“Funny Screen Experiences” by Louise Brooks

About one-hundred years ago today (depending on where you lived), American newspapers ran a syndicated piece attributed to Louise Brooks titled "Funny Screen Experiences," or "My Funniest Experience". One instance of this piece (shown below) was found in the Berkeley (California) Daily Gazette, where it was published on July 16, 1926. Another instance of this same article, under the title "My Funniest Experience", appeared in the San Francisco Bulletin on the same day.

Whatever it was titled, it also appeared on or around the same day in newspapers in Springfield, Massachusetts (7-14-26), San Antonio, Texas (7-16-26), Hammond, Indiana (7-20-26), Richmond, California (7-26-26), and elsewhere, including St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada (7-16-26) .

 

  

"Funny Screen Experiences" or  "My Funniest Experience" was a short-lived series of humorous anecdotes syndicated to various American newspapers by United Press, a wire service. The first piece in the series was attributed to Warner Baxter, and carried an editor's note which read, "This is the first in the series of brief stories by well known film stars, describing their most amusing studio experiences." Other pieces in the series appeared in July 1926 with a by-line attributed to Neil Hamilton (Beau Geste), Lois Wilson (The Great Gatsby), William Powell (Aloma of the South Seas), Renee Adoree (The Eternal Struggle), Aileen Pringle (Tin Gods) and Hale Hamilton. [I believe these are all Paramount productions.] Notably, the piece attributed to Ford Sterling also concerned The Show-Off. 

It is doubtful that Louise Brooks actually wrote her piece, despite the fact it has her by-line. Rather, the author of this piece was likely a Paramount publicist assigned to The Show-Off whose job it was to generate copy for newspapers which would, in turn, draw attention to Paramount’s new and forthcoming releases. The most than can be said about its authenticity is that it may have been based on an actual incident in which the set of The Show-Off was dressed with inappropriate books. It is also worth mentioning that Brooks was known to pass the time on set reading.

A variant instance of this same piece appeared in the Utica (NY) Observer Dispatch on July 18, 1926 under the title, "Light Reading Nearly Spoiled Flapper Scene: My Funniest Experience." 

 More about these and other spurious articles can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website page "Articles Attributed to Louise Brooks." 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  

Cinemages 3 : Six Talks on G. W. Pabst - a new acquisition -

For years, I have been hoping to acquire a copy of Cinemages 3 : Six Talks on G. W. Pabst. And now at last, I have done so. It is an obscure film journal published in New York City in 1955 by the Group for Film Study. The journal was edited by Gideon Bachmann.* 

I have wanted a copy ever since I saw it cited in the Barry Paris biography ever so long ago, but it has proven difficult to track down. (I had to pay a pretty penny for just this single issue.) The journal looks like what today we would call a 'zine -- it's typescript on pulpy paper reproduced by what seems like a photocopy machine, though photocopy technology wasn't available until 1959. Perhaps it's photostat or mimeograph? (I would assume relatively few were "printed." Additionally, it has that dusty-musty smell common in used book shops.) When the Group for Film Study put on screenings, copies of Cinemages were sold for 50 cents. (I paid more than 100 times that amount for my copy.)

This particular issue of Cinemages was given over to G.W. Pabst, and it features extensive interviews with six individuals who were contemporaneous with the director. They are Marc Sorkin, Paul Falkenberg, Jean Oser, Eugen Schuftan, Leo Lania, and the critic Siegfried Kracauer. (The later "interview" is merely a compilation of excerpts from Kracauer's earlier writings, including his famous 1947 book, From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological History of the German Film.)

What drew Paris' attention (and mine) is that the first two -- Sorkin and Falkenberg -- worked with Pabst on Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl. And they talk about those two films! Aside from Brooks' writings, eyewitness accounts by others involved in either production are rare. This is choice material. Besides the six interviews, there is also an introduction by Gideon Bachmann and an annotated filmography compiled by Gavin Lambert and the British Film Institute. (This was decades before IMdB and easy access to such information.)

Earlier, I mentioned that this journal was obscure. It is, and was -- but not so much so that Louise Brooks didn't have access to it. As a matter of fact, she quotes from the Paul Falkenberg interview in her 1965 piece, "Pabst and Lulu," which appeared in Sight and Sound. Interestingly, Brooks names Falkenberg in her article, but does not reference the film journal itself, writing "... one of his assistants, Paul Falkenberg, said in 1955". I had always wondered where, exactly, Brooks got that reference, and now I know.

Excerpts from Gideon Bachmann's (GB) interview with Paul Falkenberg (PF), followed by a few bits from Bachmann's interview with Marc Sorkin (MS), can be found on the Louise Brooks Society Substack....

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 .... I found these interviews to be fascinating, even revelatory.... that Marc Sorkin only worked on part of Pandora's Box, that Louise Brooks (seemingly) wanted mood music while on set, that Falkenberg himself helped look for an actress to play Lulu, and a dozen other little details. 

