New Year's Eve in the film career of Louise Brooks

December 31st, or New Year's Eve, is a significant date in the career of Louise Brooks, especially in regards to her now lost 1926 film, The American Venus. (Be sure and check out the next blog post for even more images from The American Venus.)

(Left) Fay Lanphier adorns one if the film's original posters. (Right) As does Louise Brooks, though she is not named.

As most fans know, The American Venus is a romantic comedy set against the backdrop of a beauty pageant, namely the actual 1925 Miss America contest in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The 1925 contest was won by Fay Lanphier, the first Miss California to claim the crown. After winning Miss America, Lanphier was selected to appear in The American Venus, part of which were shot at the Atlantic City event. The film is the second in which Louise Brooks appeared, and the first for which she received screen credit.

The film was officially released on January 25, 1926. However, as far as I have been able to determine, The American Venus was publicly shown for the FIRST time almost a month earlier, on December 31, 1925 at the American theater in Oakland, California (Fay Lanphier's hometown) as the centerpiece of a special New Year’s Eve benefit screening.

The secondary headline in the hard-to-read article above notes "American Bills First Eastbay Showing of Picture for New Year's Eve." It is suggested that one of the stars of the film, local celebrity Fay Lanphier, would make a special appearance at the benefit event. However, four days later, the local press announced that Lanphier would not be present, as she had been selected Rose Bowl Queen**, and would instead be taking part in the annual Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, California on New Year's Day. Nevertheless, the screening still took place.

The American Venus proved popular upon release, and continued to be shown around the United States for an unusually long two plus years. Though largely eye-candy, many fans and at least a few critics responded positively to the numerous scantily clad bathing beauties, elaborate tableaux and fashion show, as well as the film’s pioneering use of Technicolor. The critic for the Boston Herald wrote, “The scenes made at Atlantic City and during the prologue are artistically done in Technicolor. Comedy relief in abundance is furnished by a wild automobile chase replete with giggles and thrills. The picture on the whole is entertaining.”

As far as I have been able to determine, one of the very LAST public screenings of The American Venus also took place on New Year's Eve when the Ramona theater in Phoenix, Arizona showed the film on December 31, 1927 at a midnight matinee. This pair of advertisements comes from the Arizona Republic newspaper and is dated Friday, December 30, 1927. Notably, The American Venus wasn't the only Brooks' film showing in town. On New Year's Eve, the Rialto was opening the recently released Now We're in the Air.

As mentioned earlier, The American Venus proved popular, enough so that it continued being shown into the early sound era. The last showings I have been able to find include one in Eau Claire, Wisconsin in March, 1928 and another in Billings, Montana in August, 1928. The "Today" advertisement below comes from Billings.

** To date, Fay Lanphier is the only person to hold both titles -- Miss America and Rose Bowl Queen -- at the same time. (Be sure and check out the next blog post for even more images from The American Venus.)

Louise Brooks to shine in Orinda, California (home of Fay Lanphier)

On March 1st at 1 pm, author Robert Murillo will read from his new Louise Brooks inspired novel, The Vanity, at Orinda Books in Orinda, California. Robert and his novel will be introduced by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society. If you can't make this event and would like a signed copy of Robert's new book (and / or the Louise Brooks edition of The Diary of a Lost Girl, edited by Thomas Gladysz), please contact the store by phone or email to place an order. The event has been getting a good deal of media attention, including this article in the nearby Contra Costa Times.

March 1, 2014 - 1 pm
Orinda Books
276 Village Square
Orinda, Ca 94563
925-254-7606

Believe it or not, but the Northern California community of Orinda has an unusual connection with one of Brooks' films. Orinda was home of Fay Lanphier, who starred in The American Venus (1926), Brooks' second film and the first film for which she received a film credit. (One of the other actors in The American Venus, Lawrence Gray, was born and raised in San Francisco.)

Lanphier was Miss America in 1925, the first Californian to win the honor. (She was also the 1925 Rose Bowl Queen.) As a renowned beauty, she was offered a film contract, and was starred in a major Paramount release, The American Venus, the storyline of which centers on a beauty contest.

According to an Oakland Tribune obituary, Lanphier "won the Miss California crown twice before being judged the most beautiful girl in the nation in Atlantic City, N.J. She was a 19-year-old secretary here when she was judged Miss America. The blond, hazel-eyed girl started her career as Miss Alameda, although she made her home in Oakland. She first won the Miss California title in 1924 and placed third in the national contest at Atlantic City that year. The next year she was chosen Miss California again and won the national contest in a walk-away."

After her controversial win as Miss America, Lanphier became an overnight celebrity, traveling to New York in President Coolidge's special railway car. Motorcycle officers escorted her through Manhattan. She was also toasted at a round of parties by such celebrities as Rudolph Valentino, Mae Murray, and Will Rogers. Lanphier estimated she earned $50,000 on a 16-week personal appearance tour during the year she wore the crown of Miss America. Despite her charms, Lanphier's film career never really took off. She appeared in only one other film, a Laurel and Hardy short called Flying Elephants (1928). She died at the age of 53 in 1959.

