Reel Old Movies

Now available — "Marie Dressler — The Life Story of an Ugly Duckling: A reissue of the comedian's 1924 autobiography" — order your paperback copy at Amazon Written at a turning point in her career, Marie Dressler’s autobiography offers an inside look at a woman navigating life and work that resonates today. Her life is one of constant evolution, reinvention, acceptance, hard work – and, of course, laughs.

Good art can be appreciate long after its creation, and movies are no exception. The year 1924 was a banner year for movie-making, and a century of time doesn't diminish some of the entertainment on screen.  Take a look at a few 1924 silent movies across different genres from 100 years ago:

Calling all classic movie fans! Check out these book bargains this week during Amazon's Prime Day sale in October.  From Old Hollywood trivia to a beginner's guide for newbies, and from Harold Lloyd to "It's a Wonderful Life," Reel Old Movies has discounted our books -- starting at $5 -- this week.  Here's a quick round-up of books on sale from Reel Old Movies: Beginner's Guide to Classic Movies Katharine Hepburn vs. Audrey Hepburn. “Gilda,” “Laura” or “Harold and Maude”? John Wayne, John Ford and John Gilbert. Tens of thousands of movies and hundreds of stars over several decades can be daunting. Where to even start? This guide of 50 movies is a way to jumpstart your classic movie appreciation by providing a broad cross-section of films from a variety of movie genres, directors and stars. You’ll get a solid foundation of Old Hollywood, but even better – you’ll start to discover for yourself which styles and stars you like and pursue more of those movies....

New book available: "An American Comedy — Harold Lloyd's Autobiography: A reissue of the original 1928 edition" — order your paperback copy at Amazon Perhaps no other comedian has ever been so of his time as Harold Lloyd.  The silent comedy star of such hits as “Safety Last!” “Why Worry?” “Grandma’s Boy” and “The Freshman” both reflected the 1920s youthful and optimistic spirit of the era as well as drove part of that pop culture himself. Harold Lloyd's gumption-filled loveable bespeckled everyman character (sometimes called “The Glasses” character, “The Boy” or simply “Harold”) starred in a string of box office hit feature-length films known for their daredevil stunts as well as the comedy.  More: Watch the full movie (free!) of 1923's classic "Safety Last!" The 1928 autobiography “An American Comedy” traces Harold Lloyd’s early childhood through his stardom and is an interesting snapshot of Lloyd's career and Hollywood in the historic time. By 19...

"The Crowd" is a 1928 silent movie nominated for the very first best picture Academy Award as "Unique and Artistic Achievement" and is considered today one of the best silent films in history. "The Crowd" was directed by King Vidor and stars James Murray, Eleanor Boardman and Bert Roach. IMDB plot summary: The life of a man and woman together in a large, impersonal metropolis through their hopes, struggles, and downfalls. Watch the full silent movie "The Crowd" (for free!) now at Youtube *** Follow @ReelOldMovies for the latest classic movie news. On: Instagram  |  Mastodon  |  YouTube  |  Google News x

On this date in Hollywood history -- November edition: Lon Chaney stars as a tough Marine sergeant, birthdays for Joel McCrea and Mabel Normand, "The Big Parade" premieres and more ... 

No trick, all treats: Horror movies lurk in every corner of classic film. This Halloween, go beyond the usual suspects and sample of few of these frightfully fun movies from the silent era that may not be as well known. 

In honor of 2023’s National Silent Movie Day on September 29, check out these silent film classics that are considered must-see favorites by silent film fans. 

Now available! "Visual History of Silent Movies: A reissue of the 1927 pictorial survey 'Masters and Masterpieces of the Screen'"  — order your paperback at Amazon 

Today, audiences are going to the movies to watch Alexander Molony and Jude Law in the 2023 "Peter Pan and Wendy"  released this week, but almost 100 years ago, audiences were flocking to the theaters to see the first big screen appearance of "Peter Pan." 

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. 

Gloria Swanson, one of Hollywood's most popular and bankable stars of the early Golden Age of movies, talks to TV journalist Mike Wallace in 1957 about why she is not making films, sex appeal, Hollywood in the 1920s, marriage, plastic surgery and more.

"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. 

Watch an edited down chariot race scene of the 1925 movie blockbuster “Ben-Hur” with overlay of modern cinematic action music (Adobe free music).  The 1925 silent movie blockbuster "Ben-Hur" catapulted Ramon Novarro to stardom. 

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...

Movie lovers know that old movies are priceless: the memories, the enjoyment, the emotion. But what to get that classic movie lover as a holiday gift that they don’t already have – and that isn’t a copy of a movie they already own? 

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.” 

Audiences went on "A Trip to the Moon" with Georges Méliès 120 years ago, and the world of cinema was forever changed.