Theda Bara as The Vampire in A FOOL THERE WAS (1915)

Based on Rudyard Kipling's poem "The Vampire".
Bara plays a vamp who uses her charms to seduce and corrupt a moral Wall Street lawyer, John Schuyler (Edward Jose). A Fool There Was was long considered controversial for such risqué intertitle cards as "Kiss me, my fool!"
Special contents of this edition (c) The Video Cellar Collection

[@tygersflowerz]

It's very sad how the bulk of this woman's legacy is now lost to time, especially seeing as she was such a big star for her day. But it's great that what little of it that remains can delight so many, thanks to the internet.

[@BlakeGildaphish76]

+tygersflowerz it goes to show how very little stardom means. we're born, we do what we are meant to do as we live and then we die. ultimately, we are forgotten. that is, until some proof of our existence resurfaces.

[@tygersflowerz]

Blake Gildaphish I agree. Maybe that is a big lesson her life she was meant to teach us decades after her death. So, when you stop and think about it, maybe we DO go on. In her lifetime, her purpose was to uplift and entertain, and decades after her lifetime, her purpose continues, but it shifted into teaching us something deeper and different. A random farmer back in 1700s..... he leaves a different kind of legacy. Nobody remembers him personally, but maybe he built a beautiful house that still stands, or taught someone how to farm, who then passed that wisdom down, and it continued to get passed down....... In one way our lives are fleeting and small, in another respect, the tiniest things we contribute live on and add to the world's vibration long after we're gone. And I think Theda STILL entertains millions as an actress too, with what little work she left us with.

[@BlakeGildaphish76]

tygersflowerz beautifully said

[@tashaschneider1419]

+tygersflowerz This movie really shows what a good actress Theda was. One of my favourite movies!

[@jstasur]

Blake Gildaphish Most do what they choose to do; very few do what they're meant to do.

[@heidimiller642]

About twenty years ago, I read a comment allegedly made by Theda Bara. She said "So long as humans continue to sin, I shall continue to play the vampire."

[@scottydu81]

Until 1926, it seems lol

[@g-girl9867]

You are so right. Since seeing a poster circa 1969 of the glorious Miss Bara’s face, taken from a still from Cleopatra - I’ve been fascinated with everything Theda Bara. I am now almost 70. Thank goodness for the web that now I can finally satiate my interest in everything Theda Bara! Thank you for this wonderful gem.

[@amandaatwood3770]

That is so cool that you liked her that long! I am 30 and I am discovering her. Just now she’s amazing!

[@g-girl9867]

@@amandaatwood3770 That 2ft x 4ft poster on my wall circa 1969 drove my mother crazy!

[@elvistattoo1964]

I love Theda Bara and she's absolutely fabulous in this role! I wish more of her films had survived the fire that destroyed so many other great silent films.

[@maggiesmith2600]

Wouldn't it be wonderful if a print of her Cleopatra was found ?

[@m.syauqiabdurahman2798]

@@maggiesmith2600 that would be awesome

[@gloriahanes6490]

@@maggiesmith2600 Most of these stars received a copy upon completion of the film. Clara Bow received a copy of "The It Girl", and she showed it at Christmas to her two sons when they would come over for a visit.

[@akakjb]

We finally found a complete METROPOLIS so there's always hope.

[@lelandjr2]

1915! My God, I had no idea that practically the entire film survived this long. It's like going back in time watching the customs, mannerisms and dress of those days. What a wonderful experience, my heartfelt thanks for uploading this rare gem.

[@sxnico]

I love it all

[@janehutchison1063]

"Vampire" is used as a metaphor in this film. She drains the lifeblood out of her victim like a vampire would. It gave rise to the slang term "vamp".

[@garymattscheck9066]

There was a song called "The Vamp".

[@teptime]

Actually, the "vamp" term came from a popular, but scandalous stage piece, THE VAMPIRE DANCE, which is believed to have first been performed in Australia in 1908. It, too, was inspired by the Kipling poem, itself being inspired from a painting by Kipling's cousin after he was dumped by a beautiful actress he'd showered with gifts and adoration. The painting, it's said, is a depiction of an actual, undead vampire, as is the poem. The "vamp" term became attached to young ladies who were independent, free-spirited, and tacitly promiscuous, flouting the rigid correctitude of the Edwardian period.

[@konami1979]

I believe that she would count as an "Energy Vampire" these days.

[@carlarondon6432]

It’s crazy to think that this movie was made 14 years before my grandad was born and now he’s in his 90s! He tells me so many stories of when he was young, it was so long ago and yet they’re much more recent than this movie. Old movies allow the past to be seen and not only to be imagined. Simply fascinating!

