Hollywood: A Celebration of the American Silent Film - 12 Star Treatment

[@scotnick59]

That voice! Perhaps THE finest narration I've ever heard. Thank-you, Mr. Mason

[@voyaristika5673]

Thank you for posting this video. It's a treat to hear from those who were there, who experienced this time in the film/movie industry.

[@jaycekama2086]

Wow Louise Brooks was absolutely stunning here. Like the most beautiful grandmother in the world.

[@minekara6407]

Yes she was still a great beauty into middle age... very graceful lady

[@sitarnut]

Our Miss Brooks was too much for Hollyweird. Did much better in Germany.... Unforgettable.

[@LittleMissLounge]

You know you're something special when Louise Brooks has nice things to say about you.

[@mistervacation23]

Dame Mae Fishman, a rising star in the silent film era, was a force to be reckoned with. Born at the turn of the 20th century, she was one of the earliest female figures to dominate the silver screen. Her talent caught the eye of Charlie Chaplin and Mabel Normand, who became her close friends. They spent countless hours together, sharing laughs and refining their craft. Her performances were so compelling that she was honored in both Germany and the United States. She even earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Despite the hurdles, Dame Mae Fishman refused to fade into oblivion. She pushed through, making her last film in 1939 before retiring from the big screen. Unfortunately, only seven of her silent films have survived the test of time. But those that remain serve as a reminder of her exceptional talent.

[@hectorsalcido4106]

Clara Bow, wow, what a beautiful and enchanting woman, she most certainly had " It " .

[@jasonstegallco.960]

Taylor Swift certainly thinks so.

[@sandragailgoudelock1531]

The fabulous incandescent Clara Bow!!! I've loved all her movies! Alas I've only seen about 5 of John Gilbert's movies, but when Hollywood wants to get rid of you they can. It's ironic though, Louis B. Mayer was eventually ousted just as he engineered Gilbert's predicament.

[@jeanbaumgartner4052]

Thanks For Sharing These Videos 📹 About OLDSCHOOL HOLLYWOOD!❤

[@scottmoore1614]

This series is simply amazing. But, about the time I get swept up in the magic and brilliance of those early years, I’m struck yet again by the cruelty of it all...how you could be built up and then torn down. So sad.

[@emilymalden3310]

So true.

[@sslaxx]

Not changed very much, either.

[@Sonic-dogmagic]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤😊

[@nomadpi1]

An informative and entertaining series. It evokes nostalgia in me even though I never knew of most of these people until I began reading histories of film. I've always regretted not becoming a film historian (I figured Civil Engineering offered better chances at employment). As of now, at four-score years of age, it's too late for anything but admiration. One thing I have gleaned from all my reading and viewing is that the studio heads were cruel, petty people.

[@blossom1643]

Yes unfortunately Greed & Pride gets the best of a lot of people 😢

[@Hihoweryew]

Most of the studio heads were rapists

[@rogermooretibbetts5310]

Thanks so much for uploading this, I've been looking for this particular episode for ages. Brilliant documentary series.

[@petitelapin60]

Fabulous! Love this series! Thanks for posting

[@tomc8115]

Love seeing Eleanor Boardman. One of the greats of silent cinema.

[@tracyyoung224]

Clara Bow should be a Hollywood Goddess. Even after all this time and everything she went through.

[@gloriamontgomery6900]

There was something so natural and fresh about her silent film performances compared to the melodramatic style of other silent stars

[@eileen1820]

25:45 I love how Leatrice Joy shares this story ❤️.

[@wilburbonzo]

Great episode from a great series

[@rahmmason2159]

I cannot fathom why this series has not been released on DVD/blu-ray? Too many rights issues? Won't the more widespread availability of clips increase the market for the full-length features?

[@minekara6407]

Very interesting documentary. John Gilbert was always my favourite... very handsome man with a good voice sadly mistreated.

[@russellhurst3041]

love this series, sooo good 👍

[@HorrorGirlNat]

Clara Bow was actually good in sound films it was her secretary who ruined her reputation so that's why she left Hollywood.

[@Hihoweryew]

What do you mean?

[@DBEdwards]

So very lovely and touching and magic this show is

[@roseconmatswatson5389]

John Gilbert’s story screams for a movie or docuseries. The rise and fall of a tragic, self destructive figure. The personification of Hollywood’s darker side.

[@emilymalden3310]

I like docu dramas about silent stars. They are so interesting.

[@michaelchristian5089]

The first version of "A Star is Born" [1937], made shortly after Gilbert's death was partly based on the Gilbert/Garbo love affair.

