Lost Films

[manicsounds]

It was previously only seen as a 5-minute fragment, but "The Grim Game" starring Harry Houdini has been found and has been restored for screenings

[goalieboy82]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtDnqcs786Q" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[dadaistnun]

Lewis Milestone's Seven Sinners found in Queensland.

That link may or may not work -- here's the text:

A SILENT film star who died young of alcoholism, a dashing leading man who starred with Marlene Dietrich, a millionaire backer and a director who went on to win two Academy Awards. These are the secrets of the film Seven Sinners, which was thought by Hollywood to be lost.

Until now. The silent film was recently discovered in Queensland by two film enthusiasts, and it has now been returned to Hollywood — which is thrilled with the rare find.

Made in 1925, the crime caper is the much-sought-after first feature by acclaimed director Lewis Milestone, who was awarded an Oscar for All Quiet on the Western Front. It was produced by multimillionaire businessman, producer, director and aviator Howard Hughes.

Joel Archer, 27, from Brisbane, who runs Golden Oldies, a service that screens old movies for seniors, discovered the film in the collection of silent film lover Ron West, former owner of the Majestic Theatre in Pomona on the Sunshine Coast.

“The reason it’s so exciting is Milestone went on to become a very well-known Hollywood director,” Archer said.

“The majority of his films have survived, but his first film never has, so we’ve got the only access in the world to that film.”
While they may be generations apart, Arch and West share a love of old films.

At first the pair thought they had a different film on their hands until Archer was able to send footage to Warner Brothers in the US, which confirmed it was the long-lost film by Milestone. The film reels originally came from a cinema that had closed down in Melbourne.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was shocked to learn of the film’s existence said Archer.

“They said there was a strong desire to preserve it ASAP,” Archer said.

Warner Brothers and the academy will be doing a full restoration of the film, which will be released to DVD and premiered at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival next year. Archer and West, who together received $5000, have been invited to attend.
A story about multiple crooks who try to rob the same upmarket house in Long Island, New York, Seven Sinners starred suave British actor Clive Brook, a big name in his day, who went on to make Shanghai Express with Marlene Dietrich. Opposite him was leading lady Marie Prevost, known for her comic timing but who died of acute alcoholism alone in her apartment in Los Angeles at the age of 38, accompanied by her dog.

Director Milestone went on to have an incredible career. The Russian-born US director also won an Oscar for Two Arabian Knights (1927) and directed The Front Page (1930), Of Mice and Men (1939), Ocean’s 11 (1960) and Mutiny on the Bounty (1962).

[MaryGH]

Is this thread still active?

I am new here and came across this thread in Google search while seeking out any found "lost films" of silent film actor Tom Tyler. The only addition I have to my collection is "Texas Tornado" but have any others been found that are not yet transferred to DVD and put on the market?

[Saturnome]

Anybody can recommend me some good books on lost films? I don't mind if the book is a bit out of date, and anything that doesn't focus only on hollywood cinema is very much welcome.

[Michael Kerpan]

Marie Prevost did not "die of alcoholism" -- her problems were more complex. One might equally say she starved herself to death. She was not a stat whose career was snuffed out by the shift to talkies, but rather by the increased emphasis on the slenderness of leading ladies. Poor Marie became too plump, grew depressed, and drank and engaged in crash dieting....

[Saimo]

I have just found a 16mm print of Michal Waszynski's FIAMME SUL MARE (1947), a film believed to be lost.

[FrauBlucher]

A noir that's been out of circulation, has been found and restored....Woman on the Run

[david hare]

Even based on the crummy bootleg around now, it's a neat little picture!

I never knew Ruth Roman had it in her (she also gets a good workout in Vidor's amazing Lightning Strikes Twice. Very good quality WAC, recommended.)

[domino harvey]

Black Angel, which George Lucas commissioned to play before the Empire Strikes Back in the UK before it subsequently disappeared for thirty years, has resurfaced for free on YouTube with an introduction by the director

[L.A.]

Long thought lost, The Eyes of the Totem (W.S. Van Dyke, 1927) has been found at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

[Ashirg]

Second reel of Laurel and Hardy’s The Battle of the Century recovered

[captveg]

Second reel of Laurel and Hardy’s The Battle of the Century recovered

Those Mostly Lost screenings are an awesome project. I had never heard of it before.

[Ashirg]

The Wedding on the Volga (1929) found (5 out of 6 reels, no sound)

[captveg]

From the latest update of the Pioneers of African America Cinema release:

"Thanks to S. Torriano Berry and the Library of Congress, we have reconstructed James and Eloyce Gist's religious parable HEAVEN-BOUND TRAVELER, which was not known to exist."

"Thanks to a tip from series co-curator Jacqueline Stewart, we managed to unearth Spencer Williams's 1931 short film HOT BISKITS. It was previously believed that Williams's first directorial effort was 1941's THE BLOOD OF JESUS, but this shows he was active a full decade earlier."

[ianthemovie]

Is this thread still active?

I am new here and came across this thread in Google search while seeking out any found "lost films" of silent film actor Tom Tyler. The only addition I have to my collection is "Texas Tornado" but have any others been found that are not yet transferred to DVD and put on the market?

A cursory search on YouTube brings up a number of results for Tom Tyler. If you're looking for DVDs, you might also check iOffer (http://www.ioffer.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;). Many sellers there specialize in titles that are out of print or never officially made the transition from VHS.

[L.A.]

A short film called "Pictureland (1911)" starring Mary Pickford has been found.

[FrauBlucher]

This is pretty remarkable. A large find of silent films.

[kidc85]

The previously lost silent, DAUGHTER OF DAWN, made with an all-Native American cast and 2013 inductee into the NFR, has just been made available for streaming on Netflix in the US and UK ahead of Milestone's home video release sometime in the next few months.

It's a really interesting story - especially the manner in which it was 'found', which just seems utterly bizarre.

[Stefan Andersson]

Clip from the restored Battle of the Century now online.

Go here and scroll down: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oc ... -and-hardy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Clip includes two title cards describing brief footage still missing.

[Jonathan S]

Clip from the restored Battle of the Century now online.

Go here and scroll down: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oc ... -and-hardy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Clip includes two title cards describing brief footage still missing.

Nothing new in that YT clip (uploaded in 2010), I'm afraid - it's the old Youngson-edited version (as incorporated in the partial restoration already on DVD).

[L.A.]

Long-lost 47 Ronin film starring legendary kabuki actor Matsunosuke found in Kyoto

[L.A.]

Lost Disney film found in the BFI National Archive

[Saturnome]

Seems like quite a few Oswald cartoons have been found since Disney bought back the character.

[mfunk9786]

The Internet's Obsessive Hunt for a Bootleg SpongeBob Movie That May Have Never Existed

Despite it being perhaps the worst "lost film" anyone's ever hunted for, this is an incredibly entertaining read and seems like it could very easily become something to be sucked into for a while if benign but truly perplexing mysteries are your thing.