The King on Main Street | |
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Directed by | Monta Bell |
Written by | Monta Bell (adaptation) Douglas Zoty (scenario) |
Based on |
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Produced by | Adolph Zukor Jesse L. Lasky |
Starring | |
Cinematography | James Wong Howe |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 60 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
The King on Main Street, also known as The King, [3] is a 1925 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Monta Bell and starring Adolphe Menjou and Bessie Love. The film was adapted for the screen by Bell, and was based on the play The King, Leo Ditrichstein's adaptation of the 1908 French play Le Roi by Gaston Arman de Caillavet, Robert de Flers, and Emmanuel Arène. It was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures.
The King on Main Street includes two sequences filmed in early two-strip Technicolor. [4] These sequences, along with a print of the film, still exist. [3] The film is in the public domain and is available on the Internet Archive. [5]
King Serge IV of Molvania (Menjou) comes to Manhattan to conduct business with Arthur Trent (Kilgour), but instead goes to Coney Island, where he meets Gladys Humphreys (Love) and John Rockland (Shaw). John, not knowing the king's royal identity, invites him to his home at Little Falls, New Jersey. The king falls in love with Gladys, but Trent catches them in a compromising situation, and blackmails the king into completing their business deal. The king leaves the United States and Gladys forever. [6] [7] [8] [9]
The film was partially filmed on location in New York, New Jersey, and Coney Island. [2]
Bessie Love's performance of the Charleston in this film popularized the dance within the United States. [10] [11]
The film did well at the box office, particularly in small town America. [2]
Adolphe Jean Menjou was an American actor. His career spanned both silent films and talkies. He appeared in such films as Charlie Chaplin's A Woman of Paris, where he played the lead role; Stanley Kubrick's Paths of Glory with Kirk Douglas; Ernst Lubitsch's The Marriage Circle; The Sheik with Rudolph Valentino; Morocco with Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper; and A Star Is Born with Janet Gaynor and Fredric March, and was nominated for an Academy Award for The Front Page in 1931.
The Lost World is a 1925 American silent fantasy giant monster adventure film directed by Harry O. Hoyt and written by Marion Fairfax, adapted from Arthur Conan Doyle's 1912 novel of the same name.
Gladys Hulette was an American silent film actress from Arcade, New York, United States. Her career began in the early years of silent movies and continued until the mid-1930s. She first performed on stage at the age of three and on screen when she was seven years old. Hulette was also a talented artist. Her mother was an opera star.
A Social Celebrity is a 1926 American silent comedy drama film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and starred Louise Brooks as a small town manicurist who goes to New York City with her boyfriend, a barber who poses as a French count. The film is now considered lost.
Forbidden Paradise is a 1924 American silent drama film, directed by Ernst Lubitsch, produced by Famous Players–Lasky, and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film is based on a 1922 Broadway play, The Czarina, by Edward Sheldon, who adapted the Hungarian-language book by Melchior Lengyel and Lajos Bíró. The play starred Doris Keane, in one of her last stage roles, as Catherine the Great. Basil Rathbone costarred with Keane. The film stars Pola Negri as Catherine the Great and Rod La Rocque in the Rathbone role. Clark Gable makes his second appearance on film.
Broken Barriers is a 1924 American silent drama film starring James Kirkwood, Norma Shearer, and Adolphe Menjou. Directed by Reginald Barker, the film is based upon the novel of the same name by Meredith Nicholson.
Are Parents People? is a 1925 American silent comedy film starring Betty Bronson, Florence Vidor, Adolphe Menjou, George Beranger, and Lawrence Gray. The film was directed by Malcolm St. Clair and released by Paramount Pictures.
Keene Thompson was a story, scenario and screenwriter who worked in the film industry from 1920 to 1937.
Young April is a 1926 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Donald Crisp, and starring Bessie Love, Joseph Schildkraut, and Rudolph Schildkraut. The film was produced by Cecil B. DeMille's production company and distributed by Producers Distributing Corporation. The film was adapted from Egerton Castle's 1899 novel of the same name by Jeanie MacPherson and Douglas Z. Doty. Art direction for the film was done by Anton Grot and its costumes were designed by Adrian.
Torment is a 1924 American silent crime drama film produced and directed by Maurice Tourneur and distributed by Associated First National. This film stars Bessie Love, Owen Moore, and Jean Hersholt. The film is based on a story by William Dudley Pelley with script by Fred Myton and titles by Marion Fairfax. It is a lost film.
The Swan is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Dimitri Buchowetzki and starring Frances Howard, Adolphe Menjou and Ricardo Cortez. It was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures.
New Brooms is a 1925 American silent romantic comedy film, directed by William C. deMille, and starring Bessie Love, Neil Hamilton, and Phyllis Haver. It was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is based on Frank Craven's 1924 Broadway play of the same name.
Tongues of Flame is a 1924 American silent melodrama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed through Paramount Pictures. It is based on a novel by Peter Clark MacFarlane and was directed by Joseph Henabery. The film starred Thomas Meighan and Bessie Love. It was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures.
Irish Luck is a 1925 American silent comedy-drama film directed by Victor Heerman, produced by Famous Players–Lasky, and distributed by Paramount Pictures.
The Ace of Cads is a 1926 American silent romantic drama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Luther Reed and starred Adolphe Menjou and Alice Joyce. The film is an adaptation of a Michael Arlen story of the same name.
Pink Gods is a lost 1922 American silent melodrama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Penrhyn Stanlaws and starred Bebe Daniels and Adolphe Menjou. The source for the film scenario was the short story Pink Gods and Blue Demons by Cynthia Stockley.
Open All Night is a 1924 American silent comedy film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and released by Paramount Pictures. Paul Bern, better known as a writer and later husband of Jean Harlow, directed and Viola Dana, Jetta Goudal, and Raymond Griffith starred. The screenplay is based on Paul Morand's 1922 short story collection Open All Night. Actors Viola Dana and "Lefty" Flynn would soon marry after this film.
Blonde or Brunette is a surviving 1927 silent film comedy directed by Richard Rosson, produced by Famous Players–Lasky and released by Paramount Pictures. It stars Adolphe Menjou, Greta Nissen and Arlette Marchal.
A Kiss in the Dark is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle and written by Townsend Martin based upon a novel by Frederick Lonsdale. The film stars Adolphe Menjou, Aileen Pringle, Lillian Rich, Kenneth MacKenna, Ann Pennington, Kitty Kelly, and Zeppo Marx. The film was released on April 6, 1925, by Paramount Pictures.
His Private Life is a 1928 American synchronized sound comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle and written by Ethel Doherty, George Marion Jr., Keene Thompson, and Ernest Vajda. The film stars Adolphe Menjou, Kathryn Carver, Margaret Livingston, Eugene Pallette, André Cheron, and Sybil Grove.