[@bekahklemm9352]

Crazy to think the little girl in this movie was old enough to be your Grandpa’s mom! If she was 6-8 years old at the home of filming that could’ve made her 20-22 by the time your Grandpa was born 14 years later.. so wild!

[@youngsteph1]

@@bekahklemm9352 If she was still alive she would be around 115, & one of the oldest people alive.

[@anthonycrnkovich5241]

The passage of time has only ripened the poetic art that is evident in films made in that era. Silent film acting was not flawed or overdone, it was a highly disciplined form of expression that had to visually convey every facet of human emotion.

[@chuckinla]

Before there was Garbo, Pickford, Gish, Nazimova and Louise Brooks there was Theda Bara and she was a huge star but sadly most of her films have been destroyed which makes her even more mysterious. Thank you for this upload, it's just like finding a buried treasure!

[@sxnico]

greatest ever.

[@Ourladyrules]

Not before Mary Pickford, who had been making films years before Bara did her first film.

[@youngsteph1]

@@Ourladyrules Lilian Gish also predated her.

[@krystallovesclassics508]

I'm so pleasantly surprised to see a 1915 film that survived, Thank you for posting.

[@vacationchicken6236]

For those groaning about the music: Turn the sound down and play something you think more fitting - Just a thought.

[@amandaceleste8933]

Exactly !!!

[@sxnico]

funny, Ive come to watch the movie again but have I chores to do and im using this film for THE MUSIC!

[@Bonapartess]

Thank you a million times for the rare opportunity to see Theda Bera on film. ^_^

[@SoiledWig]

To those complaining about the music, surely you can tell it's just a generic place-holder. Use whatever music you want. In the day, the music was up to the organist. It would be different in every location the film was shown, and for each showing.

[@RibasNath]

Thanks for clarifying! 😊🧡

[@vickyabramowitz2885]

I could never become tired of hearing the Pachelbel Cannon. A classic piece of music from the Baroque period paired with a silent movie from 1915...a rare Theda Bara film in its entirety. To me, the combination is perfection.🎶

[@pendorran]

I checked. It was Bara. She made over 40 features but nearly all were lost when their master prints were destroyed in 1937 storage fire. Heart-wrenching.

[@m.syauqiabdurahman2798]

She also the first Vamp

[@RealPreCinema]

44

[@pendorran]

When I think of how much from that era is lost my flesh crawls. A couple of years ago I had the privilege of seeing the fully restored, complete "Metropolis" on the big screen. It's a fluke that we have that film, one of the greatest icons of world cinema. And there is so much more that we don't have at all. It's enough to make a cinephile weep.

[@g-girl9867]

The majority of Miss Bara’s films were destroyed in a horrendous fire at an MGM warehouse so there is little record of this remarkable actress.

[@sxnico]

I always have hope they’ll uncover all her films somewhere

[@Chrryc0la]

They most likely won’t because most of her films were lost in the fire at the fox station where most of her films were held sadly

[@sxnico]

@@Chrryc0la yes but maybe in a lost theater somewhere lay an old canister with a print in it! isn't that how they found Swanson and Valentino's Beyond the Rcoks?

[@EB1878]

I truly enjoyed this rare gem. I have wanted to see a Theda Bara silent since I read of her in Vampires: encyclopedia of the Undead by J. Gordon Milton back in 1998. I had erroneously believed that no film of Theda's existed due to the studio fire that destroyed many silent films. I believe that the author was Rudyard Kipling, "The Vampire", and this was a haunting, yet creepy depiction of Kipling's poem that I read more than 19 years ago in a little leather library book series published in the early 1920's. I'm glad that there was music in this movie otherwise, watching these old films without music is hard to follow. Thank you for uploading this. I think a more befitting soundtrack would have been some creepy music rather, something that really sets the mood and draws a viewer in. 🙂

[@gloriahanes6490]

Theda Bara died in 1955 from stomach cancer the very same disease which had taken my grandmother's life on my father's side of the family. Refrigeration in those days was very poor and food was not properly kept at the exact temperature to stay chilled. I believe this is what causes stomach cancer as it was quite prevalent before modern day refrigerators.

[@kathymartin7724]

Oh my. Bless her heart.

[@RealPreCinema]

she had only one husband too, rare for hollywood

[@bumpusjones.1978]

Thanks for this. Really interesting take on the vampire. Seeing any early representation that differs from what is now considered essential to what makes a vampire a vampire is fascinating. Great work.