For those who were wondering, over the years, Louise Brooks kept in touch with a few individuals involved with both Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl. Brooks exchanged the occasional letter and phone call with Pabst, as well as with Marc Sorkin, who was living in New York City in the 1950s. (Paul Falkenberg was also living in NYC in the 1950s, but I haven't seen any indication of them being in touch.) Brooks also was friends with Lothar Wolff, the publicist for both of her Pabst films. He too came to live in the United States, where he worked as an editor and producer.

* The sponsors for the Group for Film Study are given as Rudolph Arnheim, Jean Benoit-Levy, Rene Clair, Paul Falkenberg, David Flaherty, Abel Gance, Marcel L'Herbier, Siegfried Kracauer, Willim K. Everson, Hans Richter, Frank Stauffacher, Williard Van Dyke, and Herman G. Weinberg.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  

July 4th in the Life of Louise Brooks

Louise Brooks lived through some 78 July 4th celebrations of Independence Day, including the 150th anniversary in 1926 and the 200th in 1976. This rambling post looks at the July 4th holiday in the life of the actress.

In 1926, Brooks was back in New York City, after having completed work on It's the Old Army Game in Florida, where she met the film's director, Eddie Sutherland. The two became involved, and would marry a few weeks later on July 21. How exactly Brooks spent this particular July 4th we don't know, but I would guess it was with Eddie. 

And here is newspaper bit for It's the Old Army Game, which was showing at the Strand in Minneapolis, Minnesota (as well as many other cities and towns across America) on July 4th 1926. Brooks stardom was just starting to take off.

In 1976, Brooks was living in Rochester, New York, having moved there some years earlier. At this time in her life, she spent most of her time in her apartment, reading, writing letters, and working on her various writing projects (namely her essays and articles). Brooks liked to watch television and listen to the radio, and thus it's likely she watched some TV coverage of the American bicentennial. I remember that holiday, and media coverage was hard to escape.

One other event we can place with certainty on a July 4th occurred in 1968, when Brooks visited composer David Diamond at his Rochester home. Perhaps she attended an independence day gathering. According to the local newspaper, the weather in Rochester was partly sunny with a high in the low to mid 70s. It might have been a nice day to have an outdoor gathering. (Fans may recall Diamond from his memorable appearance in the 1998 documentary Louise Brooks Looking for Lulu.)

David Diamond in 1987

Speaking of the weather, among the miscellaneous items found in Brooks' papers was this reply from The Answer Man. According to its Wikipedia page, The Answer Man was a 15-minute radio program that aired from 1937 to 1956 on the Mutual Broadcasting System as well as in syndication. Questions submitted by listeners were answered on the air by Albert Mitchell, and those who sent questions not used in the program were given answers by mail.

Brooks had written a few brief notes on the reverse of this reply, including a couple of phone numbers. Given the context, I'll assume Brooks wrote to The Answer Man sometime prior to the show leaving the air in 1956, to which she received a reply by someone on staff with the initials of "jp". (I will also assume Brooks listened to the show while living in New York City. The Answer Man aired on WNBC  -- then operating on the 660 AM frequency -- in New York City from 1950 until the show's conclusion in 1956. The Answer Man aired twice a day from Monday through Friday: it ran as a 15-minute program, typically broadcast in the early afternoon at 1:30 PM and during the evening at 6:15 PM.)

As best I can figure, Brooks was in Peterboro, New Hampshire on July 4, 1923. That is where Denishawn had its summer camp. Seemingly, something of note happened in Peterboro on July 4, 1923 -- I say that because Brooks tried to recall what the weather was like that day. She even went so far as to send away for the information. (Time and again, Brooks tried to place her memories in the context of the weather. It was one way to help her set the scene in her earliest efforts at writing, especially when she was working on Naked on My Goat.) 

I'll finish with this July 4, 1982 newspaper clipping from McComb, Mississippi. Just a few months earlier, Brooks' Lulu in Hollywood was published. And in its wake reviews, articles, and columns like this one devoted to the actress appeared in newspapers just about everywhere. I can imagine Brooks feeling a sense of accomplishment and excitement that her book, something she had worked on for years and which meant a great deal, had been published and was garnering good reviews. Louise Brooks had long wished to be a writer....

 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks, to screen on July 30th in London

Pandora's Box, Louise Brooks' great screen triumph, will be shown at Wilton's Music Hall in London one month from today, on July 30th. This special screening will feature a live piano score by Christopher Eldred. More information about this event, including ticket availability, can be found HERE. 

Otherwise, here is what the venue says about the event: 

"Louise Brooks stars as the effortlessly seductive Lulu, a high class courtesan and dancer who brings destruction to the Berlin bourgeoisie with her turbulent love affairs, both male and female.   

