Rare Louise Brooks Film Emerges Anew
Beggars of Life featured in new book and DVD.
San Francisco, CA, August 23, 2017 --(PR.com)-- Beggars of Life is a film whose time has come. Just as a digital restoration of the film is being released for the first time on DVD / Blu-ray (Kino Lorber), this classic silent movie is the subject of a groundbreaking new book, Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film (PandorasBox Press).
Writer Thomas Gladysz, longtime champion of the film, authored the book and also contributes an audio commentary to the new DVD.
Based on the bestselling memoir by the celebrated “hobo author” Jim Tully, Beggars of Life was directed by multiple Academy Award winner William Wellman the year after he directed Wings (the first film to win the Oscar for Best Picture). It is a rough and tumble story about an orphan girl (screen legend Louise Brooks) who kills her abusive step-father and flees the law, dressing as a boy and riding the rails through a hobo underground ruled over by Oklahoma Red (future Oscar winner Wallace Beery).
Though widely acclaimed when first released, the film fell between the cracks of movie history and was considered lost for decades. Only recently, since the George Eastman Museum digitally restored its sole surviving copy, has the film returned to general circulation and broad acclaim.
Screenings of the film are scheduled for New York City, Cambridge, Mass., Cleveland, Ohio, Madison, Wisconsin, Helsinki, Finland and elsewhere.
About Thomas Gladysz: Film historian Thomas Gladysz is the Director of the Louise Brooks Society (www.pandorasbox.com), which he founded in 1995. He has authored numerous articles on the actress, and in 2010, edited the “Louise Brooks edition” of The Diary of a Lost Girl, the book that was the basis for the 1929 movie. Gladysz has lectured and organized exhibits on the actress at the San Francisco Public Library, and introduced her films at venues around the world. Earlier this year, he assisted with the restoration of the once lost Brooks’ film, Now We’re in the Air, which had its world premiere at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival and will soon be shown at the Pordenone Silent Film Festival in Italy.
Media queries for the book: contact Thomas Gladysz at LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com
Praise for Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film
"I can say (with head bowed modestly) that I know more about the career of director William A. Wellman than pretty much anybody anywhere -- always excepting my friend and co-author John Gallagher -- but there are things in Thomas Gladysz's new book on Wellman's Beggars of Life that I didn't know. More important, the writing is so good and the research so deep that even when I was reading about facts that were familiar to me, I was enjoying myself hugely." — Frank Thompson, co-author of Nothing Sacred: The Cinema of William Wellman
"Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film is a quick, satisfying read, illustrated with promotional material, posters and stills as well as press clippings. In these pages, Gladysz takes us through the making and the reception of the film and clears up a few mysteries too.... Beggars of Life is a fascinating movie, made by some of the silent film industry's most colourful characters. This highly readable book will deepen your enjoyment and understanding of a silent Hollywood classic." — Pamela Hutchinson, Silent London
"I cannot help but give this an enthusiastic two thumbs up. It really is the perfect companion, before or after you have seen the film. The volume might be slim, but, it is packed with information and rare photographs. It has been impeccably researched and beautifully executed.... This is a thorough examination of the film from start to finish and written in a breezy style that is not only informative, it is a very entertaining read." — Donna Hill, Strictly Vintage Hollywood
"Read your book. I love it. It is thorough and extremely interesting. The art work is compelling." — William Wellman, Jr., author of Wild Bill Wellman
Praise for Thomas Gladysz & the Louise Brooks Society
“The Louise Brooks Society (www.pandorasbox.com) is an excellent homage to the art of the silent film as well as one of its most luminous stars.” — New York Times
“Thomas Gladysz has assembled a formidable amount of material on the actress and her era; there’s not only a lot to read and enjoy, but there’s a gift shop and even a ‘Radio Lulu’ function that allows you to listen to music of the 1920s. Wow!” — Leonard Maltin
“My favorite Louise Brooks site belongs to the Louise Brooks Society, a devoted group of fans that even keeps a blog. There, you can find just about everything about the actress: articles, filmography, photos, links and more.” — USA Today
“Pandora’s Box, which lends its name to www.pandorasbox.com, [is] dedicated to her remarkable life.” — The Times of London
“The Louise Brooks Society has an exhaustive web site about this fascinating siren.” — Melbourne Age
“An exemplary website.” — Wired
Writer Thomas Gladysz, longtime champion of the film, authored the book and also contributes an audio commentary to the new DVD.
