(via Nitrateville) The Library of Congress hosts a blog called The Sound of Silents:
http://blogs.loc.gov/now-see-hear/2014/06/the-sound-of-silents/
Film
Library of Congress Silent Film Database
Herbert Brenon’s The Great Gatsby is a lost film, but the trailer still exists. Image courtesy of http://bookdirtblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-lost-great-gatsby-film-of-1926-only.html
A few weeks ago, a new study reported that 75% of all silent films are lost. I’d often heard 80-90% as the figure, so while still a “staggering loss,” at least there’s now a comprehensive look at what is missing and what is extant.
From the Library of Congress:
The Library of Congress today unveiled “The Survival of American Silent Feature Films: 1912-1929,” the first comprehensive survey of American feature films that survived the silent era of motion pictures. Previous documentation established that nearly 11,000 (10,919) silent feature films of American origin were released from 1912 through 1929. There was, however, no definitive, systematic study on how many of these films still existed and where any surviving elements were located in the world’s leading film archives and private collections.
The groundbreaking study reveals some startling facts about America’s endangered silent-film heritage. Only 14 percent—about 1,575 titles—of the feature films produced and distributed domestically from 1912-1929 exist in their original format. Five percent of those that survived in their original 35 mm format are incomplete. Eleven percent of the films that are complete only exist as foreign versions or in lower-quality formats.
“The Library of Congress can now authoritatively report that the loss of American silent-era feature films constitutes an alarming and irretrievable loss to our nation’s cultural record,” said Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. “We have lost most of the creative record from the era that brought American movies to the pinnacle of world cinematic achievement in the 20th century.”
“This report is invaluable because the artistry of silent film is essential to our culture,” said Martin Scorsese, film-preservation advocate and director of “Hugo,” a loving tribute to silent film. “Any time a silent picture by some miracle turns up, it reminds us of the treasures we’ve already lost. It also gives us hope that others may be discovered. The research presented in this report serves as a road map to finding silent films we once thought were gone forever and encourages creative partnerships between archives and the film industry to save silent cinema.” [more available at the link]
The new database is available at
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/silentfilms/silentfilms-home.html
Side note: WSU site is still down.
Rare Mary Pickford IMP film found in New Hampshire has been restored
From an article by Susan King in the Los Angeles Times, which also has a clip from the film:
Seven years ago, a contractor was commissioned to tear down a decaying barn in the small New Hampshire town of Nelson. Before destroying the building, he checked out the barn to make sure it was empty.
It wasn’t.
On the second floor were an old film projector and seven reels of highly volatile nitrate films that weren’t even stored in cans. Four of the films had been considered lost including the 1911 Mary Pickford short “Their First Misunderstanding,” a comedy-drama about a newlywed couple’s first argument.
The Library of Congress is funding the restoration of “Their First Misunderstanding,” which was the first movie “America’s Sweetheart” made for Carl Laemmle‘s IMP (Independent Moving Picture Co.). The Library has the largest collection of Pickford movies, including the Oscar-winning actress/producer’s personal collection.
“Their First Misunderstanding” marked the first time Pickford was credited by name in a movie. The 18-year-old Pickford also wrote the film’s scenario and co-stars with her first husband, Owen Moore, whom she had just married. Legendary producer-director Thomas Ince, who is believed to have directed “Their First Misunderstanding,” also appears in the short.
[Read the rest at the link above]
Donna M. Campbell 