A Thing of Beauty and A Boy Forever
Sunday January 28, 12:30 & 4:00pm, The Rose Theater, Port Townsend
Paramount chose A Kiss for Cinderella (1925) as their second production with playwright Sir James M. Barrie, director Herbert Brenon and young star Betty Bronson. William K. Everson considered the film a masterpiece. "Few films, perhaps only Jean Cocteau's 1947 La Belle et la Bete, have caught the genuine flavor of fairytale magic as beautifully as this one." Sadly, the only surviving print, which Everson described as " richly toned, crystal-clear " and " a thing of beauty itself " was allowed to deteriorate badly before it was preserved. Only a splotchy, hypo-stained, black and white print survives today, and much of the film is obscured, leaving only a hint of its original beauty.
The first Barrie, Brenon and Bronson project, Peter Pan (1924) was nearly lost altogether. In his book, Seductive Cinema: The Art of Silent Film, James Card recounts a tale of clandestine, late night meetings in the bowels of Rochester's Eastman Theater, " three long black cars", and a burglary attempt to rescue one hundred reels of irreplaceable nitrate film.
Employed by Eastman Kodak after World War II, Card discovered existing prints of several features previously considered lost, among them Paramount's Peter Pan, stored across the hall from " the old screening room for student organists." A chubby, perpetually smiling sound technician named 'Chum', who preferred the abandoned screening room to his digs at the YMCA, had been showing the films at parties. Card was certain word of these gatherings would get out, and the instant it became known that a large quantity of volatile nitrate film stock was stored in the building, it would be removed and destroyed. Despite the failed burglary, after desperate pleas and some mild coercion, the bulk of the films held in long forgotten storage were sent to The Museum of Modern Art for eventual preservation.
Throughout Hollywood's early years, competition for talent was fierce. Paramount sought the bigger, more exotic stars, of literature and the stage. When they signed opera legend Geraldine Farrar, her contract included a private rail car for the long trips between New York and California, and a fully staffed private villa for her stays on the coast. Farrar, and others, brought the prestige of legitimate theater to films. Scottish playwright Sir James Barrie was the biggest feather in Adolph Zukor and Jesse Lasky's cap. Once the studio and Barrie came to terms, work began on Honorable Crichton, re-titled Male and Female (1918), and Cecil B. DeMille directed no less than Gloria Swanson.
Paramount began its search for the lead in Barrie's Peter Pan (1924), with a casting call of epic proportions. The prize of young actresses since its 1904 premiere (due largely to the technical demands of stage flight), everyone wanted the part. Swanson was interested. She traveled to England and met with Barrie. Mary Pickford made her own tests, in costume. Barrie's contract gave him final cast approval, so audition films were shipped to England where surprisingly, his choice was not a star at all. Betty Bronson was a gangly young dancer who, as James Card observed, had a " seventeen-year-old, unactressy face."
An author's participation in performing arts brings with it a sense of authenticity. Happenstance may also draw elements together with unpredictably wonderful results. In 1924, Peter Pan had both these factors working in its favor. Paramount employed the best technicians and performers available and consistently produced films of the highest quality. The casting, in addition to Bronson, was brilliant. Ernest Torrence (Streamboat Bill Jr, 1928) was chosen to play Captain Hook, fresh from his performance as the tough but likable scout in The Covered Wagon (1923). His imposing, yet buffoonish performance made Hook a likable villain. Anna May Wong (The Thief of Bagdad 1924, Piccadilly 1929), played the mischievous wild little Indian, Tiger Lily, while twenty-three-year-old Esther Ralston, was an image of serene motherhood as Mrs. Darling. Broadway veteran George Ali, who specialized in animal parts, played Nana, family dog and nurse to the Darling children. Though uncredited, Ali almost certainly played the lion and crocodile also. Mary Brian in her first screen role as Wendy, was smitten with Peter, the object of Tinker Belle's ire, and mother to the Lost Boys. Philippe De Lacey (Rosita 1923, Don Juan 1926), played the littlest Darling, Michael, " I flewed! I flewed!"
The production design was charmingly whimsical, owing, as Card observed, to the legacy of Georges Méliès. The cinematography of James Wong Howe, at the start of his long career, captured beautiful and inventive images of tiny fairies and flying pirate ships that entice the eye with exquisite detail. Audiences still gasp at Virginia Brown Faire, as Tinker Belle, tugging at the enormous dresser drawer where Peter's shadow is kept, while her delicate costume and long hair fly in the breeze.
So many images from this film have appeared in later versions of Barrie's play. None have surpassed the magic and artistry of the original. While the Darlings dine, Nana escapes the banishment of her doghouse to warn them, just in time to see the children and Peter fly in circles, and out the nursery window. Beneath the Forest of Make-Believe, safe from the animals, pirates and indians, the Lost Boys live in a cave, with jack-o-lantern lights and a Murphy bed made of leaves. Mermaids lie sunning on the beach (Catalina Island), while Hook feeds a clock to the crocodile, and the indians hunt a lion.
Although a more complex treatment was developed, Paramount wisely remained close to the play, using Barrie's original text for the inter-titles, with only minor changes made to 'Americanize' the characters. Bronson's boyish posturing and subtle, reactive performance personifies Barrie's joyful celebration of eternal youth.