Heavily censored in its day, G.W. Pabst‘s 1929 Weimar masterpiece nonetheless launched flapper icon Brooks to international stardom and Pandora’s Box still feels incredibly modern today, ranking amongst the Guardian’s top 100 films of all time. 

Experience this rare special screening with live piano score by Christopher Eldred."

More about Pandora's Box can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website on its Pandora's Box (filmography page). 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Where else to find the Louise Brooks Society online

For the last number of months I've been rebuilding the Louise Brooks Society's social media presence. (Regular readers of this blog know why.) And so, here is a refresher of where else to find the LBS.

Besides its widely praised website at www.pandorasbox.com, the LBS also has this longstanding blog and a YouTube account as well as a more recently established Substack. Each are rich in content. 

All of the LBS's 20+ social media accounts are listed on the LBS website's Social Media page. The LBS has accounts on Threads, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.... As of today, the two primary social media accounts are its Bluesky and Instagram accounts. Each has drawn more than 1000 followers. 

On a more modest scale, there is also the reestablished Facebook group. 

I hope you'll take the time to explore one or more of these accounts. And please remember to like and subscribe. Everything helps.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

 

The books that Louise Brooks read and / or owned

For more than a few years now, I've been keeping lists of book that Louise Brooks either owned, read, or is know to have owned and / or read. Brooks never kept a list herself, so what I have compiled is gathered from a number of sources -- such as the archive at the George Eastman Museum (to whom Brooks gifted her film books) and the archive at Wichita State University (who have her personal books). Other books are referenced in both vintage and contemporary newspaper and magazine articles, in Brook's letters, in the Barry Paris biography, etc....

I have handled a few books over time, and currently own two. The one I have owned the longest is The Twenties in Vogue, by Carolyn Hall and a foreword by Gloria Swanson. (This first edition hardback was published in 1983 by Harmony Books. For those interested, inexpensive used copies can be found online, including amazon.) My copy includes a few handwritten annotation by Brooks. The half-title page has three annotations (as shown) including a notation mentioning that the book was a gift from the New Yorker editor William Shawn received on September 27, 1983. Below it, the actress signed her name, and added "Rochester, N.Y." (Shawn edited the essays in Lulu in Hollywood, and wrote that book's original foreword.)

Louise Brooks gave away many of her books, even valuable ones, and said so. There is, as well, a notation on the title page. "To Marge - all my love - Louise - September 28, 1983." This notation suggests Brooks gave the book away the day after she received it, and seemingly after recording that her picture (the Edward Steichen portrait) appears on page 89 and her name (in the index, now underlined) on page 158.

On page 104, Brooks also wrote the name of George Gershwin next to a portrait of the composer. And as well, on pages 134 and 135, in the chapter "New Books for Your Morning Room Table", Brooks checked off a number of titles. They were A Passage to India by E.M. Forester, Antic Hay by Aldous Huxley, An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser, To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf, Death in Venice by Thomas Mann, and Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh. I would guess these were books Louise had read. Not checked off were Fiesta by Ernest Hemingway, The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie, Anna Livia Plurabelle by James Joyce, and Living by Henry Green. (I am pretty sure Brooks had read other Hemingway.)

I'll guess and say the "Marge" to whom the book is dedicated was the neighbor upstairs who is prominently mentioned in the Paris biography. They were close, and Marge helped the then elderly Brooks on a number of occasions. 

[For those wondering, I purchased this book on-line some years ago -- likely from someone who got it from Marge or her estate.] Here are a few scans from my copy.

 

The other book I own which once belonged to Louise Brooks is Best Stories to Tell Children by Sara Cone Bryant. It is inscribed on the first free end-paper "To Louise Brooks from Momma Xmas 1912". This book was given to Brooks when she was just 6 years old. It too is a first edition, having been first published in 1912 and priced at $1.25.) I can imagine little Louise reading the book, or having it read to her.

Out of curiosity, I did a little research on the author. Sara Cone Bryant was a once well known American lecturer, teacher, and writer. She wrote children's books in the early 20th century. She also supported and took a leadership role in women's suffrage. (That latter fact, I feel, is interesting in view of the fact that Brooks' mother was the person who likely found this book at a local Cherryvale store. I wonder if Louise's mother, Myra, knew of Sara Cone Bryant. To learn more about this author, check out her Wikipedia page. And to check out or even read the book itself, check out its Internet Archive record.

[For those wondering, this book was recently gifted to me by the Estate of Louise Brooks after it having sat in a Wichita, Kansas attic for decades.] Here are a few scans.

 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Louise Brooks Coming Attraction Slides page updated

The Louise Brooks Society page devoted to coming attraction slides has been updated. I've added a bit of new information, re-arranged a couple of slides, and added a link to a must view video, which I have also embedded below. 