[@rjmcallister1888]

Much of the early Fox library was lost in a 1937 fire. A few survived because films had been stored offsite, or were held by collectors, or even had been left in theatres after their runs, even in foreign countries. They are preserved now and can be fully restored later.

[@julianhermanubis6800]

I think only three full-length films starring Theda Bara have survived to the present day. Many were destroyed as long ago as 1937 in a studio vault fire. Some short clips of "Cleopatra" and "Salome" have resurfaced in recent years, but odds look grim for recovering any of her missing movies in their entirety.

[@marieelena]

Thanks so much for the upload...been trying to find this movie everywhere! I read in this book about Florida history,that this movie was made in St.Augustine, Florida and that only 4 out of the 42 films that Theda, was in, have survived.

[@klrtmom]

I love your channel. I could spend all my time happily here if I didn't have a home, hubby and 3 children. I'm here whenever I can be, though. These videos are a great gift. Thank you!

[@CrissyRed]

That was very good movie! Theda Bara had me totally transfixed

[@lillinablue]

She invented the role of Vamp Woman. This is one of her survived films. Archives have been destroyed by fire in the past .

[@amandaceleste8933]

I hate that 😞

[@lillinablue]

@@amandaceleste8933 me too but also many of her photos remain and many articles and news in the magazines and newspapers of the time as well as books and videos about her life and so not all is lost!😊

[@luckyKM741]

Thank you so much for this! I had been wanting to see a Theda Bara film for years, but had never been so lucky to find one. This was a really treat. Many thanks :)

[@neilpower60]

I guess the "gigantic" ship in the newspaper article is an indirect reference to the Titanic disaster only three years previous to this film

[@kathymartin7724]

Hm.. Could be.

[@amywalker3684]

I just subscribed, after reading an article about Theda Bara on Facebook that had a link to your channel. So many more films than Theda's! Thanks so muck for posting all these wonderful films. I absolutely love silents, and will be visiting you often!

[@maggiesmith2600]

In case it wasn't clear ( most of the scene is missing) at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="2610">43:30</a> the servants quit rather than serve Theda.

[@nichka7968]

thank you so much for posting this

[@wasserdagger]

These vintage "Female vamp" movies are always a lot of fun to watch. Even after seeing the chaos and destruction these vamps bring, and basically telling myself that no way would I ever fall for their wiles, I secretly wonder if I really *could* resist a Theda Bara-type female, should one ever cross my path in real life. BTW the 1921 silent film "Sappho," a.k.a. "Mad Love," has a similar vamp character, played by Pola Negri. Full movie can be found here on YT.

[@akakjb]

You never see 'em for what they are until it's too late. And there are male versions who are just as bad.

[@wasserdagger]

@@akakjb Yes, quite true... there are the rakes, hustlers, and Casanovas out there among the male segment of the population. One must always be vigilant.

[@redoz9768]

Incredible footage, thanks for sharing.

[@NorrieDalziel]

Priceless, Thank You So Much........

[@Armachillo]

A film made in the year my mother was born. How wonderful!!!

[@devindevon]

Thanks for uploading, I really enjoyed the film. I do have to say that the endless Pachelbel was a bit much, still, one can always turn it down. Cheers!

[@MiqueCapel]

watching second time still fascinating

[@Bobalicious]

This is an interesting movie. Thank you for sharing it.

[@oldmanfromscenetwentyfour8164]

Cannon in D was not the best musical selection for this film, it actually destroyed it's mood.

[@heriatm2771]

God! Drove my absolutely nUtZ!!!! Had to mute it--ruined the story.

[@robertagregory7177]

Oh, no, are they gonna play it on a loop for an hour?

[@robertagregory7177]

I just started viewing this. I love classical music but if I don’t want to hate this forever gonna have to mute. ;)

[@MultiDryder]

I know this version is in complete blue tint and not original color tint but the pacelbel canon in d with blue tint makes this version so good and captures true mood of the movie

[@nichka7968]

for some reason i always get here when i'm terribly drunk... hm

[@LauraVGuerra]

Thanks heaps for sharing.

[@nichka7968]

Miss Theda Bara i'm your fan forever!

[@MamaBoots007]

What a VAMP!

[@j.celestekee658]

Ugh I love Theda Bara, such a mysterious queen!

[@Mennismervice]

I had to mute the extremely sad cannon in D, the music was distracting and almost made me cry. Please put some music that fits the movie....

[@maggiesmith2600]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="2948">49:08</a> "Stick, Kate, stick." Thanks a lot, Tom.

[@maggiesmith2600]

We are specifically told that John Schuyler is thirty-five, but he looks to be about fifty.

[@gloriahanes6490]

The white face powder and eye liner makes the actors appear older.

