The First King of Hollywood
Page 57
December 28, 1919 (premiere)
When the Clouds Roll By
Director: Victor Fleming
Camera: William McGann, Harry Thorpe
Story: Douglas Fairbanks
Scenario: Tom Geraghty
Art Direction: Edward M. Langley
Art Titles: Henry Clive
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Daniel Boone Brown), Albert MacQuarrie (Hobson, His Man-Servant), Ralph Lewis (Curtis Brown, His Uncle), Frank Campeau (Mark Drake), Herbert Grimwood (Dr. Ulrich Metz), Daisy Robinson (Bobby De Vere), Kathleen Clifford (Lucette Bancroft)
1920
June 13, 1920 (premiere)
The Mollycoddle
Director: Victor Fleming
Assistant Director: Ted Reed
Camera: Harry Thorpe, William McGann
Story: Harold MacGrath (short story)
Scenario: Tom Geraghty
Art Direction: Edward M. Langley
Technical Effects: Robert Fairbanks
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Richard Marshall III; Richard Marshall IV; Richard Marshall V); Wallace Beery (Henry Van Holkar); Morris Hughes, George Stewart, Paul Burns (American College Boys); Ruth Renick (Virginia Hale); Adele Farrington (Mrs. Warren); Betty Bouton (Molly Warren)
November 29, 1920 (premiere)
The Mark of Zorro
Working Titles: The Curse of Capistrano; The Black Fox
Director: Fred Niblo
Camera: William McGann, Harry Thorpe
Story: Johnston McCulley (The Curse of Capistrano, All-Story Weekly)
Scenario: Eugene Mullin, Douglas Fairbanks
Art Direction: Edward M. Langley
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Don Diego Vega/Zorro), Marguerite De La Motte (Lolita Pulido), Robert McKim (Capitán Juan Ramon), Noah Beery Sr. (Sgt. Pedro Gonzales), Charles Hill Mailes (Don Carlos Pulido), Claire McDowell (Doña Catalina Pulido), Snitz Edwards (Barkeep), Sydney De Grey (Don Alejandro), George Periolat (Governor Alvarado), Walt Whitman (Fray Felipe), Tote Du Crow (Bernardo)
1921
March 1, 1921 (premiere)
The Nut
Director: Ted Reed
Camera: William McGann, Harry Thorpe, Charles Warrington
Story: Elton Thomas, Kenneth Davenport
Scenario: William Parker, Lotta Woods
Art Direction: Edward M. Langley
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Charlie Jackson), Marguerite De La Motte (Estrell Wynn), William Lowery (Philip Feeny), Gerald Pring (Gentleman George), Morris Hughes (Pernelius Vanderbrook Jr.), Barbara La Marr (Claudine Dupree)
Premiere date unknown
The Non-sense of Censorship
Anti-censorship film featuring Douglas Fairbanks, Rupert Hughes, Edward Knoblock, Samuel Merwin, Thompson Buchanan, Rita Welman, and Montague Glass as themselves.
The film is currently considered lost.
August 28, 1921 (premiere)
The Three Musketeers
Director: Fred Niblo
Camera: Arthur Edeson
Story: Alexander Dumas (novel)
Scenario: Lotta Woods, Edward Knoblock
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (D’Artagnan), Adolphe Menjou (Louis XIII), Mary MacLaren (Anne of Austria), Nigel de Brulier (Cardinal Richelieu), Thomas Holding (Duke of Buckingham), Marguerite De La Motte (Constance), Willis Robards (De Treville), Boyd Irwin (Rochefort), Barbara La Marr (Milady), Lon Poff (Father Joseph), Walt Whitman (D’Artagnan’s Father), Sydney Franklin (Bonacieux), Charles Belcher (Bernajoux), Charles Stevens (Planchet), Léon Bary (Athos), George Siegmann (Porthos), Eugene Pallette (Aramis)
1922
October 22, 1922 (Chicago premiere)
Robin Hood
Director: Allan Dwan
Camera: Arthur Edeson
Story: Elton Thomas
Scenario: Lotta Woods
Research: Dr. Arthur Woods
Art Direction: Wilfred Buckland, Irvin J. Martin, Edward M. Langley, Mitchell Leisen
Production and Construction: Robert Fairbanks
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Robin Hood), Wallace Beery (King Richard I), Sam De Grasse (Prince John), Enid Bennett (Lady Marian Fitzwalter), Paul Dickey (Sir Guy of Gisbourne), William Lowery (the Sheriff of Nottingham), Alan Hale (Little John), Willard Louis (Friar Tuck), Dick Rosson (Alan-a-Dale), Roy Coulson (the King’s Jester)
1923
August 19, 1923
Hollywood
Director: James Cruze
Fairbanks plays himself among a host of stars doing cameo sequences.
