Mary Elizabeth Braddon was an English popular novelist of the Victorian era. She is best known for her 1862 sensation novel Lady Audley's Secret, which has also been dramatised and filmed several times.
Lady Audley's Secret is a sensation novel by Mary Elizabeth Braddon published in 1862. It was Braddon's most successful and well-known novel. Critic John Sutherland (1989) described the work as "the most sensationally successful of all the sensation novels". The plot centres on "accidental bigamy" which was in literary fashion in the early 1860s. The plot was summarised by literary critic Elaine Showalter (1982): "Braddon's bigamous heroine deserts her child, pushes husband number one down a well, thinks about poisoning husband number two and sets fire to a hotel in which her other male acquaintances are residing". Elements of the novel mirror themes of the real-life Constance Kent case of June 1860 which gripped the nation for years. Braddon's second 'bigamy' novel, Aurora Floyd, appeared in 1863. Braddon set the story in Ingatestone Hall, Essex, inspired by a visit there. There have been three silent film adaptations, one UK television version in 2000, and three minor stage adaptations.
Theda Bara was an American silent film and stage actress. Bara was one of the more popular actresses of the silent era and one of cinema's early sex symbols. Her femme fatale roles earned her the nickname "The Vamp", later fueling the rising popularity in "vamp" roles based in exoticism and sexual domination.
"Kathleen Mavourneen" is a song written in 1837, composed by Frederick Crouch with lyrics by a Mrs. Crawford. Crawford's name is variously cited as Annie, Julia, Louise Macartney, Louise Matilda Jane, or Marion; Crouch is also sometimes incorrectly cited as the author of the song's lyrics. It was popular during the American Civil War. "Mavourneen" is a term of endearment derived from the Irish Gaelic mo mhuirnín, meaning "my beloved".
A Fool There Was is an American silent drama film produced by William Fox, directed by Frank Powell, and starring Theda Bara. Released in 1915, the film was long considered controversial for such risqué intertitle cards as "Kiss me, my fool!"
45 Minutes From Hollywood is a 1926 American two-reel silent comedy film directed by Fred Guiol and released by Pathé Exchange. The film's runtime is 15 minutes.
Under Two Flags is a 1936 American adventure romance film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Ronald Colman, Claudette Colbert, Victor McLaglen, and Rosalind Russell. The picture was based on the 1867 novel of the same name by the writer Ouida. The film was widely popular with audiences of its time. The supporting cast features Nigel Bruce, John Carradine, and Fritz Leiber.
The Kreutzer Sonata is a lost 1915 American silent romantic drama film directed by Herbert Brenon and costarring Nance O'Neil, Theda Bara, and William E. Shay. The film was based on the 1902 play of the same name by Jacob Gordin, which was based on Leo Tolstoy's 1889 novella. Produced by Fox Film Corporation, it was shot at the company's studio in Fort Lee, New Jersey.
The Devil's Daughter is a lost 1915 American silent drama film directed by Frank Powell and starring Theda Bara. Based on the 1899 play La Gioconda by Italian writer Gabriele D'Annunzio, this updated adaptation portrayed the story of vengeful woman—a "vamp"—who uses her beauty and sensuality to lure a young man to ruin, destroying both his marriage and his career as an artist. The film was produced by Fox Film Corporation and shot at the company's studio in Fort Lee, New Jersey and on location in St. Augustine, Florida.
East Lynne is a 1916 American silent drama film directed by Bertram Bracken, starring Theda Bara. Produced by Fox Film Corporation, it is an adaptation of the 1861 novel East Lynne by English author Mrs. Henry Wood. It was shot in Fort Lee, New Jersey. A 16mm print of the film was discovered in 1971 and purchased from Fox by the Museum of Modern Art where it is currently preserved. It is one of the few extant films of Theda Bara.
Her Double Life is a 1916 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. It is based on the Mary Murillo's story The New Magdalen, who also wrote the scenario. The film is now considered lost.
Romeo and Juliet is a 1916 American silent romantic drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. The film was based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and was produced by the Fox Film Corporation. The film was shot at the Fox Studio in Fort Lee, New Jersey, and is now considered to be lost.
Her Greatest Love is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards, starring Theda Bara, and based on the 1880 novel Moths by Ouida. This film is now considered to be lost.
Lady Audley's Secret is a 1920 British silent drama film directed by Jack Denton and starring Margaret Bannerman, Manning Haynes and Betty Farquhar. It was an adaptation of the 1862 novel Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon.
A Woman There Was is a 1919 American silent South Seas drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. The film is based on the short story "Creation's Tears", by George James Hopkins. Bara portrays Zara, the daughter of a South Seas island tribal chief, who falls in love with a missionary and is killed after helping him escape.
When Men Desire is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. It is presumed to be a lost film.
Kathleen Mavourneen is a lost 1919 American silent drama film directed by Charles J. Brabin and starring his wife Theda Bara. It was produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. A much filmed story based on the poem, Kathleen Mavourneen, by Annie Crawford and play by Dion Boucicault.
La Belle Russe is a 1919 American silent romantic drama film directed by Charles Brabin and starring Theda Bara, Warburton Gamble, Marian Stewart, Robert Lee Keeling, William B. Davidson, and Alice Wilson. It is based on the 1882 play of the same name by David Belasco, which was previously adapted for the screen in 1914. The film was released by Fox Film Corporation on September 21, 1919.
Clifford Bruce (1885–1919) was a Canadian film actor of the silent era.
When Rome Ruled is a 1914 American silent historical drama film directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Nell Craig, Clifford Bruce and Riley Hatch. It was made at the American subsidiary of the French company Pathé, shortly to be relaunched as Pathé Exchange, at studios in Fort Lee, New Jersey. It was an attempt to imitate the classical epics of Italian cinema, but made on a much lower budget. It marked the directorial debut of Fitzmaurice who emerged as a leading filmmaker during the 1920s.