What are coming attraction slides? The answer, simply put, is that they were the equivalent of today's previews or trailers. During the silent and early sound era era, glass slides were projected in theaters as a means of alerting the audience to a venue’s future offerings, or coming attraction. 

The Louise Brooks Society page devoted to coming attraction slides collects examples of slides for every one of the actress' American silent and sound films -- except It Pays to Advertise and Windy Riley Goes Hollywood. There are 38 slides shown. There are also scans of placeholder images for Evening Clothes (variant slide), as well as God's Gift to Women and When You're in Love. I don't know if there were slides created for any of Brooks' three European films. As of today, none have turned up.

If you are interested in coming attraction slides, the one site you simply MUST VISIT is Robert Byrne's Starts Thursday. It is an amazing site which contains an informative history of coming attraction slides, as well examples of more than 11,000+ beautifully scanned slides. One could spend days looking at the many different slides. And yes, these are a number of examples of Louise Brooks related slides, including some not pictured here. The history of glass slides was surveyed by Byrne in 2026 in an video talk presented by the San Francisco Film Preserve. It can be found on YouTube HERE.  Also well worth a visit is the Coming Attraction Lantern Slides (W. Ward Marsh collection) at the Cleveland Public Library. Though a smaller collection, it is a treasure trove of imagery collected by Marsh, a Cleveland newspaper critic who also happened to have reviewed a number of Brooks' film for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. And for a little more background, there is this 2014 article on SLATE. 

 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Celebrating the first day of Summer with Louise Brooks

It's the first day of summer! To help everyone enjoy the new season and warm temperatures, here are some images of Louise Brooks at the beach.

As a member of Denishawn, in 1923. Louise Brooks is second from right.
Martha Graham is center. This picture was likely taken in 
New England near the Atlantic coastline.

 

As a Paramount actress, in 1927. Louise Brooks is center, with Sally Blane (left)
and Nancy Phillips (right). Picture taken in So. California on the Pacific Coast.

Another in Southern California in 1927, with Sally Blaine.

A candid at the historic Cavalier Beach Club, Virginia Beach, VA in 1929.

In a scene from Prix de beaute, filmed in France in 1929.
I would guess this was taken on the Mediterranean.

At the beach in 1933, at the Atlantic Ocean.

In the last picture shown above, Louise Brooks is shown standing on an Atlantic Ocean beach while walking her dog, a terrier. The women she is talking with, also shown in profile to the left, is Lois Long (aka "Lipstick"), the well known New Yorker writer who was once married to the New Yorker cartoonist Peter Arno. (When this picture was taken, Long and Arno were divorced.) It is interesting to note that as late as 1933, Brooks was still wearing her hair in a bob and rather short.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Rolled Stockings, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1927

Rolled Stockings, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1927. The film is a drama set among students at the fictional Colfax College. It was one of a number of similarly-themed films aimed toward the youth market of the 1920s. Besides Louise Brooks, who was then 20 years old, its cast included a few of Paramount's "junior stars" -- then up-and-comers Richard Arlen, James Hall, Nancy Phillips, and El Brendel. Brooks plays the love interest of two brothers, one a fop, the other an athlete. 

More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

To add verisimilitude, Rolled Stockings was largely filmed on and around the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. It also includes footage of actual crew races between the University of California and the University of Washington.

A summer release, the film proved popular wherever it was shown. Harrison’s Reports, a film industry trade journal, described Rolled Stockings as "a light comedy drama of college life" that was "Pretty good entertainment for the hot weather." The Chicago Tribune named it one of the six best films of June, 1927. Not surprisingly, the film found a receptive audience in college towns across the country. The critic for the Ann Arbor Times News, for example, appreciatively stated "The three stars, Louise Brooks, James Hall and Richard Arlen are so thoroughly likable and the story so different from the usual line of college bunk, that Rolled Stockings proves to be a delightful bit of cinema entertainment."

Rolled Stockings was a cut above many of the other motion pictures about the younger generation. The Seattle Times praised the film, noting "Paramount’s ‘youth’ picture, which is now at the Coliseum Theatre, has everything -- a thrilling college crew race, some exciting automobile scenes, snappy comedy, a good love story and lots of pep." Regina Cannon of the New York American proclaimed, "This is another college story and it is realistic enough to be entertaining. . . . Louise Brooks is seen for the first time in a ‘straight’ role. This child is so smartly sophisticated that it has seldom been her lot to portray anything but baby vamps on the screen. She has an unusual personality which the camera catches and magnifies, dresses snappily and makes the most of her every movie moment.”