[@classiclife7204]

@@michaelchristian5089 Well, technically, it was written by Adela Rogers St. John (featured here) under the title "What Price Hollywood?" in 1932 starring Constance Bennett. It was based on the marriage of Colleen Moore (also featured in this series) and her alcoholic husband, producer John McCormick, and also based on the sad life of director Tom Forman, who took his own life after a nervous breakdown. Ironically enough, Selznick, who produced "What Price?", wanted Clara Bow for the part instead of Bennett, but scheduling conflicts, etc. Now none of that is to say that Gilbert's death didn't encourage some screenwriter to remake the original in 1937. Anyway, yes, there have been FIVE versions of this damn story, the original under a different title. It's as if Hollywood glorifies sad stories like these. "See what happens? Eh? See what happens????"

[@hectorsalcido4106]

John Gilbert's voice was almost identical to the kid with the voice of a frog , from the Little Rascals series .

[@marylizakowski706]

@@hectorsalcido4106 lol

[@DBEdwards]

Fantastic documentary. So love this

[@Zombie81212]

It seems the original upload on jamon2112's channel is unavailable in the United States due to copyrighted footage, so thanks for this upload.

[@Neal_Schier]

Why when I think of Garbo does the word 'overwrought' immediately spring to mind? With Bow the word is vivacious.

[@jackmorrison7379]

An eyeful to be sure and very appealing on a pin-up girl level, but but like you let me suggest a word for Ms. Bow, particularly in her brief sound career (Cheap).

[@floris.927]

I felt a bit disturbed that Gilbert’s daughter talked about him by name (Gilbert/Jack) rather than by affiliation (dad/my father), and with such detachment ... his ex wife had such gleams in her eyes when she talked about the past, which was lovely to see.

[@Themanwhocameback2]

Both wife and daughter loved him deeply. Leatrice, joy, being old and unguarded, just expresses it better.

[@emilymalden3310]

That was cruel of Greta to stand him up on their wedding day. She should have ended the engagement.

[@classiclife7204]

Amazing, how many actors check out early, or become unknowable recluses. Just from this series, Clara Bow, Garbo, Pickford, can be counted among the recluses. I think Bow passed away in a small house in Culver City, under constant care for mental illness, living off an estate worth half a million dollars (1965 dollars, the year she died). Victims of a perfect storm, like Arbuckle and Gilbert, end up dead or exiled. Gilbert's near-instant collapse is shocking. I wonder if his self-destructiveness was the result of just being sick of life. But that's not the entire story. I also think the "talkies" were the convenient excuse for the studio heads to ice out "problem stars".

[@ValleyoftheRogue]

He had heart trouble.

[@ericmaine]

Pickford was also an alcoholic.

[@blossom1643]

@@ericmaineI heard that too. Also that she recovered & became a True Christian woman. Really hope that’s true.❤

[@VickieannOglesby]

Not true...Mary Pickford still lived in a mansion..cared for by her 3rd husband..Charles "buddy"rogers..a former actor himself and bandleader....in 1979 she was presented with a special Oscar for her achievements on film..I saw that particular telecast on TV.

[@classiclife7204]

@@VickieannOglesby Ahem. "Pickford withdrew and gradually became a recluse, remaining almost entirely at Pickfair" - the "mansion" you refer to - "and allowing visits only from Lillian Gish, her stepson Douglas Fairbank Jr., and a few select others." - from Wikipedia, under the "Later Years and Death" section of the article about her. I know about Buddy Rogers, thanks. I also know he sometimes was obliged to record messages from Pickford on a cassette tape, which he would play to guests while they visited downstairs as she remained upstairs. The Lifetime Achievement Oscar presentation is on KZbin. A man holding a statuette comes barging toward a frightened, confused looking little mouse huddled on a couch who was once "Queen of Hollywood". In future, don't correct people unless they're actually wrong, please

[@georgerodriquez7744]

Greta is one of my favorite silent girl. My favorite movie of her was THE GRAND HOTEL.plus i have my other ones.

[@secretariatgirl4249]

So interesting that Elinor Glynn thought more highly of John Gilbert than Valentino...also the comments about Valentino probably falling by the wayside with sound....(sic)..."not able to match the image with the voice"....it does sound to be the most likely scenario for Valentino, who may, himself, "willed himself to die." What a poignant episode...

[@emilymalden3310]

I wonder how Garbo explained standing him up, or apologized? Hopefully she did. It seems he forgave her, and they remained friends.

[@elchoya8432]

she later said'i dont know what i ever saw in him,maybe i thought he was pretty.

[@michaelchristian5089]

In "His Glorious Night" Gilbert used an upper class English accent that was strange to American audiences at the time; It was 'posh' to the point of campness eg he pronounces the world cruel as...'crew..ell' This is what the teenage girls, who were probably in love with him, were shocked to hear. The pitch & tone of his voice were quite normal if somewhat nasal. If he had played a similar character to the one in "The Big Parade" he, being an able actor, would have spoken the way that the people expected him to talk.

