#Douglas Fairbanks

[classicfilmblr]

DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS in THE BLACK PIRATE — 1926, dir. Albert Parker The most celebrated sequence of the film, and perhaps of Fairbanks's entire career, is the moment in which the Black Pirate, when capturing a galleon single-handedly, slashes a line with his knife, catches the end of the mizzen, and swings upward with the wayward sail to the main topsail. He then plunges his knife in to the canvas of the topsail and slides down the sail, supported by the hilt of his knife as it severs the canvas in half. He rends the mainsail in the same manner. The feat is so spectacular that Fairbanks repeats it once more with the fore topsail, rendering the ship powerless. The Black Pirate swings through the lines to the forecastle, swivels about a pair of cannons he has commandeered, and holds the crew as helpless as the galleon itself.

The sliding down the sails is a grand stunt, building on Robin Hood's celebrated descent down the enormous drapery in Robin Hood [1922]. The 43-year-old showman is in top physical form, and the appearance of effortlessness, the breathtaking arcs of movements, and the sheer joy with which he accomplishes the impossible are ample demonstrations of Fairbanks's kinetic genius.

The sequence was achieved with separate sail sets engineered by Robert Fairbanks on the back lot, apart from various ship settings, and erected on an angle away from the cameras (which were also on an angle). The sails, according to Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., were "pre-sliced and then stitched up invisibly. . . .The knife was rigged with piano wire, pulley, and counterweight. . . .He would thrust his knife into the sail and there would be a quick cut. The next cut would be of him holding the special knife connected to the hidden pulley and counterweight."

Airplane propellers behind the canvas provided the billowing effect for the sails. As with all of his stunts, Fairbanks wore a wire harness, and his arms and legs were taped to prevent friction burns. Although no one doubted at the time that he performed the stunt, William K. Everson later maintained that Fairbanks did not do so himself. But the accounts of Albert Parker, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., and Chuck Lewis and the surviving outtakes from the scene itself dispel any claim that Fairbanks did not perform his most famous feat. Fairbanks's bravura stunt was subsequently pirated by a stunt double for Errol Flynn in Against All Flags (1952) and by Orlando Bloom in Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest (2006).

One of the immediate effects of the famous sequence was all the injuries sustained by impressionable children imitating their screen idol. Edward Wagenknecht wrote, "One shudders to think how many broken arms and legs he must have been responsible for among the children of America during the years of his vogue." Robert Parrish, a future director and film editor, was one such child. He recalled having seen The Black Pirate in his hometown of Columbus, Georgia, and immediately wanting to emulate the spectacular Fairbanks stunt:

"As a seven-year-old, I had seen Douglas Fairbanks in The Black Pirate plunge a knife into the sail and riding the knife down to the deck. I tried the knife stunt myself that afternoon with a borrowed linen bed sheet. Some friends and I attached it to the limb of an oak tree about ten feet off the ground. I climbed the tree with a butcher's knife in my mouth trying to smile like Fairbanks—I soon tasted blood in my mouth—and pointed the knife at the sheet and jumped. The sheet crashed down upon me like a deflated parachute and the knife flew out of my hand. I landed on the ground with a broken arm, the wind knocked out of me, and blood running from my Fairbanks grin."

[alovelywaytospendanevening]

Pickfair was a sprawling estate in Beverly Hills, California purchased and further renovated in 1919 by silent film actress Mary Pickford and her husband Douglas Fairbanks, the "Queen and King of Hollywood." The 25-room mansion was named by combining parts of their last names ("Pick" + "fair").

Pickfair was considered one of the most celebrated private homes of America, and became a famous symbol of Hollywood glamour and excess in the 1920s/30s. It hosted iconic parties with famous guests like Charlie Chaplin, Albert Einstein, Amelia Earhart, Helen Keller, F. Scott Fitzgerald and presidents Coolidge and Roosevelt. Life magazine described it as “a gathering place only slightly less important than the White House… and much more fun.”

After divorcing Douglas Fairbanks in 1936, Mary Pickford married actor Charles "Buddy" Rogers and continued living in Pickfair until her death, in 1979. A new owner, actress Pia Zadora, eventually demolished the mansion in 1990, despite some outcry. Zadora later claimed the place was haunted: “You can deal with termites, and you can deal with plumbing issues, but you can’t deal with the supernatural.”

A new mansion stands on the site bearing no resemblance to the original Pickfair.

