Welcome to BlogHub: the Best in Veteran and Emerging Classic Movie Blogs
You can rate and share your favorite classic movie posts here.
You can rate and share your favorite classic movie posts here.
Lions and Tigers and Colonel Selig
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Apr 23, 2014
The kind folks at Classic Movie Hub have given me the opportunity to create a series of posts dedicated to the history of silent film in Chicago. The second post about Selig Polyscope post is live here, and here's an excerpt to get you started...
In the early days of silent cinema, read more
Review: "The Mishaps of Musty Suffer"
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Apr 22, 2014
Ben Model has done it again. Today marks the official release of Model's most recent Kickstarter venture, "The Mishaps of Musty Suffer," and this latest offering is every bit as entertaining as the last.
Musty Suffer is the title character in a series of films originally created and produced by Ge read more
The Selig Polyscope Company and the Birth of Film in the Windy City
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Apr 15, 2014
The kind folks at Classic Movie Hub have given me the opportunity to create a series of posts dedicated to the history of silent film in Chicago. The first (intro) post is live here, and here's an excerpt to get you started with the first (full) installment, all about Colonel Selig.
By the time Wi read more
The Man Behind the Film: An Interview with Accidentally Preserved's Ben Model
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Feb 11, 2014
Recently, silent film accompanist/film historian Ben Model released the second installment of his “Accidentally Preserved” series. The DVD features nine more restored versions of previously thought lost and rare silent films, all with brand new musical accompaniment courtesy of read more
Review: "Accidentally Preserved Volume 2"
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jan 17, 2014
In the last month or so, the rest of the world has realized something that film fans and film historians have known for years -- 75% of American silent films are considered “lost.” Thanks to vault fires, decomposing original nitrate reels and a lack of foresight, the majority of silent c read more
Jeanne Iver: Elinor Glyn's "Find" from Akron, Ohio
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jan 9, 2014
A decade before Elinor Glyn declared Clara Bow the It Girl, she hand-picked another rising star to bring her original stories to the big screen.
When the tradepapers reported that Jeanne Iver (sometimes credited as Jeanne Ivers) had been selected to play the role of Opal in the Elinor Glyn-penned read more
Gilbert M. Anderson and the Rise of the Western Star (2)
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Dec 1, 2013
G.M. "Broncho Billy" Anderson
Thanks to my recent work with Essanay, I was given the exciting opportunity to pen a series of blog posts for the wonderful Classic Movie Hub site. The second post is live, and all about Broncho Billy himself. Here's an excerpt to get you started:
G.M. read more
Charlie Chaplin at Essanay (2)
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Nov 22, 2013
Charlie Chaplin Essanay advertisement
Thanks to my recent with Essanay, I was given the exciting opportunity to pen a series of blog posts for the wonderful Classic Movie Hub site. I'm honored and flattered that the wonderful folks there would give me the chance to contribute to their blog, and I read more
Open House Chicago Gives Chicagoans an Inside Look at Essanay
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Oct 21, 2013
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of volunteering at Essanay Studios’ Open House event as part of Open House Chicago. The 2-day event gives Chicago residents the opportunity to get exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpses at some of the city’s iconic buildings and sites, and all for free! Not read more
Save Essanay!
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Oct 6, 2013
Virginia Valli in front of the historic Essanay Studios entrance
For a few months now, I've had the opportunity to work closely with a wonderful group of people still firmly entrenched in the world of silent film -- the interns, volunteers and staff at Chicago's Essanay Studios. Although the comp read more
Mary MacLane: A Correct Reflection of a Peculiar Woman
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Sep 6, 2013
Mary MacLane had been causing a stir for nearly 20 years by the time she joined the ranks at Essanay, and the sensation she caused helped bring the studio new attention. Unfortunately, the product of their partnership has been lost to time.
MacLane startled readers and publishers alike when she pub read more
Vedah Bertram: A Career Cut Short
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Aug 22, 2013
The death of Essanay star Vedah Bertram marks one of the earliest tragedies the film industry had to deal with. When she died at just 20 years old, she had already traveled across the country to follow her dream and had managed to hold her own on the screen with the likes of Broncho Billy himself, G read more
Peerless Annabelle: A Symphony in Yellow Hair
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Aug 6, 2013
On her 80th birthday, Annabelle Whitford was on top of the world. She'd received jams, jellies, flowers, phone calls and telegrams from well-wishers across the country, and had entertained several photographers and reporters who had come to call, all within her small Chicago apartment. It was quite read more
Edna Mayo: The Best Dressed Woman on the Screen
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jul 31, 2013
Although she was a popular leading lady with the Chicago branch of Essanay, Edna Mayo’s fame and stardom were brief, as was her film career. She was in the public eye for less than five years, but she made quite an impression, and when she left the industry, fans were confused and wondered whe read more
Marguerite Clayton: The Broncho Girl of the Essanay Company
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jul 27, 2013
Marguerite Clayton never quite eclipsed her famous leading man G.M. “Broncho Billy” Anderson, but she managed keep a respectable film career alive for 15 years before retiring right around the introduction of sound. From humble beginnings, to becoming one of the most popular photoplayers read more
Review: Wild Bill Hollywood Maverick
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jul 18, 2013
By the time William A. Wellman was 36 years old, he had just as many films under his belt. He had also survived a war, four failed marriages, and some of the tougher aspects of the Hollywood studio system. Now, Kino Lorber has made his story widely available once again with the DVD release of “ read more
Myrtle Stedman: The Girl with the Sweet Contralto Eyebrows
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jul 12, 2013
She had many nicknames during the height of her fame. The Voiceless Prima Donna. The Venus of the Movie World. The Girl with the Search-light Eyes. The Selig Girl. Yet the one Myrtle Stedman liked the most paid tribute not to her looks so much as her incredibly expressive face and her talent as a su read more
Winifred Greenwood: 'Versatile Artist of the Silent Drama'
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jun 28, 2013
Winifred Greenwood toured in vaudeville, performed in musical comedies, and did dramatic stock work before joining the film world. She was versatile, consistent and a hard worker, helping her work consistently through the early days of film and into the early talkies. And she, like so many others, g read more
Mae Hotely: The Woman Who Made People Laugh
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jun 26, 2013
Mae Hotely was respected as a comedienne, a dramatic actress, and a versatile character actress. She was once referred to as “The character actress who makes things happen in Lubin films,” and she headed the company’s comedy arm under her husband watchful eye. But as the 1910s came read more
Adrienne Kroell: The Selig Coquette
Curtains Posted by Janelle Vreeland on Jun 23, 2013
Adrienne Kroell was dubbed one of the most beautiful women in filmdom, and had a beauty contest trophy to support it. At one point, she was named the most engaged girl in all of Chicago, as she was receiving proposals on nearly a daily basis. Unfortunately, in just a matter of years, Selig’s c read more