Vitagraph Studios, America's largest film company at the time, was infected by the Shakespearean bug in 1908 when it released eight of the Bard's plays within one year. These short, mostly 12-minute one-reelers, gave only the key highlights of his plays. Director J. Stuart Blackton's limited-budgeted series required the actors to construct the sets and props and make their own togas.
During the filming of "Julius Caesar," a stray dog happened to walk on the stage while the actor who played Marc Anthony was giving his famous funeral oration, ruining 200 feet of precious film. "Julius Caesar," and the other Vitagraph Shakespearean movies produced that year were hindered by the lack of dialogue titles, which weren't in vogue yet in these early days of silent cinema. But visually, especially the scene where Blackton staged almost the exact depiction of Jean Leon Gerome's famous painting, "The Death Of Caesar," must have amazed viewers by its stunning details.
During the filming of "Julius Caesar," a stray dog happened to walk on the stage while the actor who played Marc Anthony was giving his famous funeral oration, ruining 200 feet of precious film. "Julius Caesar," and the other Vitagraph Shakespearean movies produced that year were hindered by the lack of dialogue titles, which weren't in vogue yet in these early days of silent cinema. But visually, especially the scene where Blackton staged almost the exact depiction of Jean Leon Gerome's famous painting, "The Death Of Caesar," must have amazed viewers by its stunning details.