Friday, November 30, 2007

Back in the USSR

Ever wondered how to spell Louise Brooks in Russian? This postcard, dating from the late 1920s, shows how. It is for sale oneBay.

This Soviet era postcard depicts the photographic work of M.I. Boris, a photographer once associated with the Austro-Hungarian Royal Court. That's a bit ironic, historically speaking. Ah, the currents of history . . . .

Thursday, November 29, 2007

Lulu in New York, Louise Brooks in New York Times

Today, the New York Times ran a piece on a new stage production of Lulu, which is playing at BAM as part of the Next Wave Festival. (An earlier, and equally informative article about this new production, "The Nymphet Is a Lethal Weapon," appeared in the 11-25-07 New York Times. The article can be found at http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/25/theater/25kalb.html).

Today's article by Caryn James, "A Woman of Thoughtless Erotic Force Has Her Day, and Many Men," reads in part:
Wedekind wrote “Pandora’s Box” and “The Earth Spirit,” which together became “Lulu,” soon after “Spring Awakening,” the 1891 play that is the basis for the current (when the stagehands aren’t on strike) Broadway musical. Although his sexual frankness shattered the mores of his society, we can see now that his plays were not so much ahead of their time as timeless. Just as the musical “Spring Awakening” speaks to the eternal theme of adolescent sexual discovery, this “Lulu” distills the story of a woman and the many men with whom she has lethal affairs to its primal elements: desire, willfulness, blind obsession.

That approach shatters the Lulu stereotype. From Louise Brooks in the 1929 silent film “Pandora’s Box,” staring out from the screen with her dark-rimmed eyes and trademark black bob, to her descendant, Lola Lola, the Marlene Dietrich character in “The Blue Angel,” the typical Germanic femme fatale has swept through men’s lives with the destructive force of a tornado. Mr. Thalheimer offers a nonjudgmental “Lulu,” with a heroine who is more careless than seductive, and men and women who are neither good nor bad, strong nor weak. Until it is undermined by a melodramatic ending, his version has an elemental sexuality that transcends the taboos of any moment.
According to the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) website, this performance is sold out for the duration of its short run. I know I have asked this question before, but might there be a Wedekind revival in the works?

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Louise Brooks, the fairy

magine Louise Brooks as a fairy. Imagine Louise Brooks as a fairy doll. Must be seen to be believed. . . .  Check it out here.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Stolen Moments on Louise Brooks

Don't forget to check out the latest installment of "Stolen Moments," Donna Hill's always interesting silent film podcast. "Episode "Forever Lulu"  is number 19 in the series. I am a regular listener.

Though the show is usually focussed on "all things Valentino" (Donna also runs a fantastic Valentino website and is the author of a book in the works about the great silent film star), this latest episode is devoted to Louise Brooks. What's the connection? Brooks was a fan of the actor. We know that. And, according to one published account, she met him at a party not long before his premature death in 1926. Brooks also attended his New York funeral. But anyways, who needs a reason to talk about Louise Brooks?

Monday, November 26, 2007

Mike Nichols on Natalie Portman and Louise Brooks

Once again, Natalie Portman is associated with Louise Brooks. . . . The first time was in 1994, when Portman appeared in The Professional wearing a bob haircut.

And now again, in an article in today's Guardian newspaper, "The actress was a paragon of principle, a hugely talented brainbox who happened to be both bombshell and bewitcher, who rewrote the rule book for young Hollywood hot shots. 'It confuses people to think that someone so completely beautiful could be a first-rate actor, too,' says veteran director Mike Nichols, to whom Portman is very close. 'It's hard to grasp, but it's happened. It's happened a few times before, with Garbo and Louise Brooks'."

Sunday, November 25, 2007

TONIGHT: Louise Brooks double feature at Harvard


A Girl in Every Port (1928) and The Canary Murder Case (1929) will be shown at the Harvard Film Archive, Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, 24 Quincy Street, in Cambridge, Mass. Tonight's start time is 7:00 pm. For more information about this rare double bill, click there.*

Special Event Tickets $10 - Double Feature Admission 
Live Piano Accompaniment by Martin Marks
Introduction by Caroline Yaeger, Assistant Curator, George Eastman House


A Girl in Every Port


Directed by Howard Hawks
With Louise Brooks, Victor McLaglen
US 1928, 35mm, b/w, silent, 64 min.

A rousing action comedy, A Girl In Every Port is arguably the first quintessential Howard Hawks film, one of the earliest to fully explore the themes of male bonding and sexual relations that would preoccupy the director throughout his entire career. Brooks plays Marie, a protofemme fatale who lures sailors to commit acts of folly. Brooks' wonderful turn in the film brought her to Pabst's attention and rocketed her to sudden celebrity.

The Canary Murder Case


Directed by Malcolm St. Clair
With Louise Brooks, William Powell, Jean Arthur
US 1929, 35mm, b/w, 82 min
.
One of Paramount's biggest hits of 1929, The Canary Murder Case is a wonderful example of the sophisticated brand of comedy that remained extremely popular in the years leading up to the Production Code. One of Hollywood's earliest private eye films, The Canary Murder Case stars William Powell as the debonair detective Phil Vance, investigating the suspicious career of the eponymous Canary (Brooks), an immoral nightclub singer with a cast of impatient lovers. The script, co-written by Herman J. Mankiewicz, sparkles with sexual innuendo. Brooks' refusal to dub her own voice when Paramount decided to turn the film into a talkie helped alienate her from the studios.

* When A Girl in Every Port was first shown at Harvard in 1928, The Crimson, the Harvard student newspaper wrote, "The main interest of the story comes when Spike meets his rival, and 'the' girl - Louise Brooks. From then on the picture might well be entitled 'A Text Book for Pugilistic Aspirants.' In a word, the picture is very amusing and eminently well worth seeing; well directed with Miss Brooks and Mr. McLaglen forming a very delightful contrast."

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Films to Know About . . .

This bit appeared in Kristi Turnquist's "Pop Talk" column in Friday's Portland Oregonian.
Dreading holiday party chitchat? Here's a resource to consider: "In the Know: The Classic Guide to Being Cultured and Cool" (Penguin, $13, 240 pages). Author Nancy MacDonell arms you for cocktail conversation with such tidbits as "Ten Books You Should Read" (example: F. Scott Fitzgerald's "Tender Is the Night"); "Ten Films to Know About" (the silent Louise Brooks classic, "Pandora's Box"); "Ten Landmark Buildings and their Architects" (Lovell Health House, by Richard Neutra, with bonus pronunciation guide of "NOY-tra").
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