Showing posts with label Maria Alba. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maria Alba. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
From the Auction --
Mildred Harris Chaplin (Witzel and Hartsook, 1919) - Two signed portraits of the first wife of Charlie Chaplin, Mildred Harris. Ms. Harris was a most interesting woman, marrying Chaplin whilst only 17, and three years later, upon her divorce, immediately going into an affair with the Prince of Wales. She has over 100 film credits which include everything from an uncredited appearance as a dancing girl in D.W. Griffiths' "Intolerance" (1916), to one of the best Three Stooges' shorts, 1936's "Movie Maniacs". It was Ms. Harris who paired up Edward, Prince of Wales to Wallis Simpson (Duchess of Windsor). Both photos are signed with the name she used from 1919-1920 while married to Chaplin, "Sincerely, Mildred Harris Chaplin."
Original "The Return of Chandu" (Principal Distributing, 1934) 11x14 Lobby Card - Starring Bela Lugosi and Maria Alba. The image is from the last scene of Chapter 12 of the serial. Check out my previous review of "The Return of Chandu."
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
On Screen -- The Return of Chandu (1934)
Princess Nadji of Egypt is in danger and only one person can help her, "Frank Chandler", better known as "Chandu the Magician". With the advent of DVDs and DVD players we've kind of lost the anticipation that was associated with the cliffhanger serials of the 30s and 40s. Not that it isn't great to be able to watch your favorites whenever you like, but like I said, wondering if your favorite serial character is going to survive whatever peril they're in is now just a fast-forward button push away.
The "Return of Chandu" is a great example of one of these serials. Chock full of evil characters and their henchmen, women in danger, secret societies, shipwrecks, and great sets, this serial won't disappoint. Chandu, who was raised in the East, uses his White Magic to try to save a princess from the clutches of a secret cult and their Black Magic who are going to sacrifice her in order to resurrect the goddess Ossana. With 12 chapters in all, each chapter (except the last of course) ends in true cliffhanger fashion. If the jungle sets look familiar, you're right ... they were used a year earlier in the filming of the 1933 action/adventure classic "King Kong".
Another great vehicle for Bela Lugosi who stars as "Chandu", with Maria Alba as "Princess Nadji", Clara Kimball Young as "Dorothy Regent", and Lucien Prival as "The High Priest".
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| Lugosi, Alba, and Kimball-Young |
Princess Nadji of Egypt is in danger and only one person can help her, "Frank Chandler", better known as "Chandu the Magician". With the advent of DVDs and DVD players we've kind of lost the anticipation that was associated with the cliffhanger serials of the 30s and 40s. Not that it isn't great to be able to watch your favorites whenever you like, but like I said, wondering if your favorite serial character is going to survive whatever peril they're in is now just a fast-forward button push away.
The "Return of Chandu" is a great example of one of these serials. Chock full of evil characters and their henchmen, women in danger, secret societies, shipwrecks, and great sets, this serial won't disappoint. Chandu, who was raised in the East, uses his White Magic to try to save a princess from the clutches of a secret cult and their Black Magic who are going to sacrifice her in order to resurrect the goddess Ossana. With 12 chapters in all, each chapter (except the last of course) ends in true cliffhanger fashion. If the jungle sets look familiar, you're right ... they were used a year earlier in the filming of the 1933 action/adventure classic "King Kong".
Another great vehicle for Bela Lugosi who stars as "Chandu", with Maria Alba as "Princess Nadji", Clara Kimball Young as "Dorothy Regent", and Lucien Prival as "The High Priest".
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