Search found 656 matches

by Gary Johnson
Sat Mar 12, 2016 12:10 am
Forum: SILENT COMEDY MAIN
Topic: Nitrateville Correction Dept: Mack Sennett Collection Vol 2?
Replies: 3
Views: 7528

Re: Nitrateville Correction Dept: Mack Sennett Collection Vo

I don't know why Richard wastes his breath anymore with these people. Every time I go there (because of these links) I get a headache. I don't even know the majority of these posters anymore because they all sound so clueless. But it's not as if the previous posters were enshrined with any great kno...
by Gary Johnson
Mon Mar 07, 2016 11:51 am
Forum: SILENT COMEDY MAIN
Topic: William K. Everson discusses Chaplin jumping the shark
Replies: 8
Views: 15308

Re: William K. Everson discusses Chaplin jumping the shark

Chaplin's idea of finishing his contract 'as quickly as possible' is akin to the Worlds response to rising ocean currents.

We best go invest in knee-high hip boots as they discuss it some more......
by Gary Johnson
Mon Mar 07, 2016 11:40 am
Forum: SILENT MOVIE MAIN
Topic: WHEN THE WEST WAS YOUNG (1913) Vitagraph Drama
Replies: 2
Views: 8802

Re: WHEN THE WEST WAS YOUNG (1913) Vitagraph Drama

I watched this last week. Another downbeat ending. The ending is choppy from missing frames but it's obvious that the Calvary guns down the girl's Indian protector right at the iris. That's the reason I never get involved in rescue operations out on the prairie.
by Gary Johnson
Mon Mar 07, 2016 11:34 am
Forum: SILENT MOVIE MAIN
Topic: THE LIEUTENANTS LAST FIGHT (1912) Francis Ford
Replies: 5
Views: 12399

Re: THE LIEUTENANTS LAST FIGHT (1912) Francis Ford

That's what was so significant about early cinema. There were no corporate rules over depictions of various race of people. Everyone acted as an independent film unit. Their distributors didn't care what they shot as long as product kept flowing in. It didn't last long, however. The Zukors of the wo...
by Gary Johnson
Sun Mar 06, 2016 11:54 am
Forum: SILENT MOVIE MAIN
Topic: THE LIEUTENANTS LAST FIGHT (1912) Francis Ford
Replies: 5
Views: 12399

Re: THE LIEUTENANTS LAST FIGHT (1912) Francis Ford

Oh, that is obviously true concerning his directorial influence. It's the reason Jack punished his older brother the rest of his life by the roles he gave him in all of his films. "Francis, how dare you set me off on a career of international renown?? I'll show you...." There were a lot of...
by Gary Johnson
Sat Mar 05, 2016 5:51 pm
Forum: SILENT MOVIE MAIN
Topic: THE LIEUTENANTS LAST FIGHT (1912) Francis Ford
Replies: 5
Views: 12399

Re: THE LIEUTENANTS LAST FIGHT (1912) Francis Ford

Filmmakers certainly didn't shy away from downbeat endings in early cinema. Most of Francis Ford's surviving films that I've seen wear well with age. They tend to play down the hyperbole that was so prevalent at the time. When the officers of the fort look out to watch Ford greet and hug his Indian ...
by Gary Johnson
Sat Mar 05, 2016 2:32 pm
Forum: Books, DVDs, Broadcasts & Screenings
Topic: Philanthropist David W. Packard
Replies: 0
Views: 10316

Philanthropist David W. Packard

Nice article on Packard's preservation efforts at his new Institute. The film world could use more billionaires like him. Oddly, it took a couple of Judy Garland screenings in the 1970's to convert him into a passionate film fan. Chock up another win for Judy. It's too bad he wasn't born with that p...
by Gary Johnson
Thu Mar 03, 2016 6:31 pm
Forum: SILENT COMEDY MAIN
Topic: Syd Chaplin clip 1921 KING, QUEEN, JOKER
Replies: 7
Views: 12368

Re: Syd Chaplin clip 1921 KING, QUEEN, JOKER

Syd's niece Betty was quoted as saying, "He was very clever with money". When his first wife had a botched nose job in the 1920's, Syd sued and won a substantial settlement. That money was smartly invested and, for some reason, he had the foresight to pull out of the stock market just mont...
by Gary Johnson
Wed Mar 02, 2016 2:05 pm
Forum: SILENT COMEDY MAIN
Topic: Syd Chaplin clip 1921 KING, QUEEN, JOKER
Replies: 7
Views: 12368

Re: Syd Chaplin clip 1921 KING, QUEEN, JOKER

That story sounds apropos to many of Syd's independent productions. Some disaster always seems to strike. Wasn't he bankrupt more than once in life?
by Gary Johnson
Wed Mar 02, 2016 2:35 am
Forum: SILENT COMEDY MAIN
Topic: Syd Chaplin clip 1921 KING, QUEEN, JOKER
Replies: 7
Views: 12368

Re: Syd Chaplin clip 1921 KING, QUEEN, JOKER

I felt like I was watching an unknown outtake from SUNNYSIDE, except that Syd's acting seemed to be aping his brothers' more broadly played performing style from his various home movies of the time. I'm curious why reels from this film were in the Chaplin archive. Could it be because portions of its...