March 10th, 2018
Famous Players Orchestra Presents:
The Goose Woman
(1925)
Starring: Louise Dresser
Louise Dresser and Jack Pickford in “The Goose Woman” (1925)
“The Goose Woman” (1925) Silent drama-suspense
Directed by Clarence Brown
Production: Universal Pictures Corporation
Producer: Carl Laemmle
Based on a short story by Rex Beach.
Starring: Louise Dresser (Marie de Nardi/Mary Holmes), Jack Pickford (Gerald Holmes), Constance Bennett (Hazel Woods), Spottiswoode Aitken (Jacob Riggs), Gustav von Seyffertitz (Thomas Vogel), George Nichols (Detective Lopez), Marc McDermott (Amos Ethridge), George Cooper (Reporter).
Louise Dresser gives an outstanding performance as the once world-famous opera soprano, Marie de Nardi, now living on a dirty, extremely rundown goose farm under the name Mary Holmes.
Slovenly, bitter, and drunken, she pours over old scrapbooks and photos of herself during her triumphant years, while listening to an old recording of her voice. Having given up her career for motherhood, she is resentful and full of hatred towards her only son, Gerald (Jack Pickford).
When a murder is committed near her house, she invents a story in order to get herself back in front of the public again. However, the story she comes up with results in her son being arrested for the murder. The Goose Woman became one of Universal’s “Jewels,” a prestige production with a better than average script, an excellent cast and production values, and an up-and-coming director.
The March 10, 2018 showing is accompanied by a period orchestral score performed live by The Famous Players Orchestra. Stan Taffel will be your host.
Showtime is 7:00 p.m. The venue is Christ Lutheran Church, 2400 West Burbank Blvd. Burbank, CA 91506.
ADVANCE TICKETS AVAILABLE FEB. 1, 2018
Thank you to everyone for attending our past shows and for your continued support. It is greatly appreciated!
ABOUT FAMOUS PLAYERS ORCHESTRA
In the final decades of the silent film era (1910 -1929), a new and original art form was burgeoning. During this period, a vast and beautiful repertoire of film music was being created by gifted composers who saw a great future in the new medium.
Movie theaters of the day commonly utilized orchestras to provide film accompaniment for their premium showings. These theaters typically housed massive libraries of this music, (known at the time as “photoplay” music) for use as film accompaniment. However, the advent of “talkies” in 1929, preceded by the Movietone and Vitaphone systems, would eventually bring the demise of live film accompaniment. Thus, as movie theaters converted over to sound, these music libraries became obsolete almost overnight and most of the music was discarded in the process. And since photoplay music was rarely recorded, and the composers mostly unknown, this important chapter in cinema history was swept away into obscurity and has remained practically forgotten.
Famous Players Orchestra is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose charitable mission is dedicated to reviving and preserving this charming and long forgotten music through live performances and new recording projects. For its repertoire, Famous Players Orchestra draws upon the original orchestrations used by silent era movie theater orchestras in its live presentations and recordings. The ensemble is comprised of professional musicians based in the Los Angeles area.
Your support is appreciated! Your generous contributions help us to continue our work in reviving and preserving this musical treasure from cinema’s past. Donations are easily accepted using paypal. Thank you!
Visit the FAMOUS PLAYERS ORCHESTRA Website
Enjoy a hand-cranked “moving picture show” with live piano music, just like the itinerant shows popular during the era of silent cinema, here on the grass at Two-Strike Park in La Crescenta, California.
Enjoy a hand-cranked “moving picture show” with live piano music, just like the itinerant shows popular during the era of silent cinema, here on the grass at Two-Strike Park in La Crescenta, California.