Herbert Brenon was an Irish-born U.S. film director, actor and screenwriter during the era of silent films through 1940.
Neptune's Daughter is a 1914 American silent fantasy film featuring the first collaboration between actress Annette Kellerman and director Herbert Brenon. It was based on Kellerman's idea of "a water fantasy movie with beautiful mermaids in King Neptune's garden together with a good love story." It was filmed by Universal in Bermuda during January and February, cost approximately $50,000, and grossed one million dollars at the box office.
Sin is a 1915 American silent drama film written and directed by Herbert Brenon and starring Theda Bara. It was produced by Fox Film Corporation and shot at the Fox Studio in Fort Lee, New Jersey. The film is now considered to be lost.
The Fall of the Romanoffs is a 1917 silent American historical drama film directed by Herbert Brenon. It was released only seven months after the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II in February 1917. This film is notable for starring Rasputin's rival, the monk Iliodor, as himself. Costars Nance O'Neil and Alfred Hickman were married from 1916 to Hickman's death in 1931. The film was shot in North Bergen, New Jersey, nearby Fort Lee, New Jersey, where many early film studios in America's first motion picture industry were based at the beginning of the 20th century.
Florence Reed was an American stage and film actress. She is remembered for several outstanding stage productions, including The Shanghai Gesture, The Lullaby, The Yellow Ticket and The Wanderer. Her best remembered movie role was as Miss Havisham in the 1934 production of Great Expectations. In this version, however, Miss Havisham was changed from a completely insane woman to an eccentric, who did not wear her wedding veil constantly, and who dies peacefully rather than as a result of suffering burns in a fire. In the 1950s, Reed performed in several early television shows, such as The Philco Television Playhouse, Kraft Television Theatre and The United States Steel Hour. She is a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame.
The Side Show of Life is a 1924 American silent drama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky, directed by Herbert Brenon and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film is based on the 1920 novel The Mountebank by William J. Locke, which had been turned into a play by Ernest Denny.
The Alaskan is a 1924 American silent adventure drama film based on a novel by James Oliver Curwood set in northwoods country, as his novels tend to be, in this case Alaska. The film was produced and released by Paramount Pictures and directed by Herbert Brenon. The picture stars Thomas Meighan, Estelle Taylor and an early role by Anna May Wong.
To-Day is a 1917 silent film drama directed by Ralph Ince, who is also credited as the film's writer, and starring Florence Reed. A story about prostitution, this film is based on a 1913 stage play Today by George Broadhurst and Abraham S. Schomer and starred Emily Stevens which ran for an astounding 280 performances in eight months time. Actors Gus Weinburg and Alice Gale are the only actors in the film that appeared in the play. It is considered to be a lost film.
The Dancing Girl is a lost 1915 silent film drama produced by the Famous Players Film Company and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is based on the 1891 Broadway play of the same name by Henry Arthur Jones. The film was directed by Allan Dwan and starred stage actress Florence Reed in her film debut. Reed's husband, Malcolm Williams, also appears in the film.
The Song and Dance Man is a 1926 American silent comedy drama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and released through Paramount Pictures. It is based on a play by George M. Cohan and was directed by Herbert Brenon. A copy of the film is housed in the Library of Congress collection. Of its original seven reels, only the final five survive.
The Eternal Mother is a lost 1920 American silent melodrama film directed by Will S. Davis and starring stage veteran Florence Reed.
The Heart of Maryland is a lost 1915 silent film drama directed by Herbert Brenon based on David Belasco's play The Heart of Maryland. Mrs. Leslie Carter, who starred in the original play on Broadway in 1895, appeared in the film as the title character.
Beau Revel is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by John Griffith Wray and written by Luther Reed and Louis Joseph Vance. The film stars Lewis Stone, Florence Vidor, Lloyd Hughes, Kathleen Kirkham, Dick Ryan, and Harland Tucker. The film was released on March 20, 1921, by Paramount Pictures.
The Popular Sin is a 1926 American silent comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair, written by Monta Bell and James Ashmore Creelman, and starring Florence Vidor, Clive Brook, Greta Nissen, Philip Strange, George Beranger, and Iris Gray. It was released on November 22, 1926, by Paramount Pictures.
Honeymoon Hate is a lost 1927 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Luther Reed and written by Doris Anderson, Ethel Doherty, Herman J. Mankiewicz, George Marion Jr., and A.M. Williamson. The film stars Florence Vidor, Tullio Carminati, William Austin, Corliss Palmer, Shirley Dorman, and Effie Ellsler. The film was released on December 3, 1927, by Paramount Pictures.
The Lone Wolf is a 1917 American silent drama film based on the 1914 novel The Lone Wolf by Louis Joseph Vance. Starring Bert Lytell and Hazel Dawn, it was adapted for the screen by George Edwardes-Hall and produced and directed by Herbert Brenon. No prints of the film are known to survive, so it is currently classified as lost.
Her Code of Honor is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by John M. Stahl and starring Florence Reed. Its alternate title was The Call of the Heart. A print of it is held by the British Film Institute's National Film and Television Archive in London.
New York is a 1916 American silent comedy-drama film directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Florence Reed. It was adapted by Ouida Bergère from a 1910 William J. Hurlbut play of the same title. The film was distributed by the Pathé Exchange company.
The World at Her Feet is a 1927 American silent film comedy directed by Luther Reed and starring Florence Vidor. It was produced by the Paramount Lasky Corporation.
James C. McKay (1894–1971) was an American film director and editor. His directorial debut was the 1916 Fox Film release The Ruling Passion shot in Jamaica under the supervision of Herbert Brenon. He directed several silent films for Tiffany Pictures in the mid-1920s. He was hired by MGM to shoot Tarzan Escapes in 1935, but the studio was dissatisfied with his efforts and he was replaced by Richard Thorpe.