[citizenscreen]

Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks hang the entrance signs for their Pickford-Fairbanks Studios near the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Formosa Avenue in West Hollywood. (Circa 1922)

[medievalandfantasymelee]

THE HOT MEDIEVAL & FANTASY MEN MELEE

QUALIFYING ROUND: 104th Tilt

Robin Hood, Robin Hood (1922) VS. Haldir, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Propaganda

Robin Hood, Robin Hood (1922) Portrayed by: Douglas Fairbanks

No Text Propaganda Submitted

Haldir, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003) Portrayed by: Craig Parker

“Long is the crush I have harboured for Haldir. My man. My dude. Literally as close to "just a guy" as any elf has ever gotten and I love that for him. He doesn't make the rules, he just follows them. He's reliable, solid, good humoured. He's one of the few elves in the movies who achieves the true elf vibe of the books, and I know this because I feel a sense of comfort and happiness any time he's on screen. The kind of guy you want to sit and have a draught with in companionable silence (unless maybe he breaks out into a three hour song, which is also fine and excellent). The way he looks down at you. But also the way he looks up at you. Grade A Husband Material; he deserved so much.”

Additional Propaganda Under the Cut

Additional Propaganda

For Robin Hood:

For Haldir:

[vintage-every-day]

Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and Charlie Chaplin in 1918.

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks arrive at Grand Central Terminal, November 1, 1931.

Photo: Edwin Dowling for the NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

[chaplinlegend]

Charlie Chaplin, John Barrymore and Douglas Fairbanks goofing around on the set of "Beau Brummel", 1924.

John Barrymore admired Charlie Chaplin and considered him a great artist. On June 21, 1925, he told the Times magazine: “The genius of Chaplin is like an iceberg—you only see what’s above water, but you sense the depths. Humor above the water, tragedy below.”

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Douglas Fairbanks Sr. (The Thief of Baghdad, Robin Hood)—no propaganda submitted

Sessue Hayakawa (His Birthright, Bridge on the River Kwai)—One of Hollywood's earliest sex symbols, notable for being a Asian man presented as an object of desire

This is round 1 of the bracket. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage man.

[propaganda photos submitted under the cut]

Submitted: One of the First Hollywood Hearthrobs Was A Smoldering Japanese Actor. What Happened?

[sockhop-softie]

Charlie Chaplin with Douglas Fairbanks and Jack Dempsey

[chaplinfortheages]

Pictured left to right - Franklin D. Roosevelt future 32nd President of the United States (1933-1945), kneeling Marie Dressler, Charlie Chaplin, behind him Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and her mother Charlotte Pickford, Washington D.C., April 6th 1918.

[citizenscreen]

A popular trio in the 1920s, Douglas Fairbanks, Jackie Coogan, and Rudolph Valentino.

[medievalandfantasymelee]

Good people of Tumblr,

As the Master of Revels it's my duty to determine what characters qualify for our tournament and which do not. However, it's just come to my attention while looking through the propaganda for Wolf [Scott Cohen, The 10th Kingdom] that The 10th Kingdom may not be an admissible property.

During the submission period we determined that characters from Once Upon a Time were not admissible, as the aesthetic of the fairytale realm in that show was not consistently medieval enough for Tournament standards, and now looking at screen caps I'm seeing that the same would seem to hold true for 10th Kingdom.

The Master of Revels recognizes that this was a severe oversight on her part and is grieved to announce that Wolf [Scott Cohen, 10th Kingdom] has been removed from the tournament and will be added to the Near Misses Pile. We humbly apologize for our oversight.

This leaves an opening (hopefully the last time this will be the case) that needs filling.

Over the past weeks, we have had inquiries from the electorate regarding Douglas Fairbanks as Robin Hood, Rutger Hauer as Martin in Flesh + Blood, and Joe Armstrong as Henry "Hotspur" Percy in The Hollow Crown - None of whom were submitted. As there has been stated interest in these Hot Medieval Men, we have determined that one of them shall be brought in to fill our empty slot in the Lists. We leave it to you, Fine People of Tumblr, to select our new contender.

This is a ONE DAY poll.

[thursdaymurderbub]

Silver Screen magazine, March 1939

[vintage-every-day]

Douglas Fairbanks, movie star, speaking in front of the Sub-Treasury building, New York City, to aid the third Liberty Loan.

[davidhudson]

Mary Pickford, April 8, 1892 - May 29, 1979.

With Douglas Fairbanks and Ernst Lubitsch on the set of Rosita (1923).