Critics were divided on Brooks, the star of the film. Some noted her "provoking presence" and "demure charm, with its tricky suggestion of mild sophistication." The Los Angeles Examiner wrote, "Louise Brooks is utterly adorable as Carol Fleming. She is exactly the type college boys swoon over. She displays a sincerity in her work that has been absent from her previous roles. Though this particular part offers little opportunity to show any great acting, she measures up splendidly in the few scenes that border on the emotional." Across town, the Los Angeles Daily Illustrated News stated "Louise Brooks, judging by this film, is destined to go a long way. She has some of Colleen Moore's qualities with a dash of Florence Vidor thrown in, and a lot of her own distinctive personality."

The New York Daily Mirror countered, stating "Louise Brooks looks remarkably like Clara Bow, though she lacks the famed pep of our national flapper." The Washington Times went even further, "The leading role is borne by Louise Brooks and the part could have been better cast. Miss Brooks has the bad habit of stalking through her screen parts like an automaton and her face is devoid of emotion under all circumstances." In a piece titled "Louise Brooks Shows Acting Ability in Rivoli Feature," Mark K. Bowman found middle ground in the Portland Oregonian, "In the past Miss Brooks has been accused of strutting instead of acting, but it is apparent in this latest picture that she is endeavoring to do less posing, which is a promising move."

SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

-- The film was based on a topical story, "Sheiks and Sheibas," by Frederica Sagor. Along with raccoon coats, flagpole sitters, goldfish swallowers, hip flasks, and ankle watches, rolled stockings worn by women were one of the many fads of the Jazz Age.

-- Rolled Stockings was first called Sheiks and Sheibas, but the title was changed because it conflicted with a First National property. At different times, different trade journals reported that Monty Brice and then Frank Strayer would direct the film, with Charles "Buddy" Rogers and Sterling Holloway among the cast.

-- Sally Blane, who had an uncredited part in Rolled Stockings, was born Elizabeth Jane Young and was the sister of actress Loretta Young.

-- Grover Jones, a gag man, doubled as director while the Rolled Stockings  company was on location in Berkeley, California. Director Richard Rosson was summoned to Hollywood by the death of his mother and Jones took the microphone and directed shots of the California-Washington boat race.

-- Years later, in an interview, Brooks said director Richard Rosson didn't want to direct the film, and in fact, didn't even want to be a director. "He'd been Allan Dwan's assistant, and it was an assistant that he wanted to be. During [this picture] he sat sweating, with a trembling script. There wasn't enough Bromo-Seltzer to float him out of his chair."

More about the film can be found on the recently updated Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.   

A Visual Mystery in Pandora's Box, starring Louise Brooks - can you help?

The more often you watch a particular film, the more things you notice which you might not have taken note of previously... the way light might come into a window, the way a character walks, the way a room is dressed. 

Over the years, I have likely watched Pandora's Box (1929) some twenty times, or more. I don't really know how many times I have viewed the film, but I always try to watch it with fresh eyes. It wasn't until my twelfth viewing, some years ago, that I really noticed the jazz combo performing during the wedding reception scene. That got me to wondering who they were, until I spotted the name of the group on their drum-kit. They were Sid Kay's Fellows, a real jazz combo from the time. I went into excited research mode, and ended up writing a couple of blog posts on the group. The first of them, from April 2012, is Music in Pandora's Box: Sid Kay's Fellows. A follow up post from October of that same year is More on Sid Kay's Fellows. Check 'em out.

Another thing I noticed in the film and began to wonder about is the wood relief sculpture of a praying man hanging on the wall of Lulu's room - the same room where her husband is killed. I wondered who made it? Was it just a piece of random set dressing (unlikely, as Pabst was a meticulous film maker), or was it a piece of art from the time? Here are a few screen grabs depicting the art in question.

 

 

 

I couldn't find any references to the sculpture in the literature about the film. I did some internet searches, and looked at some art books, and nearly gave up until I came across the work of a German expressionist artist and writer named Ernest Barlach. According to his Wikipedia entry, his "literary and artistic work would fall between the categories of twentieth-century Realism and Expressionism" The same could be said for G.W. Pabst.

I don't know that the piece in Pandora's Box is by Barlach, but it sure does look like his work. I also did a Google search under the name "Ernst Barlach" and filtered the results for images. I am leaning in his direction. Are there any art historians or Ernst Barlach experts who could weigh in on this mystery? Is there a catalog raisonne of his work?

... And speaking of artwork seen in Pandora's Box, I wonder what ever happened to this painting of Brooks as a harlequin? Does anyone know? Does anyone know who painted it? This painting looks like something that was commissioned for the film, whereas the praying man figure looks like a pre-existing work of art.

 

More about Pandora's Box can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website on its Pandora's Box (filmography page). 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Diary of a Lost Girl, starring Louise Brooks, to be screened at Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum in Fort Smith, Arkansas

Diary of a Lost Girl, the sensational 1929 film starring Louise Brooks, will be screened at Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum in Fort Smith, Arkansas on June 5. This special event is being held in conjunction with the Fort Smith Public Library. More information about the event can be found HERE.

