Reel Old Movies

Watching old movies is a bit like archaeology: you can study human history via the artifacts, language and sets used at the time. 1923’s “The Ten Commandments” offers a few things to unearth, both on the screen and beneath the sands of a small town in California. 

"The Covered Wagon" is not as well known today as some classic movies, but the silent movie is considered the first big budget epic Western, or as Variety said at its 1923 release: "It is the biggest thing since Griffith made 'The Birth of a Nation.'" The movie was one of the era's top box office hits, premiering in New York on March 16, 1923. Even Warren G. Harding, president at the time, screened it at the White House and sent an endorsement. It was also ground-breaking in the ambitious scale in its production of the tale of the pioneers heading West across the United States in the 1840s.  The plot of "The Covered Wagon" covers ground that will be well-trod in later Westerns: A wagon train sets out in 1848 for Oregon territory and encounters treacherous river crossings, internal power struggles, prairie fires, Indian attacks, an action-packed buffalo hunt, gold fever and more.  J. Warren Kerrigan and Lois Wilson J. Warren Kerrigan plays Will,...

Ten minutes of lost footage is now restored to the Lon Chaney classic silent horror movie, “The Unknown” (1927), and the new print is screening for audiences for the first time in the United States. 

It’s football championship season in the U.S., but classic movie lovers have football films all year long.  In classic movie land, football has been a favorite plot line for decades. Like the sport itself, football movies flourished in the 1920s and 1930s. As this list of football movies from Wikipedia shows , tried-and-true storylines keep getting repeated up to the present day: prison game matchups, nerd-becomes-hero, comeback from injury, the cost of winning and more.  Most lists concentrate on more modern movies, so we’ve rounded up a few pre-1960 football flicks that we’ve enjoyed.  So whether you’re looking for an alternative to the football talk or you just can’t get enough, here are a few choices that are touchdowns for classic movie lovers: The Freshman (1925) One of the biggest hits of comedian Harold Lloyd’s career, “The Freshman” follows Lloyd’s character as he attempts to be popular on a college campus, including participating in a slapstick football game th...

Now available!  "101 Classic Movie Trivia Questions" -- order your ebook or paperback at Amazon  You may love classic movies, but how much do you really know? This collection of 101 trivia questions (and answers!) puts your knowledge to the test.  Who dated who in Old Hollywood? What movies set records at awards shows and at the box office? Who made silver screen history? From Charlie Chaplin to “Citizen Kane,” from sci-fi firsts to iconic final films, from “The Jazz Singer” to “The Quiet Man” – the questions pull from a range of classic movie history, from easy tidbits about the most famous films to more deep dives into hidden gems that only true classic connoisseurs may know.  Generally, the questions span movies and stars from early cinema to the 1960s, with emphasis on the Golden Age of Hollywood (roughly the 1930s and 1940s).  The topics covered include: Historic firsts Award winners Early days of cinema Famous quotes Scandals Romantic entanglements in real...

A hundred years after her first leading role, classic Hollywood actress Anna May Wong will appear on U.S. coins as part of the American Women Quarters program, which celebrates pioneering women in their fields. 

It’s not Joaquin Phoenix’s The Joker. It’s Conrad Veidt’s Gwynplaine from 1928’s “The Man Who Laughs.” 

In honor of 2022’s National Silent Movie Day on September 29, check out these silent film classics that are considered must-see favorites by silent film fans. 

The woman who epitomized the Roaring Twenties, Clara Bow made her big screen debut a hundred years ago in 1922. She quickly shot to fame as a leading lady and sex symbol.  She cemented her popularity with fans in 1927’s “It” (no, not the horror movie). The concept that someone has “it” – that certain something that draws others in – originated with the movie. Bow would popularize the concept in her portrayal of the plucky shop worker and forever be nicknamed “ the It Girl .” Below are a few scenes from the silent movie, which was known for its 1920s creative exclamations in the titles such as “Hot socks!” and “Sweet Santa Claus, give me him!” View this post on Instagram A post shared by ReelOldMovies.com (@reeloldmovies)

NOW AVAILABLE!  Movie Posters from Silent Films: Pictorial highlights from early cinema and the silent movie era