[@Sassyjass2012]

Gene Kelly’s character in “Singin’ in the Rain” did speak in a similar fashion, during “The Dueling Cavalier.” Therefore, the script writer was probably aware of the real reason for Gilbert’s failure, in his first sound picture.

[@micpowers1136]

I love the journalist.I could listen to her talk about everybody.

[@dk60ish]

Segment on John Giilbert at 18:24.

[@Neal_Schier]

I guess back in the twenties and thirties Garbo's navel-gazing and aloofness held the audience's attention as being artistic, but after a hundred years of film history she has been, in my very humble opinion, been eclipsed by scores of superior actresses. We always have to remind ourselves that these individuals were acting. Indeed sometimes at a very high and even gifted level, but still acting.

[@jenniferkokoris6076]

Now movies move along with dialogue, back then they actually had to act a bit more, convey the story through actions… probably a lot harder than we realize. The energy to crank out movies each week… it’s not a wonder many went bonkers and became alcoholics with exhaustion.

[@Neal_Schier]

@@jenniferkokoris6076 Well said regarding the pace of the work. It sounds as if it was grueling.

[@kidmohair8151]

I love Clara Bow...for her sheer zest for life, her ebullience, her contact with you, me, everyone, through the lens of the camera.... John Gilbert is very attractive, but.... Greta Garbo I fell in love with....fall in love with her, every time I see her

[@waimunyan7007]

Its really the circle of life. Both were the top of professional hierarchy when the rules of the game were in their favour. But when the rules changed, they were unable or powerless to keep up. Also, by the 30s, the public has had enough of the old stars and were enamored with the new ones. I think we've seen it happen in any industry, especially one as capricious as the movie business. No one stays at the top forever, not even the biggest stars.

[@williamoverly1617]

I would agree that John Gilbert got a raw deal. His later sound films prove his voice was fine.

[@lillianmcgrew217]

History in Hollywood ❤❤

[@garyhunt8067]

I remember watching this.

[@Psilanderfan1884]

My favorite documentary series! John Gilbert did make some really good precode films including Redemption (1930) Phantom of Paris (1931) West of Broadway (1931) and Downstairs (1932). It’s just that dirtbag Mayer was out to ruin his career. And Clara 💕 retired to marry western star Rex Bell.

[@rudolphvalentinoconnection8298]

Rewatching by chance...and the comment about Gibert not being able to live with himself without having a character to play. After some years researching Valentino, I'm thinking he had the same issue...in fact, his going to talk to HL Mencken about a week before the culmination of his illnesses indicates that he really was confused and felt his life was not his own. A sad way to end...

[@VickieannOglesby]

We don't know..valentino might have turned out okay..who knows?

[@rudolphvalentinoconnection8298]

@@VickieannOglesby Hopefully that would have been true...if he had recovered from being betrayed by Rambova in the cruelest of ways. Eventually, he may have healed ...he certainly understood that his time at the top was limited, so he may have transitioned into some other aspect of the industry like cinematography, which he seemed to be interested in. One never will knows...

[@jaycekama2086]

How did paramount not realize most of the public would love a woman like Clara who was like them and talked like them? So foolish

[@Sassyjass2012]

That’s how I’ve always felt.

[@meeeka]

How the studios destroyed so many of their best people! They should have all been called up on murder charges.

[@SaraiSantana-ei8vq]

Who is the girl who dances next to the man with the hat at minute 0:55

[@ValleyoftheRogue]

There was nothing whatsoever wrong with John Gilbert's voice. That is a myth. There was also nothing wrong with his acting. The proof of the pudding is in the films.

[@ad6417]

Today we call IT the "manic pixie dream girl".

[@hairbartletdaisydogworth8102]

I could very well fall in love with a girl like Clara.I would merrily fall in love with a girl like Clara. Forgive me, I’m about to swoon

[@Terry-te1ij]

at 28 minutes what is the name of that musical piece?

[@garryferrington811]

Gilbert's first sound scene really was hilarious. They could have redone it.

[@lindadeal3344]

Eleanor Boardman was so beautiful...

[@karenhill3970]

Dam movie business. They make"you then use you up..then abandons you

[@eguevara4803]

The main characters in Babylon the film from this year is about these two greats

[@joannemiele3153]

The music is too loud

[@jameskorner6611]

Garbo was a self centered who cared for no one but herself

[@VickieannOglesby]

Garbo protected herself..she had to..hòllywood was full of vultures disguised as film producers and the powers that be in the film who if they thought you were weak..they would eat you alive and spit you out...