Produced by Paramount; the film is currently considered lost.
1924
March 15, 1924
Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall
Director: Marshall Neilan
Starring Mary Pickford, this film features Fairbanks in an unbilled cameo, serving as a body double for leading man Allen Forrest.
Produced by Mary Pickford and distributed by United Artists.
March 18, 1924 (premiere)
The Thief of Bagdad
Director: Raoul Walsh
Assistant Director: James O’Donohoe
Camera: Arthur Edeson
Associate Photographers: Richard Holahan, P. H. Whitman, Kenneth MacLean
Story: Elton Thomas
Scenario: Lotta Woods
Research: Dr. Arthur Woods
Consultant: Edward Knoblock
Art Direction: William Cameron Menzies
Consulting Art Director: Irvin J. Martin
Associate Artists: Anton E. Grot, Paul Youngblood, H. R. Hopps, Harold W. Grieve, William Utwich, Edward M. Langley
Musical Score: Mortimer Wilson
Production and Construction: Ted Reed
Master of Wardrobe and Properties: Paul Burns
Costume Design: Mitchell Leisen
Technical Director: Robert Fairbanks
Master Electrician: Albert Wayne
Still Photographer: Charles Warrington
Technicians: Howard MacChesney, Clinton Newman, Walter Pallman, J. C. Watson
Directors of Mechanical Effects: Hampton Del Ruth, Coy Watson Sr.
Editor: William Nolan
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (the Thief of Bagdad); Snitz Edwards (His Evil Associate); Charles Belcher (the Holy Man); Julanne Johnston (the Princess); Anna May Wong (the Mongol Slave); Winter-Blossom (the Slave of the Lute); Etta Lee (the Slave of the Sand Board); Brandon Hurst (the Caliph); Tote Du Crow (His Soothsayer); Sôjin Kamiyama (the Mongol Prince); K. Nambu (His Counselor); Noble Johnson (the Indian Prince); Mathilde Comant (the Persian Prince); Charles Stevens (His Awaker); Sam Baker (the Sworder); Charles Sylvester, Scott Mattraw, Jess Weldon (the Eunuchs)
1925
June 15, 1925 (premiere); August 30, 1925 (general release)
Don Q, Son of Zorro
Director: Donald Crisp
Assistant Director: Frank Richardson
Camera: Henry Sharp
Associate Photographer: E. J. Vallejo
Story: K. & Hesketh Prichard (novel Don Q’s Love Story)
Scenario: Jack Cunningham
Art Direction: Edward M. Langley
General Manager: Robert Fairbanks
Editor: William Nolan
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Don Cesar de Vega; Zorro, His Father), Mary Astor (Dolores del Muro), Jack McDonald (General de Muro), Donald Crisp (Don Sebastian), Stella De Lanti (the Queen), Warner Oland (the Archduke), Jean Hersholt (Don Fabrique), Albert MacQuarrie (Colonel Matsado), Lottie Pickford Forrest (Lola), Charles Stevens (Robledo), Tote Du Crow (Bernardo), Martha Franklin (the Duenna), Juliette Belanger (the Dancer), Roy Coulson (Her Admirer), Enrique Acosta (Ramon)
1926
March 8, 1926 (premiere)
The Black Pirate
Director: Albert Parker
Camera: Henry Sharp
Story: Elton Thomas, adaptation by Jack Cunningham
Scenario: Lotta Woods
Research: Dr. Arthur Woods
Consultants: Dwight Franklin, Robert Nichols
Art Direction: Carl Oscar Borg
Associate Artists: Edward M. Langley, Jack Holden
Musical Score: Mortimer Wilson
General Manager: Robert Fairbanks
Production Manager: Ted Reed
Marine Technician: P. H. L. Wilson
Technicolor Staff: Arthur Ball, George Cave
Editor: William Nolan
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (the Duke of Arnoldo/the Black Pirate), Billie Dove (Princess Isobel), Tempe Pigott (Duenna), Donald Crisp (MacTavish), Sam De Grasse (Pirate Lieutenant), Anders Randolf (Pirate Captain), Charles Stevens (Powder Man; assorted pirates and victims), John Wallace (Peg-Leg Pirate), Fred Becker (Pirate), Charles Belcher (Chief Passenger), E. J. Ratcliffe (the Governor)
1927
September 9, 197
A Kiss from Mary Pickford (Поцелуŭ Мэрu Пикфорд)
This Russian comedy features footage from Doug and Mary’s 1926 visit to Russia and was produced and distributed without their knowledge.