The venue states, "Diary of a Lost Girl (1929), directed by G. W. Pabst and starring Louise Brooks, follows Thymiane, a young woman cast out after becoming pregnant and deemed “immoral” by her family and society. Sent through reformatories and exploitation, her story exposes the cruelty, hypocrisy, and double standards imposed on women. The film is a powerful critique of social morality and remains a landmark of early cinema.

Join us at Miss Laura’s in partnership with the Fort Smith Public Library for this unforgettable cinematic experience. Whether you’re a film lover, history buff, or simply curious about the rebellious spirit of the 1920s, this is one screening you won’t want to miss. Admission is FREE to the public. Seats are limited so reserve your tickets online at misslaurasmuseum.com .... experience a silent film that still speaks volumes."

Louise Brooks twice visited Fort Smith. The first time was in 1922, when she and the Denishawn Dance Co, gave matinee and evening performances at the local Joie Theatre on November 22 of that year. The company returned once more in 1923, when it once again a gave matinee and evening performance on February 6. Brooks first mention in a Fort Smith newspaper likely occurred on February 7, when the Southwest American reviewed the prior day's performance.

Above is a newspaper image of the now demolished theatre building as it appeared in 1921, the year before Brooks performed there. The location of the old theatre is only a four minute drive or 18 minute walk from the old mansion which now houses Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum. (The Joie was demolished in 1953, and today a Hideaway Pizza is located on the lot.)

Brooks first depiction in a Fort Smith newspaper occurred on December 4, 1925, when the local Times Record ran the syndicated piece shown below on their picture page.

And, of course, most of Brooks' American silent and earliest sound films were shown in Fort Smith in the 1920s. Many seemed to have been shown at the New theater.

Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum is one of the most unique attractions Fort Smith has to offer. According to its website, it is a meticulously preserved Victorian brothel that offers a glimpse into the lives of the women who shaped the history of Fort Smith. Through guided tours, authentic exhibits, and interactive displays, immerse yourself in the opulence, charm, and intrigue of a bygone era. Visit its website for more info at misslaurasmuseum.com 

More about Diary of a Lost Girl can be found on the newly revamped Louise Brooks Society website on its Diary of a Lost Girl (filmography page). 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  

Louise Brooks Society @ Library of Congress Motion Picture Web Archive

Recently, I was told that the Louise Brooks Society website was chosen to be part of the Library of Congress Motion Picture Web Archive. I am thrilled, as this is an honor I have never dreamt of receiving. Once or twice a year from here on out, the LBS will be crawled and archived and made available to researchers at the LOC akin to the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine presentation. [The LBS should appear on the LOC website sometime next year.]

With visitors coming.... I figured it would be a good idea to tidy up some of the more dense pages, like the filmography and bibliography pages. I thought to add new information, delete old links, clean-up typos, and generally improve whatever I could. I would make this my summer project, something to take on a little at a time. There are 24 filmography pages, and 24 bibliography pages. 

I started with Pandora's Box (1929), and have refurbished both its filmography and bibliography pages. I also refurbished the filmography and bibliography pages for The Street of Forgotten Men (1925). Next up in The American Venus (1926), and then Just Another Blonde (1926) and Now We're in the Air (1927) and all the rest.

If you have a moment, please do visit the Louise Brooks Society website at www.pandorasbox.com. It is bursting at the seems with nearly 300 pages of content. Explore....
 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Its the Old Army Game, with Louise Brooks, was released on this day 100 years ago in 1926

Its the Old Army Game, with Louise Brooks and W.C. Fields, was released on this day in 1926. The film is a comedy about a small town druggist (played by W.C. Fields) who gets involved with a real estate scam. Louise Brooks plays the druggist's assistant. The film was Brooks' fourth, and it reunited her with the Fields, the film's star. The two had worked together in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1925. 

More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

In its review, the Newark Star-Eagle stated, “This picture not only affords a good deal of typical Fields comedy in a suitable story frame, but also reveals the possibilities of Louise Brooks, Follies girl who is making decidedly good in the cinema. . . . All told, Fields need not regret his first Paramount production. Louise Brooks, with a touch of piquancy, a good range of registration, and the conception of restraint, is pleasing as the heroine.”

It's the Old Army Game was originally announced as starring Fields and future "It girl" Clara Bow, but she was shooting Mantrap (1926), so the female lead fell to Brooks. Exhibitor’s Herald stated, “Louise Brooks is the other important person in the picture and, as insinuated rather bluntly on the occasion of her first appearance -- in The American Venus -- she’s important. Miss Brooks isn’t like anybody else. Nor has she a distinguishing characteristic which may be singled out for purposes of identification. She’s just a very definite personality. She doesn’t do much, perhaps because there isn’t much to do but probably because she hits hardest when doing nothing, but nobody looks away when she’s on screen. If Miss Glyn should say that Miss Brooks has ‘it,’ more people would know what Miss Glyn is raving about. But in that case she would not be raving.”

