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"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" is a line from an editorial by Francis Pharcellus Church. Written in response to a letter by eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon asking whether Santa Claus was real, the editorial was first published in the New York newspaper The Sun on September 21, 1897.
Louis Francis Cristillo, better known as Lou Costello, was an American comedian, actor and producer. He was best known for his double act with Bud Abbott and their routine "Who's on First?".
The year 1909 in film involved some significant events.
Vitagraph Studios, also known as the Vitagraph Company of America, was a United States motion picture studio. It was founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York, as the American Vitagraph Company. By 1907, it was the most prolific American film production company, producing many famous silent films. It was bought by Warner Bros. in 1925.
Florence Turner was an American actress who became known as the "Vitagraph Girl" in early silent films.
Mrs. Claus is the mythical wife of Santa Claus, the Christmas gift-bringer in Western Christmas tradition.
A Tale of Two Cities is a 1911 silent film produced by Vitagraph Studios, loosely based on the 1859 novel by Charles Dickens.
Mrs. Santa Claus is a 1996 American made-for-television musical fantasy comedy film directed by Terry Hughes, with a score by Jerry Herman, starring Angela Lansbury in the title role.
A Trap for Santa Claus is a 1909 one-reel American silent drama film. A Biograph Company production, it was directed by D. W. Griffith and stars Henry B. Walthall, Marion Leonard, and Gladys Egan.
Charles Kent was a British-American stage actor and silent film actor and director. He appeared in more than 140 films between 1908 and 1923. He also directed 36 films between 1908 and 1913.
Her Crowning Glory is a 1911 American silent short comedy film directed by Laurence Trimble. The film is preserved by the UCLA Film and Television Archive and is included in the DVD Treasures From American Film Archives program #2, 50 Preserved Films by the National Film Preservation Foundation.
The Village Blacksmith is a 1922 American silent melodrama film directed by John Ford and produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. One of the eight reels survives at the UCLA Film and Television Archive, and therefore the film is considered to be lost. It was loosely adapted from the poem of the same name by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Stella Dallas is a 1925 American silent drama film that was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, adapted by Frances Marion, and directed by Henry King. The film stars Ronald Colman, Belle Bennett, Lois Moran, Alice Joyce, Jean Hersholt, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. Prints of the film survive in several film archives.
Cleopatra is a 1912 American silent historical drama film starring Helen Gardner in the title role and directed by Charles L. Gaskill, based on the 1890 play written by Victorien Sardou. It was the first film to be produced by The Helen Gardner Picture Players.
Helen Louise Gardner was an American stage and film actress, screenwriter, film producer and costume designer. She was the first film actor to form her own production company. Her productions were primarily feature-length films, making her one of the earliest adopters of the feature film. Gardner's work was distinct for frequently centering female characters. Gardner is also considered one of the screen's first vamps.
Harold Marvin Shaw was an American stage performer, film actor, screenwriter, and director during the silent era. A native of Tennessee, he worked in theatrical plays and vaudeville for 16 years before he began acting in motion pictures for Edison Studios in New York City in 1910 and then started regularly directing shorts there two years later. Shaw next served briefly as a director for Independent Moving Pictures (IMP) in New York before moving to England in May 1913 to be "chief producer" for the newly established London Film Company. During World War I, he relocated to South Africa, where in 1916 he directed the film De Voortrekkers in cooperation with African Film Productions, Limited. Shaw also established his own production company while in South Africa, completing there two more releases, The Rose of Rhodesia in 1918 and the comedy Thoroughbreds All in 1919. After directing films once again in England under contract with Stoll Pictures, he finally returned to the United States in 1922 and later directed several screen projects for Metro Pictures in California before his death in Los Angeles in 1926. During his 15-year film career, Shaw worked on more than 125 films either as a director, actor, or screenwriter.
The Gnome Motion Picture Company was a film production company that is credited with three productions between 1910 and 1911. The purpose of the company to was to produce stories about gnomes. Alice in Funnyland, The Birth of the Gnomes and Alice's New Year's Party were all productions that were most likely never released. Announcements in trade publications ceased in January 1911 and the company treasurer, Frederick Kalmbach, was later sued by the City of New York for taxes. Of the three planned productions, two official synopses were released in The Nickelodeon. Despite no evidence of an actual release, the American Film Institute still recognizes all three films as being released in January 1911.
Vanity Fair is a 1915 silent film drama directed by Eugene Nowland and Charles Brabin and starring Mrs. Fiske, a renowned Broadway stage actress. The Edison Company produced and released the film. Mrs. Fiske had starred in the 1899 hit Broadway play Becky Sharp based on William Thackeray's 1848 novel of the same name. Here she recreates the role for Edison's cameras. This film marks Mrs. Fiske's second feature film as she had starred in Tess of the d'Urbervilles for Adolph Zukor in 1913. Despite the popularity of Vanity Fair, Mrs. Fiske never made another motion picture.
Vanity Fair is a 1911 silent film adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray's 1848 novel of the same name. Produced by Vitagraph Studios, it was one of the company's first three-reel productions, along with A Tale of Two Cities (1911).
The Living Doll was a 1908 French short silent Christmas film by Georges Méliès. The film, combining American ideas about Santa Claus with Méliès's fantasy style and a modern touch, followed the adventures of a young girl, Polly, one Christmas night, as she escapes kidnappers, travels to Santa's palace, and—by changing places with a large doll—goes with Santa on a giftgiving journey by airplane.
References
- ↑ "Data From Manufacturers' List of Releases (Vitagraph)". Moving Picture News. IV (52): 49. 30 December 1911.
- ↑ "Comments on the Films (Licensed)". Moving Picture News: 40. 6 January 1912.