Lanphier was married to Sidney M. Spiegel, son of a wealthy Chicago store owner. That marriage ended in divorce after six months. In 1930, she married her former high school sweetheart Winfield J. Daniels, a Berkeley and San Jose book store operator, and settled down to life as a housewife in Orinda.

Both Lanphier and Brooks can be seen in the film clip below.

A movie herald: what it tells us

On eBay, there is an American Venus movie herald for sale. Just about any movie herald from the silent era is uncommon. Some are rare. What makes this particular herald a bit unusual are its hand written annotations. They have a story to tell.

The American Venus was released in early 1926. This herald is dated 1927, apparently by someone who saw the film. That suggests that the two theaters which showed the film in May of that year, one in Petersburg and one in Blissfield (located less than 9 miles apart in Monroe County in Michigan), showed it late in the exhibition life of the film. That was not usual for small towns, which usually but not always got major films later than the bigger cities and towns.

The film’s plot revolved around a beauty contest, and as I have found out, many theaters sponsored their own beauty contests or fashion shows in connection with the showing of the film. Such was the case with the Petersburg and Blissfield Theaters.

Beauty contests, and to a lesser degree this film, helped “define” the notion of beauty. The film’s star, Fay Lanphier, was named Miss America in 1925, and as press coverage at the time indicates, she was considered an ideal beauty. I have found many newspapers advertisements which detailed Lanphier’s physical attributes, including her measurements. She is shown, arms outstretched, in the interior of the herald. Esther Ralston, another renown beauty, is pictured on the cover of the herald.

On the back of the herald is a custom message from the sponsoring theaters which reads “The lady turning in measurements nearest to the AMERICAN VENUS will be given—ten tickets to this theatre. Measurements must be turned in on playing date—at box office.”

What’s interesting are the handwritten notations. They record someone’s measurements in comparison to Lanphier’s. On the back, that same someone recorded their weight throughout the 1930’s. That someone, who weighed 169 pounds in 1939, held onto this herald for more than 12 years. The American Venus made an impression. This battered herald, this scrap of paper, tells their story.

Internationalism, and sex appeal

Just how international was silent film? Here is one small example.

Cuurently for sale on eBay is this postcard which depicts the the American actress Fay Lanphier. She lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, and was the first Miss America from California.

In 1925, she won the Miss America contest held in Atlantic City. To exploit her fame, Lanphier was quickly cast in The American Venus (1926), a Paramount comedy about a beauty pageant in which Louise Brooks also appeared. The film proved popular - due, in part, to the fact that it featured many pretty girls in bathing suits. The film played all over the world.

What's so international about this postcard is the fact that it was manufactured in Germany, for the European market. In Germany, The American Venus was shown as Die Schönste Frau der Staaten. And interestingly, the seller of this postcard lives in Latvia. Silent films certainly did get around.

Here is a rare example of a German advertisement for The American Venus. It depicts Lanphier, and promotes a screening at one of the largest and most prestigious motion picture theatres in Berlin.

Many, if not most, American films played oversees during the silent film-era. Or at least that is the case with the films of Louise Brooks. I have found numerous examples of Brooks' films showing all around the world in the 1920s (on every continent even, except Antartica). However, the American-ness of these film was not always appreciated. In England, for example, The American Venus was shown as The Modern Venus.

This is nifty

For sale on eBay, a large original one sheet post of Fay Lanphier made to promote the 1926 film, The American Venus. That film, of course, was the first in which Louise Brooks had a creditted role. Kinda cool, don't you think?

Flying Elephants

Today, I finally had a chance to see Flying Elephants, a 1928 silent short starring Laurel & Hardy. I'm not a big, big fan of the comedic duo. (My Father was, however. I remember him watching their sound films on numerous occasions, just about whenever they were shown on TV back in the 1960's. Somehow, I simply didn't inherit the gene.) Nevertheless, I found this film quite amusing.

My interest in this particular Laurel & Hardy film lay in the fact that Fay Lanphier has a bit part in it. Though bit part may be putting it generously. Lanphier, of course, was the 1925 Miss America, a San Francisco Bay Area celebrity during the Jazz Age, and the nominal star of the 1926 film, The American Venus. That film, of course, also features Louise Brooks.

I have long been interested in Lanphier, via her connection with Brooks. She's an interesting figure. At the time, much was made of her appearance in The American Venus and of her prospects for a career in the movies. That career, however, never materialized for reasons not readily apparent.

Lanphier's brief appearance in Flying Elephants was her second and last role in the movies. It came two years after her role in The American Venus. Lanphier, an attractive honey blonde, is on screen for no more than a minute or so near the beginning of the film. Lanphier is easily noticed. She is the only blonde in the entire 17 minute short!

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a copy of Flying Elephants available for online viewing. Nevertheless, those interested in Lanphier can catch a glimpse of her in all that remains of The American Venus, a minute long trailer. It can be found on YouTube. Lanpier is the bobbed-hair blonde at the center of a group of women standing on stage. There quickly follows a brief close-up. The trailer is embedded below.

Are there any other Fay Lanphier fans out there? If so, please contact me. I would like to share information. I have a two inch think file folder of material about her.