Sunday January 28, 12:30 & 4:00pm, The Rose Theater, Port Townsend
Paramount chose A Kiss for Cinderella (1925) as their second production with playwright Sir James M. Barrie, director Herbert Brenon and young star Betty Bronson. William K. Everson considered the film a masterpiece. "Few films, perhaps only Jean Cocteau's 1947 La Belle et la Bete, have caught the genuine flavor of fairytale magic as beautifully as this one." Sadly, the only surviving print, which Everson described as " richly toned, crystal-clear " and " a thing of beauty itself " was allowed to deteriorate badly before it was preserved. Only a splotchy, hypo-stained, black and white print survives today, and much of the film is obscured, leaving only a hint of its original beauty.
The first Barrie, Brenon and Bronson project, Peter Pan (1924) was nearly lost altogether. In his book, Seductive Cinema: The Art of Silent Film, James Card recounts a tale of clandestine, late night meetings in the bowels of Rochester's Eastman Theater, " three long black cars", and a burglary attempt to rescue one hundred reels of irreplaceable nitrate film.
Employed by Eastman Kodak after World War II, Card discovered existing prints of several features previously considered lost, among them Paramount's Peter Pan, stored across the hall from " the old screening room for student organists." A chubby, perpetually smiling sound technician named 'Chum', who preferred the abandoned screening room to his digs at the YMCA, had been showing the films at parties. Card was certain word of these gatherings would get out, and the instant it became known that a large quantity of volatile nitrate film stock was stored in the building, it would be removed and destroyed. Despite the failed burglary, after desperate pleas and some mild coercion, the bulk of the films held in long forgotten storage were sent to The Museum of Modern Art for eventual preservation.
Throughout Hollywood's early years, competition for talent was fierce. Paramount sought the bigger, more exotic stars, of literature and the stage. When they signed opera legend Geraldine Farrar, her contract included a private rail car for the long trips between New York and California, and a fully staffed private villa for her stays on the coast. Farrar, and others, brought the prestige of legitimate theater to films. Scottish playwright Sir James Barrie was the biggest feather in Adolph Zukor and Jesse Lasky's cap. Once the studio and Barrie came to terms, work began on Honorable Crichton, re-titled Male and Female (1918), and Cecil B. DeMille directed no less than Gloria Swanson.
Paramount began its search for the lead in Barrie's Peter Pan (1924), with a casting call of epic proportions. The prize of young actresses since its 1904 premiere (due largely to the technical demands of stage flight), everyone wanted the part. Swanson was interested. She traveled to England and met with Barrie. Mary Pickford made her own tests, in costume. Barrie's contract gave him final cast approval, so audition films were shipped to England where surprisingly, his choice was not a star at all. Betty Bronson was a gangly young dancer who, as James Card observed, had a " seventeen-year-old, unactressy face."
An author's participation in performing arts brings with it a sense of authenticity. Happenstance may also draw elements together with unpredictably wonderful results. In 1924, Peter Pan had both these factors working in its favor. Paramount employed the best technicians and performers available and consistently produced films of the highest quality. The casting, in addition to Bronson, was brilliant. Ernest Torrence (Streamboat Bill Jr, 1928) was chosen to play Captain Hook, fresh from his performance as the tough but likable scout in The Covered Wagon (1923). His imposing, yet buffoonish performance made Hook a likable villain. Anna May Wong (The Thief of Bagdad 1924, Piccadilly 1929), played the mischievous wild little Indian, Tiger Lily, while twenty-three-year-old Esther Ralston, was an image of serene motherhood as Mrs. Darling. Broadway veteran George Ali, who specialized in animal parts, played Nana, family dog and nurse to the Darling children. Though uncredited, Ali almost certainly played the lion and crocodile also. Mary Brian in her first screen role as Wendy, was smitten with Peter, the object of Tinker Belle's ire, and mother to the Lost Boys. Philippe De Lacey (Rosita 1923, Don Juan 1926), played the littlest Darling, Michael, " I flewed! I flewed!"
The production design was charmingly whimsical, owing, as Card observed, to the legacy of Georges Méliès. The cinematography of James Wong Howe, at the start of his long career, captured beautiful and inventive images of tiny fairies and flying pirate ships that entice the eye with exquisite detail. Audiences still gasp at Virginia Brown Faire, as Tinker Belle, tugging at the enormous dresser drawer where Peter's shadow is kept, while her delicate costume and long hair fly in the breeze.
So many images from this film have appeared in later versions of Barrie's play. None have surpassed the magic and artistry of the original. While the Darlings dine, Nana escapes the banishment of her doghouse to warn them, just in time to see the children and Peter fly in circles, and out the nursery window. Beneath the Forest of Make-Believe, safe from the animals, pirates and indians, the Lost Boys live in a cave, with jack-o-lantern lights and a Murphy bed made of leaves. Mermaids lie sunning on the beach (Catalina Island), while Hook feeds a clock to the crocodile, and the indians hunt a lion.
Although a more complex treatment was developed, Paramount wisely remained close to the play, using Barrie's original text for the inter-titles, with only minor changes made to 'Americanize' the characters. Bronson's boyish posturing and subtle, reactive performance personifies Barrie's joyful celebration of eternal youth.