Among the films showing at Belfast's cinemas #OTD 1926 were Déclassé (US: Connie Griffith, 1925) at the Picturedrome the Mount and Madonna of the Streets (US: Edwin Carewe, 1924), with Nazimova, at the Coliseum. Images: Irish News and IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, Birr's Rialto Cinema had Waking Up the Town (US: Pickford, 1925), with Jack PIckford. Its Midland Tribune ad adjoined an editorial on the census, which "will be consulted for years to come by those interested in questions of national, social and industrial interest." #EarlyIrishCinema
My first visit to the incredible Cinema Museum for the British Silent Film Festival Symposium. Big thanks to Lawrence Napper and other organizers; great to see so many of the silent film heads; and h/t Peter Yeandle for the photo.
Final panel of the British Silent Film Festival Symposium at the Cinema Museum, featuring Ayan Dawn, Deborah Allison, Lisa Stein Haven and John Wyver.
Special panel at the British Silent Film Festival Symposium featuring Toby Haggith and Stephen Horne presenting a screening of Peace on the Western Front.
Second panel of the British Silent Film Festival Symposium at the Cinema Museum, featuring Andrew Shail, Stephen Bottomore, Geoff Brown and Cole Diment.
First panel of the British Silent Film Festival Symposium at the Cinema Museum, featuring Peter Yeandle, Malcolm Cook, Mario Slugan, Robert Shail and Irfan Shah.
Irish film censor James Montgomery told Irish Independent columnist John Brennan #OTD 1926 that "we used to be afraid of the Anglicisation of Ireland...to-day we have as much to fear from the Los Angelesisation of Ireland." #EarlyIrishCinena
This weekend 1926, Irish Destiny (Eppels: Ireland, 1926) had its premiere at Dublin's Corinthian. "It is but natural that the film should be such an attraction to Irishmen..The story deals with the troublous times during the Black-and-Tan era." Images: Evening Herald & IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, many of Cork's cinema and theatres, including the Pavilion and the Coliseum, were closed for Easter and wouldn't reopen until the weekend. Images: Cork Examiner and National Library of Ireland on Flickr Commons. #EarlyIrishCinema
Now for sure.
Following So This Is Hollywood (AKA In Hollywood with Potash and Perlmutter; US: Goldwyn, 1924) earlier in the week, Omagh's Picture ended this week 1926 with The Silent Stranger (US: Brown, 1924) with "world champion athlete" Fred Thomson. Images: Ulster Herald & IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, the Evening Herald's critic unfavorably reviewed the trade show of new Irish production Irish Destiny (Eppels, 1926) at Dublin's Metropole : "Frankly, we were not impressed by the production...we came away unconvinced by the story or the theme." Images: Herald & IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
On 18 March 1926, Birr's Picturedrome offered The Lost Chord (US: Chord, 1925), based on Arthur Sullivan's song, which was sung by Birr resident J.A. Hernon: "clean, heart-gripping interest, with a beautiful story of love and sacrifice." Images: Offaly Independent & IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
There's a free screening of We Only Want the Earth, a new film about James Connolly, at Dublin's Light House on 20 April @ 6pm with a filmmaker Q&A. Link to tickets below.
www.eventbrite.com/e/free-scree...
On 12 March 1926, Belfast's Classic advertised not only its double bill of The Unholy Three (US: MGM, 1925), starring Lon Chaney and King of the Castle (UK: Stoll, 1925), with Marjorie Hume, but also its many feature attractions. Images: Irish News, IMDb & Bioscope. #EarlyIrishCinema
On 2 March 1926, Belfast's Diamond Picture House was showing Capital Punishment (US: Schulberg, 1925), which "possesses a perennial interest [and] is remarkable for the extreme realism of the interpretations given by the twelve stars," including Clara Bow. Images: Irish News & IMDb #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, a full house and seashore backdrop were the order of the day when the court in Castleisland, Co. Kerry moved from their usual billiard-room venue to the local cinema, where the justice and press occupied the stage and the solicitors sat in the stalls. Image: Kerry News. #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, Dublin's Metropole offered The Eagle (US: Art Finance, 1925), directed by Clarence Brown and starring Rudolph Valentino: "As the Eagle he is rapacious, as a soldier he is daring, thrilling, but as a lover he again sways the senses, stirs heart, sweeps the emotions." #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, Dublin's Evening Herald published a photo from the Abbey Theatre's premiere production of Sean O'Casey's play The Plough and the Stars, which had been interrupted the previous evening by riots by the audience objecting to the representation of Ireland and the 1916 Rising #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, a compensation case for the Masterpiece bombing heard of a warning to “cease to produce these films, and be good enough to remember that such action can only end by exasperating the over-tried patience of those who object to being kept by force in the British Empire.” #EarlyIrishCinema
#OTD 1926, Cork's Lee cinema was showing A Sainted Devil (US: Famous Players-Lasky, 1924), starring Rudolph Valentino, who "is seen at his best in this picture that gives him plenty of scope to display those abilities which have brought him fame." Images: Evening Echo and IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
"Eric von Stroheim produced 'The Merry Widow,' and our Censors turned it down. He produced 'Greed' [US: Metro-Goldywn, 1924] and our Censors didn't turn it down; so it will be shown at the Corinthian Cinema all next week." Evening Herald, this week 1926. Images: Herald and IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
Dublin's Evening Herald reported #OTD 1926 that cinema owner Isaac Eppel was in London editing his War of Independence film Irish Destiny (Ireland: Eppel, 1926) for a projected trade show in Dublin at the end of February. #EarlyIrishCinema
After the rush to see The Gold Rush (US: Chaplin, 1925) the previous week, Dublin's Metropole was on 31 January 1926 entering the second week of its run of a film that showed Chaplin as "a great artist in a great comedy." Images: Evening Herald and IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
On 11 January 1926, Limerick's Gaiety was showing The Only Woman (US: Talmadge, 1924), starring Norma Talmadge and Eugene O'Brien, while the Grand Central had The Squire of Long Hadley (UK: Stoll, 1926), with Marjorie Hume and Brian Aherne. Images: Limerick Leader and IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
This week 1925, Dublin's La Scala put the film Wicklow Gold (Irish Photoplays, 1922) at the centre of its All-Irish Week, claiming the film was showing for the first time, but it had had its first run at Dublin's Empire in November 1922. Images: Evening Herald & Sunday Independent. #EarlyIrishCinema
This week 1925, letter writer Civis noted in the Kerry News that proposed Irish press censorship was unlikely to be effective given the way film censorship had failed in the case of Lovebound (US: Fox, 1923), recently shown in Tralee. Images: Kerry News & IMDb. #EarlyIrishCinema
Denis Condon on early Irish cinema exhibition
Denis Condon on early Irish cinema exhibition
Today at @tlrhub.bsky.social some of the great scholars of film in Ireland celebrate the career of Ruth Barton and her profound influence on Irish film studies.
1st up @deniscondon.bsky.social on cinema exhibition in turn of the century munitions factory in Arklow.