And that wasn't planned. But, after a brief mid-summer performance hiatus, a lot of silent film is planned for the coming weeks. Highlights include a Bastille Day showing of D.W. Griffith's French Revolution epic, 'Orphans of the Storm' (1921) on Saturday, July 14; three days of continuous silent film short comedies from Thursday, July 19 through Saturday, July 21 as part of the biannual convention of the 'Sons of the Desert,' the Laurel & Hardy appreciation society (happening this year in Manchester, N.H., of all places!) and a new series of silent film presentations at the Rogers Center for the Arts at Merrimack College in North Andover, Mass.
Get out your calendars, block out the dates! Here's a run-down of it all, starting with Clara Bow in 'It'...
• Thursday, July 12, 2012, 6:30 p.m.: "It" (1927) starring Clara Bow; The Flying Monkey Movie House and Performance Center, 39 South Main St., Plymouth, N.H.; (603) 536-2551; http://www.flyingmonkeynh.com/. See the film that helped make Clara Bow the "It" girl of the Roaring '20s. A perky comedy/romance that will leave you smiling! Part of a monthly silent film series at a newly restored moviehouse in Plymouth, N.H. Admission, $10 per person.
• Saturday, July 14, 2012, 7 p.m.: "Orphans of the Storm" (1921), starring Lillian and Dorothy Gish; Red River Theatres, 11 South Main St., Concord, N.H.; (603) 224-4600; http://www.redrivertheatres.org/. We mark Bastille Day with D.W. Griffith's silent blockbuster set during the French Revolution. The story: Country girl Lillian Gish accompanies her blind sister Dorothy to Paris for an operation to restore her sight. Separated and then swept up in events beyond their control, they each must fight to survive amidst chaos that threatens to destroy the nation. Admission, $10 per person.• Thursday, July 19 through Saturday, July 21, 2012: Silent Film Short Comedies with live music at the Manchester (N.H.) Public Library, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, with a break for lunch (and sore fingers). The public is invited to three days of vintage silent short comedies, including about a dozen 35mm prints on loan from the Library of Congress, as part of the biannual convention of the "Sons of the Desert," the international Laurel & Hardy appreciation society, being held this year right in Manchester, N.H.! Free admission, come and go as you please. Carpenter Memorial Auditorium, Manchester Public Library, 405 Pine St., Manchester, N.H.; (603) 624-6550.
• Saturday, July 21, 2012, 7 p.m.: "The Gold Rush" (1925); Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.org. Cool off from mid-summer heat with Chaplin's iconic tale of prospectors in the snowbound Klondike. Timeless silent comedy that speaks across the generations, as delightful as ever. Part of a summer series of silent film and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Sunday, July 29, 2012, 4:30 p.m.: "The Thief of Bagdad" (1924); Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456; www.wiltontownhalltheatre.com. Eye-popping spectacle starring swashbuckling star Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in top form as adventurer who must complete a series of epic tasks to save his beloved. Part of a monthly silent film series with live music. Admission free, donations encouraged.• Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2012, 7 p.m.: "Queen Kelly" (1929), starring Gloria Swanson; Rogers Center for the Arts, Merrimack College, 315 North Turnpike St., North Andover, Mass. (978) 837-5000. Erich Von Stroheim's troubled masterpiece about forbidden love, a masterpiece that was never released in the United States. Silent film on the campus of Merrimack College; program hosted by noted author Christopher DiGrazia, who hosts a pre-screening discussion at 6:30 p.m. Free admission. For more information, visit the Rogers Center online.
• Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2012, 6 p.m.: "Four Sons" (1928); Carpenter Memorial Auditorium, Manchester Public Library, 405 Pine St., Manchester, N.H.; (603) 624-6550. Director John Ford's drama about four brothers from Bavaria who become embroiled in World War I—but not on the same side! Interesting period drama set in Europe, carried by great story but with plenty of historical interest as well. Monthly series of rarely screened silent films presented with live music in 1913 auditorium. Admission free, donations encouraged.
• Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012, 6:30 p.m.: "The Cameraman" (1928); The Flying Monkey Movie House and Performance Center, 39 South Main St., Plymouth, N.H.; (603) 536-2551; http://www.flyingmonkeynh.com/. Portrait photographer Buster exchanges his still camera for a movie camera in an effort to break into the newsreel business and win the attention of a special gal. Spectacular Keaton comedy filled with great stunts filmed on a grand scale. Part of a monthly silent film series at a newly restored moviehouse in Plymouth, N.H. Admission, $10 per person.
• Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012, 7 p.m.: "Wings" (1927); Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.org. Sprawling saga of American flyboys caught up in World War I was winner of the first-ever Academy Award for Best Picture. Part of a summer series of silent film and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2012, 7 p.m.: "The Kid" (1921) starring Charlie Chaplin, Jackie Coogan; Rogers Center for the Arts, Merrimack College, 315 North Turnpike St., North Andover, Mass. (978) 837-5000. Chaplin's breakthrough feature, a story with "a smile, and perhaps a tear," blends comedy and pathos in equal measures; five-year-old Coogan delivers one of the most remarkable child performances in all of cinema. Silent film on the campus of Merrimack College; program hosted by noted author Christopher DiGrazia, who hosts a pre-screening discussion at 6:30 p.m. Free admission. For more information, visit the Rogers Center online.
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