigitte Helm, Classic Movies, Fritz Lang, Metropolis, San Francisco Silent Film Festival, Silent Films