[@lee3171]

I have the yearbook of a long dead relative from 1924 graduation. It's shocking how mature an17 or 18 year old looked then. They look like kids now.

[@akakjb]

Back then, 50 year-olds looked like 90 year-olds do now. LOL Maybe a slight exaggeration but not too far off.

[@coffeeseven]

I'm such a sucker for Theda Bara.

[@JEFFIE-jp6kj]

So much fun to see Theda Bara

[@crazyb1to]

Theda bara... Maravilhosa!conheço sua história a pouco tempo e já estou encantado, uma referência gótica!💌🦇(sou brasileiro🇧🇷)

[@rickyfoos4185]

moral Wall Street lawyer? Isn't that an oxymoron?

[@bennz5610]

Ricky Foos 😂 Certainly not at the time this was released....

[@violetbrown2372]

1915 different world!

[@nationalsocialist8382]

@@bennz5610 Au contraire

[@bennz5610]

@@nationalsocialist8382 It has been 3 years since my comment. Having seen a bunch of Pre-Code films, I now agree with you.

[@nationalsocialist8382]

@@bennz5610 Sheisters aren't they, they'd get behind wallpaper.

[@violetbrown2372]

The film hasn't aged well, but Theda's fun to look at!

[@jonathanmoody699]

This is so good..enchanting ..wish I had a lady to watch these type of films with

[@nichka7968]

it's so unusual to see such comment :D

[@tashaschneider1419]

Good movie! Good actors!

[@siempremarisol]

wonderful movie I love theda bara

[@AntajuanGrady]

100 years ago

[@valuecalc]

103 today.

[@bumpusjones.1978]

Sorry for a second post. It’s also interesting to see how huge this was and how everyone at the time was aware of it and now a few hundred people even know it ever happened.

[@gloriahanes6490]

Theda Bara always gets her man whether he is married or not preferably rich is better! To think these people are long gone dead and even the little girl has passed on makes you think.

[@user-ff4sb2jj4b]

Pachelbel Canon in D Major is so lovely. Was the song played at my wedding. Oh God how I tried to make that marriage work. (sigh)

[@1970gtosd]

The Mysterious Island (1929) Please! Thanks for all the vids Cheers!!!

[@zwapiticozwapitico6874]

Thanks

[@larryshackley8074]

American comic writer SJ Perelman wrote a wonderful reflection on this film in his book "Cloudland revisited."

[@alanbash2921]

Every 100 years A New Generation Arises ...Then Disappears into The Next World ....and a New Generation starts its journey, ..to where ?…We Know Not .

[@mariemorgan7759]

I read a story that White Star Line was going to name the Britannic ship the Gigantic at the early stages of construction. Interesting enough the ship in this movie is called the Gigantic. The Titanic had sunk three years prior to this movie. I think this movie was filmed in St.Augustine, Florida,I recognized parts of the old Ponce de Leon hotel (now Flagler college).

[@mateoalvarezdelcastillo7284]

una película sencillamente preciosa 😍

[@michaeloleary1867]

Great movie!

[@WitchKing-Of-Angmar]

Not the original background soundtrack. Unfortunately the original was muffled for the majority of the movie but the soundtrack that is there is so sensual and gorgeous.

[@steplumpkin5432]

GOOD STUFF!!!!

[@steelneedles]

I don't understand the end. I gather he did not die but was in a terrible mess. What was the vampire sprinkling petals onto him for at the end and why did she still want to be around him anyway when he was always drunk and smashing up the house - and when she never loved him in the first place??

[@kaspafischer]

@thescreamingelfwillcry great explanation! The ending kinda puzzled me too but you somehow made it clear... Nice catch with the rose motif too

[@violetbrown2372]

Her Vamp schtick didn't last long, but at the time, she was revolutionary!

[@queerlibtardhippie9357]

It lasted for 30 out of 40 movies

[@persefonerestinpeace7982]

What kind of music should I be listenting? Others say that the music is not correct...

[@bear1134]

OK movie, but I had to off that music and put on a score that I felt was more fitting for the era.

[@davidcouch6514]

What score?

[@dianaadhikari45]

That striped hobble skirt, wow

[@g-girl9867]

You are not kidding girl. That skirt made me sit up and take notice!!

[@wasserdagger]

Thanks for that info... I never knew those skirts had a specific name. So, I looked up Hobble Skirt on Wiki, and found it has an interesting - even amusing - history behind it. For a fun read, check it out: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobble_skirt

[@bekahklemm9352]

I was blown away! Made me space out for a few minutes off on a tangent thinking of how modern designers should be looking at things like this for inspiration (if they’re not already) because wow! An exact replica of that skirt would KILL today! I need one!

