Back from California, next to Brandon, Vt. to open the 2025 season with 'The Strong Man'

Me outside the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum in Niles, Calif., doing my best to capture the Expressionist spirit of 'Algol' (1920), at least in the promotional art below.

A quick trip to the San Francisco Bay Area this weekend found me at the keyboard to do music for a screening of the German sci-fi film 'Algol' (1920) at the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum. 

I scored this formerly-lost-but-recently-rediscovered movie for the Boston Sci-Fi Marathon this past February, which led to the chance to accompany it in Niles this weekend. 

All went well, although I was without the Korg LE 88 digital synthesizer I used for the Boston screening. Instead, I used the trusty Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum upright piano, which worked out fine. Sometimes less really is more.

Thanks to all my friends at the Niles Essanay museum for bringing me out there for Saturday night's program, and for all they do to present regular programs of silent film with live music to the public—and in a genuine Edison theater to boot!

Next up: I travel up to Brandon, Vt. on Saturday, May 10 to kick off the 2025 Silent Film Series at Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, where I've accompanied silents since 2010.

First up: Harry Langdon in 'The Strong Man' (1926), directed by a very young Frank Capra.

More about the screening, as well as the other films we have planned for Brandon Town Hall this season, is in the press release below. 

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Harry Langdon at the top of his game in 'The Strong Man' (1926).

TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 2025 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Classic comedy 'The Strong Man' with live music on Saturday, May 10 in Brandon, Vt.

Brandon Town Hall's 2025 silent film series kicks off with classic comedy starring Harry Langdon—and the first movie directed by a very young Frank Capra

BRANDON, Vt.—Classics from the silent film era will return to the big screen at the Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, which will host another season of vintage cinema with live music.

First up is Harry Langdon in 'The Strong Man' (1926), a comedy that marked Frank Capra's directorial debut. The film screens on Saturday, May 10 at 7 p.m. at the Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Route 7, in Brandon, Vt.

Admission is free; donations are welcome to help defray expenses.

Live music for each silent film program will be provided by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based performer and composer who specializes in scoring and presenting silent films.

'The Strong Man' tells the story of a World War I soldier (Langdon) who, following his discharge, finds work as assistant to a circus strong man. As the act travels the country, Langdon continually searches for a girl he corresponded with while stationed overseas in the military.

The search leads to a town controlled by Prohibition-era gangsters, which forces Harry to test the limits of his own inner strength even as he looks for his dream girl. Can Harry triumph over the bad guys? And is love more powerful than brute strength?

The feature-length film showcases the unique child-like personality of Langdon, who is largely forgotten today. For a brief time in the 1920s, however, he rivaled Charlie Chaplin as Hollywood's top movie clown.

Langdon's popularity, which grew quickly in the last years of the silent era, fizzled as the movie business abruptly switched to talkies starting in 1929.

'The Strong Man' was selected in 2007 for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

In recent years, 'The Strong Man' has been recognized as a major achievement of the silent film era—a satisfying and timeless balance of emotion and comedy.

"A little tragedy and a lot of laughs can be seen in 1926's The Strong Man," wrote critic Richard von Busack in 2007. "Director Frank Capra's energy and sturdy plot sense counterpoint Langdon's wonderful strangeness."

Harry Langdon tries flirting with a gangster's moll in 'The Strong Man' (1926).

'The Strong Man' will be accompanied by live music by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based silent film accompanist who performs at venues across the region and beyond.

"These films were created to be shown on the big screen as a communal experience," Rapsis said. "With an audience and live music, they still come to life in the way their makers intended them to.

"The silent film screenings at Brandon Town Hall are a great chance for people to experience films that first caused people to first fall in love with the movies," he said.

Rapsis achieves a traditional movie score sound for silent film screenings by using a digital synthesizer that reproduces the texture of the full orchestra.

It's the 14th year of the Brandon Town Hall silent film series, which gives residents and visitors a chance to see great movies from the pioneering days of cinema as they were meant to be shown—on the big screen, with an audience, and accompanied by live music.

Screenings are held once a month, generally on Saturday nights starting in May and running through November. Admission is free; donations are encouraged to defray expenses.

Over the years, silent film donations have helped support projects including handicapped access to the 19th century building; renovating the bathrooms; and restoring the structure's original slate roof.

Other films in this year's Brandon Town Hall silent film series include:

• Saturday, June 7, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Underworld" (1927) starring George Bancroft, Evelyn Brent. Director Josef von Sternberg's groundbreaking tale of big city mobsters, widely considered the father of all gangster pictures. Tale follows crime boss "Bull" Weed as he battles rival 1920s gangsters. Incredible black-and-white photography; winner of first-ever Oscar for original story by Ben Hecht.

• Saturday, July 19, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Grandma's Boy" (1922) starring Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis.  A cowardly young man must learn to conquer his fears before dealing with a larger menace to his community. Riotous small town comedy that helped propel Harold Lloyd into the most popular movie comedian of the 1920s.

• Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Manhandled" (1924) starring Gloria Swanson. Uproarious comedy from silent screen legend Swanson tells the story of a down-on-her-luck salesgirl who climbs the social ladder by pretending to be a Russian countess.

• Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Spies" (1928) directed by Fritz Lang. Director Fritz Lang's tale of espionage was the forerunner of all movie spy sagas, packed with double agents, hi-tech gadgets, beautiful (and dangerous) women, and an evil genius with a plan to take over the world, mwah-ha-ha-ha!

• Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, 7 p.m.: "The Magician" (1926) starring Paul Wegener, Alice Terry, directed by Rex Ingram. Just in time for Halloween: a scientist uses an ancient spell to reanimate a dead body. The secret missing ingredient is, of course, the blood of a virgin, making it a good bet for all kinds of creepy goings-on.

• Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Seven Chances" (1925) starring Buster Keaton. Buster is about to be saved from bankruptcy by an unexpected inheritance of $7 million—but only if he gets married by 7 p.m. that very day. Can Buster somehow find the girl of his dreams while being pursued by an army of women eager to marry a soon-to-be millionaire?

See Harry Langdon in the 'The Strong Man' (1926) with live music on Saturday, May 10 at 7 p.m. at the Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Route 7, in Brandon, Vt. All are welcome to this family-friendly event. Admission is free, with free will donations accepted to defray expenses.