The Portland Oregonian noted “Louise Brooks, the pert young woman who will be remembered for her work in The American Venus and A Social Celebrity, the latter with Adolphe Menjou, has the lead role opposite Fields. She poses a bit. An excuse was found to get her into a bathing suit too, which wasn’t a bad move, on the whole.” 

It's the Old Army Game received mostly positive reviews, though some critics noted its rather thin plot. Algonquin Round Table playwright Robert E. Sherwood (who would go on to win four Pulitzer Prizes and an Academy Award) was then writing reviews for Life magazine. His pithy critique read, “Mr. Fields has to carry the entire production on his shoulders, with some slight assistance from the sparkling Louise Brooks.” Ella H. McCormick of the Detroit Free Press countered with "Fields scored a splendid triumph in this picture. A great part of the success of the offering, however, is due to Louise Brooks, who takes the lead feminine part."

Today, It's the Old Army Game is largely remembered as a starring vehicle for Fields -- a comedic great, It is also remembered for the fact that not long after the film wrapped, Brooks married the film's director, Eddie Sutherland.

 SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

 -- Clarence Badger was originally assigned to direct, but the film was soon turned over to Edward Sutherland, a onetime actor and Keystone Cop who began his directing career just a few years before with the help of Charlie Chaplin. The film was announced, at first, as starring W.C. Fields and future “It girl” Clara Bow, but as she was needed on the West Coast to shoot Mantrap (1926), the female lead fell to Brooks. It's the Old Army Game was the first of five Fields' films directed by Sutherland.

-- Outdoor scenes in Palm Beach, Florida were shot at El Mirasol, the estate of multi-millionaire investment banker Edward T. Stotesbury. In 1912, after having been a widower for thirty-some years, Stotesbury remarried and became the stepfather of three children including Henrietta Louise Cromwell Brooks (known simply as Louise Brooks), an American socialite and the first wife of General Douglas MacArthur. In her heyday, she was "considered one of Washington's most beautiful and attractive young women". Because of their names, the two women were sometimes confused in the press.

-- The late film historian John Bengston had written a series of posts on his Silent Locations website looking at various scenes from the film. Each are well worth checking out. They include "W.C. Fields in Palm Beach – It’s the Old Army Game" -- "It’s The Old Army Game – W.C. Fields and Louise Brooks Bring Magazines to Life" -- "It’s The Old Army Game – W.C. Fields and Louise Brooks in Ocala Florida – Part One".

-- It’s the Old Army Game was officially released May 25, 1926. The film opened in select cities on May 22, 1926, with the earliest showings taking place in Atlanta, Georgia, Hartford, Connecticut, and Indianapolis, Indiana. The film was advertised to open a few days earlier in Palm Beach, Florida (on May 18) and elsewhere, but was delayed.

More about the film can be found on the recently updated Louise Brooks Society website filmography page. 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.   

Windy Riley Goes Hollywood, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1931

Windy Riley Goes Hollywood, starring Louise Brooks, was released on this day in 1931. The film is a short comedy which centers on Windy Riley, a cocky blow-hard who attempts to revamp the publicity department of a Hollywood studio. The film was Louise Brooks’ first after returning from Europe, the first to feature her actual voice (Brooks’ earlier sound films, The Canary Murder Case and Prix de Beauté, had been dubbed), and her first and only short. More about the film can be found on the Louise Brooks Society website filmography page.

The film was directed by Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, who was working under the name William B. Goodrich; a blacklist on the comedian's employment in Hollywood was still in effect. Windy Riley Goes Hollywood was promoted as a behind the scenes look at the movie capital. The film’s press sheet overstated its case when it proclaimed “One of the first pictures ever showing the interior of a sound stage and the actual operation of talking pictures. . . . The actual cameras, microphones, etc., used in picture production will be shown in some of the big scenes.”

At times, story details surrounding character Betty Grey (played by Brooks) curiously parallel Brooks’ own career. Near the beginning of the film, Grey is set to star in The Box Car Mystery, a title of which calls to mind Brooks’ role in Beggars of Life. Later, while at lunch at the Montmarte (a famous Los Angles café once frequented by Brooks and others in Hollywood), Riley boasts he was responsible for the successful advertising campaign mounted by Klux Soap. In real life, Brooks was among a handful of actress who regularly appeared in print ads for Lux Soap. And, at the end of the film, it is announced that Grey will wed the director The Box Car Mystery. A few years earlier, Brooks married Eddie Sutherland, who directed her in It’s the Old Army Game.

The film's few reviews were largely negative, and the film suffered from a lack of exhibitor interest. Consequently, few likely saw Windy Riley Goes Hollywood at the time of its release. Except for a three-month period in mid-1931 when it played in Toronto, there are few records of this short film having been shown in any large cities. What exhibition records have been found suggest the film was shown as program filler in mostly smaller markets.