[@alexandervonkarnstein]

Why did she retire from the film business? Was Johann Pachelbel's Canon actually used in the film or only inserted here on KZbin afterwards?

[@g-girl9867]

Without reading all the comments in case someone else has mentioned it: Who knows what piece of music this is? Also, is it a solid repeat of the same few minutes or was the piece recorded to be an hour long. I’m not a connoisseur of classical music but I recognize this piece and have always admired it.

[@bekahklemm9352]

Look up “Pachelbel’s Canon in D”, I think that’s what it’s called ! ☺️ A timeless classic that we all know and love but often don’t know the name of!

[@g-girl9867]

@@bekahklemm9352 Oh I love Pachelbel

[@g-girl9867]

@@bekahklemm9352 Yes I'm listening to it, so beautiful I'm verklempt w emotion. Wow, thank you so much. Listening to the version by Kanon orchestra.

[@jurgenmunster8034]

Some say the golden age of film was at the trver beginning and has been dying ever since. Watching this now, I can see what they were saying. Truly remarkable…

[@irmainfante7227]

Hey ill bring da playlists.

[@Warstar49]

ok i got a huge request can you upload the secret of blood island 1964 please

[@user-wt4mi7sp4m]

She had such a charming voice. Too bad the movie she spoke of making in 1936 was never made

[@nubonewales7689]

She stayed overnight at my great grandmother's place in Sheffield..

[@manuelprog4mer528]

alguien tiene un resumen o algo

[@genemoore5034]

Very good actress Theda, you can tell she was nice.Touching film, terrible final.

[@Ourladyrules]

a decent old film but doesnt hold a candle to Mary Pickford. thanks for posting it.

[@lisajan580]

each to their own ,great stars ,icons

[@nichka7968]

is it Canon in D at the beginning?

[@nichka7968]

ah sorry, not only at the beginning

[@lillinablue]

Simple, is the answer! Just cause A Fool there was!

[@estrellageronimo3177]

Jan 2021 ❤✌

[@vermilliongecko]

Someone really needs to write a new score for this.

[@auroramacula]

yes! this bach piece ruins the idea of the movie. can you imagine watching such a picture with a worthy soundtrack?

[@garymattscheck9066]

I agree.

[@vickieoglesby536]

a rag and a bone and a hank of hair..we called her the woman who did not care..

[@beaustoll7299]

what's the song called? love it!

[@johnhummer265]

+Beau Stoll Canon!!

[@johnhummer265]

+John Hummer Canon by Pachelbel

[@pendorran]

Is it Theda Bara or Nazemova whose filmography is now almost entirely lost?

[@maggiesmith2600]

Theda Bara

[@lisajan580]

not entirely

[@siempremarisol]

sorry Theda Bara was after Mary Pickford , Lillian and Dorothy Gish , Florence Lawrence , Bessie Love, Miriam cooper etc

[@lisajan580]

Theda was great

[@lisajan580]

Olivia Thomas was violet eyed beauty,Theda Bara was great mysyterious vamp

[@clairebaron9978]

The little girl reminds me of my 3 year old grace

[@elinorregina]

EEEVIL WOMAN! EEEVEEELL! lol

[@nareshbara5187]

Like Marlin Munro

[@maggiesmith856]

Do you mean Marilyn Monroe ?

[@marlasinger1089]

If she is a vampire, why is she out and about on a bright sunny day?

[@loveoldmovies]

+marla singer Back then the word had more than one meaning. A woman who was called a "vampire" or "vamp" meant that she used her sex appeal to exploit men.

[@guilhermecastro8682]

+marla singer That comcept came with nosferato in 1922

[@humongousfungusamongus3871]

The only surviving film of Theda Bara's film career.....supposedly.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

From Wikipedia: Bara never appeared in a sound film, lost or otherwise. A 1937 fire at Fox's nitrate film storage vaults in New Jersey destroyed most of that studio's silent films. Bara made more than 40 films between 1914 and 1926, but complete prints of only six still exist: The Stain (1914), A Fool There Was (1915), East Lynne (1916), The Unchastened Woman (1925), and two short comedies for Hal Roach.[

[@eriscarmodossantosdefranca5528]

I much prefer Marilyn Monroe...

[@antu9864]

Anybody here for downton abbey?

[@3vimages471]

The good old days ...... except for the war.

[@MiqueCapel]

felt like the Tardis and yep that music sounded like toothache, still magnificent

[@akakjb]

Ah, you should see the media room in the TARDIS.....I watched AVENGERS: SECRET WARS last night! LOL