Nanook of the North is a 1922 American silent film that combines elements of documentary and docudrama/docufiction, at a time when the concept of separating films into documentary and drama did not yet exist. In the tradition of what would later be called salvage ethnography, the film follows the struggles of the Inuk man named Nanook and his family in the Canadian Arctic. It is written and directed by Robert J. Flaherty, who also served as cinematographer, editor, and producer.
The General is a 1926 American silent film released by United Artists. It was inspired by the Great Locomotive Chase, a true story of an event that occurred during the American Civil War. The story was adapted from the 1889 memoir The Great Locomotive Chase by William Pittenger. The film stars Buster Keaton, who also co-directed it along with Clyde Bruckman.
The following is an overview of the events of 1894 in film, including a list of films released and notable births.
Stephen Flaherty is an American composer of musical theatre and film. He works most often in collaboration with the lyricist/book writer Lynn Ahrens. They are best known for writing the Broadway musicals Ragtime, which was nominated for thirteen Tony Awards, two Grammy Awards, and won the Tony for Best Original Score; Once on This Island, which won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical, the Olivier Award for London's Best Musical, and was nominated for a Grammy Award and eight Tony Awards; and Seussical, which was nominated for the Grammy Award. Flaherty was also nominated for two Academy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for his songs and song score for the animated film musical Anastasia.
Lynn Ahrens is an American writer and lyricist for the musical theatre, television and film. She has collaborated with Stephen Flaherty for many years. She won the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award for the Broadway musical Ragtime. Together with Flaherty, she has written many musicals, including Lucky Stiff, My Favorite Year, Ragtime, Seussical, A Man of No Importance, Dessa Rose, The Glorious Ones, Rocky, Little Dancer and, recently on Broadway, Anastasia and Once on This Island.
Roland Young was an English-born actor. He began his acting career on the London stage, but later found success in America and received an Academy Award nomination for his role in the film Topper (1937).
Edison Studios was an American film production organization, owned by companies controlled by inventor and entrepreneur, Thomas Edison. The studio made close to 1,200 films, as part of the Edison Manufacturing Company (1894–1911) and then Thomas A. Edison, Inc. (1911–1918), until the studio's closing in 1918. Of that number, 54 were feature length, and the remainder were shorts. All of the company's films have fallen into the public domain because they were released before 1928.
Elephant Boy is a 1937 British adventure film starring Indian-born actor Sabu in his film debut. Documentary filmmaker Robert J. Flaherty, who produced some of the Indian footage, and supervising director Zoltan Korda, who completed the film, won the Best Director Award at the Venice Film Festival. The film was made at the London Films studios at Denham, and in Mysore, India, and is based on the story "Toomai of the Elephants" from Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book (1894).
Herbert Banemann Rawlinson was an English-born stage, film, radio, and television actor. A leading man during Hollywood's silent film era, Rawlinson transitioned to character roles after the advent of sound films.
The Secret Man is a 1917 American silent Western film, directed by John Ford and featuring Harry Carey. Two of the five reels of the film survive at the Library of Congress film archive.
Little Caesar is a 1931 American pre-Code crime film distributed by Warner Brothers, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, and starring Edward G. Robinson, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Glenda Farrell. The film tells the story of a hoodlum who ascends the ranks of organized crime until he reaches its upper echelons.
Annabelle Frances Wallis is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Jane Seymour in Showtime's period drama The Tudors (2009–2010), Grace Burgess in the BBC drama Peaky Blinders (2013–2019), Mia Form in the supernatural horror film Annabelle (2014), Jenny Halsey in the supernatural adventure film The Mummy (2017), Rebecca Crosby in Tag (2018), Sandra in Silent Night (2021) and Madison Mitchell in the horror film Malignant (2021).
His House in Order is a 1920 American silent drama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Hugh Ford and starred Elsie Ferguson. It is based on a 1906 West End play by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero which also played in New York where it starred John Drew and Margaret Illington. The story was filmed again in the United Kingdom in 1928 and also titled House in Order.
The serpentine dance is a form of dance that was popular throughout the United States and Europe in the 1890s, becoming a staple of stage shows and early film.
Annabelle Serpentine Dance is a short silent American film produced and distributed by Edison Manufacturing Company in 1895. It is one of several released by the studio in the late 19th century. Each short film depicts the popular serpentine dance performed by Annabelle Moore. Many of the prints were distributed in color, which was hand-tinted.
Annabelle Moore, also known as Peerless Annabelle, was an American dancer and actress who appeared in numerous early silent films. She was the original Gibson Girl in the 1907 Ziegfeld Follies.
Good Gracious, Annabelle is a lost 1919 American silent society comedy film starring Billie Burke. It is based on the 1916 Broadway play, Good Gracious, Annabelle by Clare Kummer. This film was produced by Famous Players–Lasky with distribution by Paramount Pictures.
Hearts of the West is a 1921 American silent Western film directed and coproduced by Ward Lascelle, written by Arthur Henry Gooden and starring Lester Cuneo and real life wife Francelia Billington. Cuneo also coproduced with Lascelle.
Silent Night is a 2021 British apocalyptic black comedy film written and directed by Camille Griffin. The film stars Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Roman Griffin Davis, Annabelle Wallis, Lily-Rose Depp, Sope Dirisu, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Lucy Punch, Rufus Jones and Davida McKenzie.
