FYI - an interesting collection of silent films at www.thanhouser.org "Thanhouser Company Film Preservation, Inc.announced today that all 56 of the Thanhouser silent films currently distributed on DVD are now available for online viewing at no charge. The films are available for immediate viewing on the Thanhouser website www.thanhouser.org. The 56 films were produced by the Thanhouser film enterprise based in New Rochelle, New York between 1910 and 1917. This collection provides a representative cross section of the company’s output during this important era in early film development. “This goldmine of rarely-before-seen films adds immeasurably to our understanding of the development of American silent cinema. Online access makes these delightful films available to researchers, film historians, media studies teachers and movie lovers everywhere,” said Kathryn Fuller-Seeley, Professor of Film Studies at Georgia State University. The films were assembled over the past 25 years with the cooperation of archives around the world, including The Library of Congress in Washington, DC, The British Film Institute in London, England, George Eastman House in Rochester, New York, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, New York, the Academy Film Archive in Los Angeles, California, the EYE Film Institute Netherlands in Amsterdam, Holland, and from the Thanhouser collection. “Making these films accessible for online viewing is intended to expand viewership and academic study of this pioneering studio,” said Ned Thanhouser, grandson of Thanhouser Company founders Edwin and Gertrude Thanhouser. Each film includes a summary and analysis written by film historian Victor Graf. Andrew Crow, Raymond A. Brubacher and Ben Model composed and performed original musical accompaniment commissioned exclusively for this collection. Titles in the collection include: The Actor’s Children (1910): The first Thanhouser film released on March 15, 1910. The Winter’s Tale (1910): The first of six Shakespeare plays brought to the screen by the Thanhouser Company. Cinderella (1911): An elaborately produced version of the well known George O. Nichols fairy tale. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1912): One of the first film versions of the classic Robert Lewis Stevenson novel. The Cry of the Children (1912): A critical pre-World War I film on child labor reform. Petticoat Camp (1912): An early "women's lib" social commentary with a comedy twist. The Evidence of the Film (1913): A crime tale with film making as a subject. A Dog’s Love (1914): A fantasy about the love between a child and her dog. Their One Love (1915): A Civil War drama with spectacular night battle sequences. Madam Blanche, Beauty Doctor (1915): A gender-bender comedy with satirical social observations. The Vagabonds (1915): Flashbacks of a penniless, friendless tramp and his dog of his downfall due to drink. The World and the Woman (1916): Jeanne Eagel's film debut as a prostitute turned faith healer in this five reel feature. The Woman in White (1917): One of Thanhouser’s last films, this five reel feature is based on Wilkie Collins popular 1859 novel. DVD versions of all 56 films are also available for purchase along with the companion CD-ROM Thanhouser Films: An Encyclopedia and History by noted historian Q. David Bowers. Each three-disc DVD set is priced at $24.95 and the CD-ROM at $39.95, plus shipping and handling. Available for immediate worldwide shipment, the DVDs and CD-ROM can be ordered directly from Thanhouser Company Film Preservation, Inc. at 8770 NW Kearney Street, Portland, OR 97229 or online from www.thanhouser.org with PayPal, Visa or Master Card. Thanhouser Company Film Preservation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established for the research, preservation and publication of educational materials related to early silent era, with a specific focus on Thanhouser."