[@imsocuteimsorich4952]

I'd say Clara bow was like a girl from the 1960☮️✌️💙😘👌👍🌿🍄😰😵🍄🌿😵✌️turn on tune in drop out sort of girl🙌🙌🙌🙌✌️✌️😘

[@theresapierce6268]

Garbo was so ever rated, her face wass always lit up to make her look something.

[@conniemartin4878]

Wow. So easy to say, impossible to support.

[@LathropLdST]

Wow. Of course! Nothing like the great actress Theresa Pierce! She was OH so RENOWNED! Garbo couldn't hold a candle to her...! Begone, nobody... You dare speak of Garbo, and the maximum you may have achieved is playing a shepherd in a living Sacred Family play for Christmas. Preposterous!

[@theresapierce6268]

Sorry, still think she was over rated. Ha Ha

[@pianomanhere]

@@theresapierce6268 Word has it that she once put grass seed in her hair. She then said "I VAHNT to be A-LAWN." (Source: Buggs Bunny).

[@GetBenched2010]

I never really "got" Garbo.

[@lirpa5]

Did the writer of Babylon watch this documentary and decided to make a movie out of these two? Both Clara Bow and John Gilbert sound similar to Margot Robbie and Brad Pitts characters in the movie.

[@michaelchristian5089]

I wonder if Marilyn Monroe was influenced by Clara Bow.

[@dollarbecker72]

Life

[@josefamaria1010maria-fs8bi]

Clara Bow is wonderful.

[@spmoran4703]

I really feel sorry for John Gilbert . Those talkie love scenes were not his fault. That was bad script writing

[@mayena]

Original release 1980.

[@VickieannOglesby]

Maybe garbo saw early in life the hypocrisy of most people and decided never to marry or let anyone break her heart.

[@paulakpacente]

I never knew what anyone saw in Garbo or Gilbert.

[@missmaggie2620]

Awe, Clara... Hollywood chewed her up & spit her out. She glowed on screen. After her horrendous childhood & we won't mention what her father did to her...she just followed her dream to what she thought would make her happy. It did in the beginning, but then a different type of abuse set in.

[@julianbarber4708]

Clara Bow made several 'talkies', so to say that she 'didn't make it' is simply not true. Just Googled it.....she made 11 talkies.

[@larryaldrich4351]

The soundtrack neutralized their "It". Alot of our Hollywood phonys today would be better silent.

[@garryferrington811]

A lot

[@amycondle3725]

🏆🏅🥇🥈🥉🎖

[@Myplop]

Wrong about both

[@steveweinstein3222]

He had a squeaky voice.

[@garyfrancis6193]

I think Clara Bow became Betty Boop.

[@jameskorner6611]

Garbo is plain and simpliy selfish and mean reguardless of her acting

[@VickieannOglesby]

You really hate her..oh well..nobody perfect. Only she knew herself

[@bertharuiz1225]

What was the point in making silent movies? Why be incomplete!

[@kingofrapture]

Films were silent because the technology to have sound on film didn't exist until 1927, so before then the films had to be silent, there was no choice, the technology for sound just wasn't there yet. Films only started out as a novelty thing until they evolved into what we have today.

[@jenniferkokoris6076]

Not only lacking the technologically but the cost to install the equipment in theaters was too expensive… MGM had the means later on and we’re willing to foot the bill… I think Silents are amazing… these folks had to convey messages with minimal or little dialogue. The eyes can say a Lot… some Of the best actors in talkies said a lot without saying a word…Wayne and Eastwood are two that come to mind

[@Miss_Loving]

Dear precious one, please repeat after me with your whole heart, "Father God, I'm a sinner and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe in the Good News that Jesus died on the cross for my sins and that You resurrected Him from the dead in order to restore my relationship with You. Through my belief and faith in Jesus death, burial and resurrection, I am saved. I want to trust Jesus as my Savior and follow Him as my Lord from this day forward. Please guide my life and help me do Your will, Your way through the Holy Spirit. This I pray in the powerful, loving and glorious name of Your Son, Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior. Amen!" 🙏 Dear friend, may Father God our Creator, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior and The Holy Spirit bless you, lead you, guide you and keep you in His abundantly loving care now and for all eternity! Amen!!! ❤️🙏

[@garryferrington811]

Allah is great and Mohammed is His Prophet.

[@jackmorrison7379]

Sorry, but Louise Brooks is perhaps some sort of feminist heroine for today's Gen Z/Millennials but not very truthful or accurate here. Bow was not the biggest star, period. Ever hear of Mary Pickford, Garbo, Swanson, and many others I could name in the silent era. I left out the male stars only because none of the women in that period came close to their box office power.

[@julianbarber4708]

Clara was named first box-office draw in 1928 and 1929 and second box-office draw in 1927 and 1930....certainly 'the biggest star' then!

[@ad6417]

Can't stand Garbo.