Based on the bestselling memoir by the celebrated “hobo author” Jim Tully, Beggars of Life was directed by multiple Academy Award winner William Wellman the year after he directed Wings (the first film to win the Oscar for Best Picture). It is a rough and tumble story about an orphan girl (screen legend Louise Brooks) who kills her abusive step-father and flees the law, dressing as a boy and riding the rails through a hobo underground ruled over by Oklahoma Red (future Oscar winner Wallace Beery).
Though widely acclaimed when first released, the film fell between the cracks of movie history and was considered lost for decades. Only recently, since the George Eastman Museum digitally restored its sole surviving copy, has the film returned to general circulation and broad acclaim.
Screenings of the film are scheduled for New York City, Cambridge, Mass., Cleveland, Ohio, Madison, Wisconsin, Helsinki, Finland and elsewhere.
About Thomas Gladysz: Film historian Thomas Gladysz is the Director of the Louise Brooks Society (www.pandorasbox.com), which he founded in 1995. He has authored numerous articles on the actress, and in 2010, edited the “Louise Brooks edition” of The Diary of a Lost Girl, the book that was the basis for the 1929 movie. Gladysz has lectured and organized exhibits on the actress at the San Francisco Public Library, and introduced her films at venues around the world. Earlier this year, he assisted with the restoration of the once lost Brooks’ film, Now We’re in the Air, which had its world premiere at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival and will soon be shown at the Pordenone Silent Film Festival in Italy.
Media queries for the book: contact Thomas Gladysz at LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com
Praise for Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film
"I can say (with head bowed modestly) that I know more about the career of director William A. Wellman than pretty much anybody anywhere -- always excepting my friend and co-author John Gallagher -- but there are things in Thomas Gladysz's new book on Wellman's Beggars of Life that I didn't know. More important, the writing is so good and the research so deep that even when I was reading about facts that were familiar to me, I was enjoying myself hugely." — Frank Thompson, co-author of Nothing Sacred: The Cinema of William Wellman
"Beggars of Life: A Companion to the 1928 Film is a quick, satisfying read, illustrated with promotional material, posters and stills as well as press clippings. In these pages, Gladysz takes us through the making and the reception of the film and clears up a few mysteries too.... Beggars of Life is a fascinating movie, made by some of the silent film industry's most colourful characters. This highly readable book will deepen your enjoyment and understanding of a silent Hollywood classic." — Pamela Hutchinson, Silent London
"I cannot help but give this an enthusiastic two thumbs up. It really is the perfect companion, before or after you have seen the film. The volume might be slim, but, it is packed with information and rare photographs. It has been impeccably researched and beautifully executed.... This is a thorough examination of the film from start to finish and written in a breezy style that is not only informative, it is a very entertaining read." — Donna Hill, Strictly Vintage Hollywood
"Read your book. I love it. It is thorough and extremely interesting. The art work is compelling." — William Wellman, Jr., author of Wild Bill Wellman
Praise for Thomas Gladysz & the Louise Brooks Society
“The Louise Brooks Society (www.pandorasbox.com) is an excellent homage to the art of the silent film as well as one of its most luminous stars.” — New York Times
“Thomas Gladysz has assembled a formidable amount of material on the actress and her era; there’s not only a lot to read and enjoy, but there’s a gift shop and even a ‘Radio Lulu’ function that allows you to listen to music of the 1920s. Wow!” — Leonard Maltin
“My favorite Louise Brooks site belongs to the Louise Brooks Society, a devoted group of fans that even keeps a blog. There, you can find just about everything about the actress: articles, filmography, photos, links and more.” — USA Today
“Pandora’s Box, which lends its name to www.pandorasbox.com, [is] dedicated to her remarkable life.” — The Times of London
“The Louise Brooks Society has an exhaustive web site about this fascinating siren.” — Melbourne Age
“An exemplary website.” — Wired
Contact
Louise Brooks Society
Thomas Gladysz
415-712-6474
www.pandorasbox.com
LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com
Thomas Gladysz
415-712-6474
www.pandorasbox.com
LouiseBrooksSociety@gmail.com
Contact
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