November 4, 1927 (Los Angeles premiere)
The Gaucho
Director: F. Richard Jones
Assistant Directors: William J. Cowan, Lewis R. Foster
Camera: Tony Gaudio
Story: Elton Thomas
Scenario: Lotta Woods
Art Direction: Carl Oscar Borg
Production Manager: Ted Reed
Costumes: Paul Burns
Editor: William Nolan
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (the Gaucho), Lupe Vélez (the Mountain Girl), Geraine Greear (the Girl of the Shrine as a Child), Eve Southern (the Girl of the Shrine as an Adult), Gustav von Seyffertitz (Ruiz, the Usurper), Michael Vavitch (the Usurper’s First Lieutenant), Charles Stevens (the Gaucho’s First Lieutenant), Nigel de Brulier (the Padre), Albert MacQuarrie (Victim of the Black Doom), Mary Pickford (Virgin Mary, uncredited)
November 21, 1927
Carter de Haven’s Character Studies
Carter de Haven filmed this short, split-reel film late in 1925 for inclusion in his vaudeville act at the Music Box Theater in 1926. The film featured the comic doing what were purported to be impressions, appearing as Harold Lloyd, Roscoe Arbuckle, Buster Keaton, Rudolph Valentino, Douglas Fairbanks (in Robin Hood costume), and Jackie Coogan, who, by use of editing, appeared as themselves. The film was later released for general booking as a short subject.
1928
November 20, 1928
Show People
Director: King Vidor
In this film starring Marion Davies, Fairbanks plays himself among a host of stars during a banquet scene.
Produced by MGM.
1929
February 21, 1929 (premiere)
The Iron Mask
Director: Allan Dwan
Assistant Director: Bruce Humberstone
Camera: Henry Sharp
Story: Elton Thomas, Alexander Dumas (novels The Three Musketeers and The Man in the Iron Mask), also based on the memoirs of D’Artagnan, Richelieu, and De Rochefort
Scenario: Lotta Woods
Research: Dr. Arthur Woods
Consultants: Jack Cunningham, Earle Browne
Art Direction: Maurice Leloir
Artists: Laurence Irving, Carl Oscar Borg, Ben Carré, Harold Miles, David S. Hall, Edward M. Langley, Wilfred Buckland, Jack Holden
General Manager: Robert Fairbanks
Master of Wardrobe and Properties: Paul Burns
Costume Design: Maurice Leloir
Costumes: Gilbert Clark, May Hallett, Western Costume Company
Editor: William Nolan
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (D’Artagnan), Belle Bennett (the Queen Mother), Marguerite De La Motte (Constance), Dorothy Revier (Milady de Winter), Vera Lewis (Madame Peronne), Rolfe Sedan (Louis XIII), William Bakewell (Louis XIV; His Twin Brother), Gordon Thorpe (Young Prince; Twin Brother), Nigel de Brulier (Cardinal Richelieu), Ullrich Haupt (De Rochefort), Lon Poff (Father Joseph), Charles Stevens (Planchet, D’Artagnan’s Servant), Henry Otto (the King’s Valet), Léon Bary (Athos), Stanley Sandford (Porthos), Gino Corrado (Aramis)
November 14, 1929 (premiere)
The Taming of the Shrew
Director: Sam Taylor
Camera: Karl Struss
Story: William Shakespeare (play)
Scenario: Sam Taylor
Art Direction: William Cameron Menzies, Lawrence Irving
Production Staff: Earle Browne, “Lucky” Humberstone, Walter Mayo
Editor: Allen McNeil
Cast: Mary Pickford (Katherine), Douglas Fairbanks (Petruchio), Edwin Maxwell (Baptista), Joseph Cawthorn (Gremio), Clyde Cook (Grumio), Geoffrey Wardell (Hortensio), Dorothy Jordon (Bianca)
1930
December 29, 1930 (New York premiere); February 21, 1931 (general release)
Reaching for the Moon
Working Title: Love in a Cottage
Director: Edmund Goulding
Assistant Director: Lonnie D’Orsa
Camera: Ray June, Robert Planck
Story: Irving Berlin
Scenario: Irving Berlin, Edmund Goulding, Elsie Janis (additional dialogue)
Musical Director: Alfred Newman
Costumes: David Cox
Set Decoration: Julia Heron, William Cameron Menzies
Editor: Hal C. Kern, Lloyd Nosler
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Larry Day), Bebe Daniels (Vivien Benton), Edward Everett Horton (Roger, the Valet), Claud Allister (Sir Horace Partington Chelmsford), Jack Mulhall (Jimmy Carrington), Walter Walker (James Benton), June MacCloy (Kitty), Helen Jerome Eddy (Larry’s Secretary), Bing Crosby (uncredited)
Produced by Joseph Schenck and distributed by United Artists.