 In the United States and Canada, the film was on a few occasions promoted under the title Windy Riley Goes to Hollywood, and once reviewed as Windy Riley Goes into Hollywood. Under its American title, documented screenings of the film took place in Canada, The Philippines, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (England and Scotland).

Elsewhere, Windy Riley Goes Hollywood was shown under the title The Gas Bag (United Kingdom, including England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland) and as Windy Rileyová jde Hollywood (Czechoslovakia).

 SOME THINGS ABOUT THE FILM YOU MAY NOT KNOW:

-- Windy Riley Goes Hollywood, based on an original story by Ken Kling, was adapted from Kling’s comic strip Windy Riley. The New York cartoonist started the strip about a wisecracking braggart in 1928. At the time of the film's release, the strip ran in some 170 newspapers across the country.

-- Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, depressed and still working under a pseudonym because he was under an industry blacklist, directed the film. Years later, Brooks told Kevin Brownlow, "He made no attempt to direct this picture. He sat in his chair like a man dead."

-- Dell Henderson started as an actor in 1908, and was a frequent associate of director D.W. Griffith, and less so, with producer Mack Sennett. Henderson also directed nearly 200 silent films between 1911 and 1928. In the late 1920s, he returned to acting and played important supporting roles in King Vidor's The Crowd (1928) and Show People (1928). The advent of sound stalled his career, and he was thereafter cast in small parts. In the 1930s, Henderson appeared as a comic foil for W. C. Fields, Laurel and Hardy, and The Three Stooges.

-- The group of dancers seen in Windy Riley Goes Hollywood were recruited from the chorus of George Olsen’s Culver City nightclub. Olsen was a popular bandleader and recording artist married to Ethel Shutta. Her brother Jack Shutta, a stage performer making his screen debut in the title role of Windy Riley, managed Olsen's nightclub. Along with Ethel Shutta and Louise Brooks, Olsen and his orchestra performed at the Ziegfeld Follies of 1925.

-- In 1935, the Bell and Howell Company of Chicago offered Windy Riley as a Filmosound rental subject.

-- Windy Riley Goes Hollywood was the first Louise Brooks film shown on television likely anywhere in the world. The film was shown under the title Windy Riley Goes to Hollywood on November 18, 1948 on WJZ (Channel 7) in Asbury Park, New Jersey. (LINK)

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.   

Does the Louise Brooks Society have good site authority?

I asked Google's Gemini if the Louise Brooks Society has good "site authority." Here is what Gemini said.

"From an SEO and historical standpoint, the Louise Brooks Society (hosted at pandorasbox.com) possesses exceptionally high authority within its niche. While "Site Authority" is often measured by scores like Moz’s Domain Authority (DA) or Semrush’s Authority Score, its true strength lies in its reputational authority and backlink profile.

Here is a breakdown of why it is considered a high-authority site:

1. Longevity and "Lindy Effect"

• Established 1995: The site is a "pioneer" in the film history space, having been online for over 30 years. Search engines generally view long-standing domains with consistent content as more trustworthy than newer sites.

• Archive Depth: With approximately 300 pages of deep archival material—including the most comprehensive Louise Brooks filmography and chronology in existence—it functions as a primary source rather than a content aggregator.

2. High-Quality Backlinks (Digital Trust)

The site is cited as a definitive resource by some of the most authoritative entities in media and academia:

• Institutional Citations: It has been referenced by the Encyclopedia Britannica, Wikipedia, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

• Major Media: High-authority news outlets like The New York Times, The Guardian, USA Today, and The Irish Times have linked to or praised the site.

• Film Industry: Recognition from the Criterion Collection, Leonard Maltin, and inclusion in the bibliographies of definitive biographies (like those by Barry Paris) cements its topical authority.

3. Niche Dominance (E-E-A-T)

Google’s ranking guidelines emphasize Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. The Louise Brooks Society excels here because:

• Subject Matter Expertise: The site is curated by Thomas Gladysz, a published author and researcher whose work has directly contributed to film restorations and academic scholarship.

• Official Backing: The site operates with the written consent of the Estate of Louise Brooks, which provides a level of official "brand" authority that few fan-operated sites achieve.

4. Technical Authority

• Keyword Ownership: The site consistently ranks at the top for specific, high-intent keywords related to silent film history, "Lulu," and Pandora's Box.

• Non-Commercial Nature: Because it is largely an educational archive rather than a commercial or "clickbait" site, it avoids many of the spam signals that can degrade site authority.

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Summary: While a massive site like IMDb might have a higher general domain score, for queries specifically regarding silent film history or Louise Brooks, the Louise Brooks Society is often treated by search algorithms as the "seed" authority—the gold standard for accuracy and depth."

 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original content copyright © 2026. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.