1931
November 19, 1931 (premiere); December 12, 1931 (general release)
Around the World in Eighty Minutes
Also Known As: Around the World with Douglas Fairbanks
Director: Victor Fleming
Camera: Harry Sharp, Victor Fleming
Dialogue: Robert Sherwood
Production Manager: Chuck Lewis
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Himself), Victor Fleming (Himself), Duke Kahanamoku (Himself), Sôjin Kamiyama (Himself), Emilio Aguinaldo (Himself), Sessue Hayakawa (Himself)
NOTE: The title on the film proper is Around the World with Douglas Fairbanks, but all advertising, reviews, and administrative documentation lists the film as Around the World in Eighty Minutes.
1932
September 21, 1932 (premiere)
Mr. Robinson Crusoe
Director: Edward Sutherland
Camera: Max Dupont
Story: Elton Thomas
Scenario: Tom Geraghty
Music: Alfred Newman
Production Managers: Chuck Lewis, Harry Ham
Technical Effects: Walter Pahlman
Editor: Robert Kern
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks (Steve Drexel), William Farnum (William Belmont), Earle Browne (Professor Carmichale), Maria Alba (Saturday)
1934
September 5, 1934 (premiere)
The Private Life of Don Juan
Director: Alexander Korda
Assistant Director: G. Boothby
Camera: Osmond Borrodaile
Story: Frederick Lonsdale, Lajos Biro, Henry Bataille (play L’Homme à la Rose)
Scenario: Frederick Lonsdale, Lajos Biro
Music: Ernest Toch
Lyrics: Arthur Wimperis
Musical Director: Muir Mathieson
Don Juan Serenade: Michael Spolianski
Serenade Sung by: John Brownlee
Sound Director: A. W. Watkins
Production Manager: David B. Cunynghame
Architect: F. Hallam
Costumes: B. J. Simmons & Company
Settings: Vincent Korda
Technical Director: Marques de Portago
Special Effects: Ned Mann
Supervising Editor: Harold Young
Editor: Stephen Harrison
Cast: Dougl
as Fairbanks (Don Juan), Merle Oberon (Antonita, a Dancer of Passionate Temperament), Bruce Winston (Her Manager), Gina Malo (Pepitta, Another Dancer of Equal Temperament), Benita Hume (Dona Delores, a Lady of Mystery), Binnie Barnes (Rosita, a Maid Pure and Simple), Melville Cooper (Leporello), Owen Nares (an Actor as Actors Go), Heather Thatcher (an Actress as Actresses Go), Diana Napier (a Lady of Sentiment), Joan Gardner (a Young Lady of Romance), Gibson Gowland (Her Poor Husband), Barry MacKay (a Young Man of Romance), Claude Allister (the Duke, as Dukes Go), Athene Seyler (a Middle Aged Lady of Youthful Sentiment), Hindle Edgar (a Jealous Husband), Natalie Paley (His Poor Wife), Patricia Hilliard (a Young Girl in Love), Lawrence Grossmith (Her Uncle, Who Knows Better), Clifford Heatherly (Don Juan’s Masseur), Morland Graham (His Doctor), Edmund Breon (a Playwright, as Playwrights Go), Betty Hamilton (the Wife of a Tired Businessman), Rosita Garcia (Another Wife of Another Tired Businessman)
Produced by Alexander Korda and distributed by United Artists.
1937
October 29, 1937
Ali Baba Goes to Town
Director: David Butler
Stars Eddie Cantor; Fairbanks plays himself among other stars, including Shirley Temple, Tyrone Power, and Dolores del Rio.
Produced by 20th Century-Fox.
Notes
* * *
Introduction
“Gatsby on a jungle gym”: Michael Sragow, Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master (New York: Pantheon Books, 2008), 41.
“the Yankee Doodle Boy”: Edward Wagenknecht, The Movies in the Age of Innocence (New York: Ballantine Books, 1962), 172.
1. The Father of the Man
“You fell off the roof, darling!”: Letitia Fairbanks and Ralph Hancock, Doug Fairbanks: The Fourth Musketeer (New York: Henry Holt, 1953), 28.
“A smile at the right time”: Photoplay, April 1918.
“I was three years old”: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, September 23, 1924.