Advanced search

Isadora Duncan was an American dancer and innovative educator known for interdisciplinary and cross-cultural projects, and a hectic marriage to the famous Russian poet Sergei Esenin.

She was born Isador 'Dora' Angela Duncan on May 26, 1877, in San Francisco, California. Her father, Joseph Duncan, was a cultured man, a poet and an art connoisseur, who worked for the Bank of California. Her mother, an amateur pianist, after divorcing her father, lived a high-principled Victorian lady's life with four children an very little money. Young Isadora was raised in Oakland, California. She was obsessed with dancing from an early age. Although she was not exposed to rigorous classical ballet practice, she achieved recognition in San-Francisco. There, she started teaching a dance class for children when she was just 14 years old.

She began her professional career in Chicago in 1896, under producer and playwright Augustin Daly. He cast Duncan as Titania in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', and she traveled with his company to Europe. Back in the USA, Duncan performed solo dances at the homes of wealthy patrons. She called her program The Dance and Philosophy and performed it to the waltzes of Johann Strauss. In 1899, she left America with her mother and siblings to settle in London. There she met Mrs. Patrick Campbell, the idol of the London stage, who introduced Duncan to London society.

From 1899-1907, Duncan lived in London, Paris and Berlin. She began using the music of Frédéric Chopin and Ludwig van Beethoven for her dance. In 1903 she moved to Berlin. There Duncan was introduced to the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. She formulated her own philosophy of The Dance of the Future modeled after the ancient Greeks: natural and free. Duncan called for abolition of ballet. She accused ballet of "deforming the beautiful woman's body" and depriving it of human naturalness. "The Dance of the Future will have to become again a high religious art as it was with the Greeks. For art which is not religious is not art, it is mere merchandise" - stated Duncan. Her school of dance in a suburb of Berlin was the start of her famous dance group, later known as the Isadorables.

Duncan made several tours of Russia and met with directors Konstantin Stanislavski and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko at the Moscow Art Theatre. In St. Petersburg, she also attracted the attention of Anna Pavlova and Tamara Karsavina among other leading ballerinas of the Mariinsky Ballet. Having established good connections with Russian intellectuals, she Returning to the US, her performances were poorly received by critics, who bashed Duncan for her "physical interpretation" of music on stage. She left America in 1909, after less than a year, and never lived there again, returning only for tours.

From 1909 to 1913, Duncan lived in Palais Biron in Paris, where her neighbors were artist Henri Matisse, writer Jean Cocteau, and sculptor Auguste Rodin. Eventually she established three schools in France, Germany, and Russia, and gained tremendous popularity across Europe. Her personal life was marked with as much freedom as was her dancing. Duncan had a child by designer Gordon Craig, and another child by Paris Singer, the heir to the sewing machine fortune. Her both children drowned in an accident on the Seine River in 1913. By that time, she was an acclaimed performer in Europe. She danced to the Ninth Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven. Her face was carved in the bas-relief by sculptor Antoine Bourdelle in the Theatre des Champs-Elysees, and was painted in the murals by artist Maurice Denis.

After the Russian Revolution of 1917, Duncan moved to Moscow. There she married the popular poet Sergei Esenin who was 17 years her younger. This was her one and only official marriage. She took Esenin on tour to the US in 1922-1923. At that time her appearances were marked by baring her breasts on stage and shouting, "This is red! So am I!" The following year, Esenin left Duncan and returned to Moscow, where he suffered a mental breakdown and sought psychiatric help. Meanwhile, her apprentice, Irma Duncan, remained in the Soviet Union and ran the Duncan Dancing School there. At that time, Duncan evolved as a follower of Friedrich Nietzsche and remained anti-religious for the rest of her life.

Duncan's ex-husband Esenin was found dead in a hotel in St. Petersburg, on December 28, 1925. His mysterious death was never completely explained. Isadora Duncan died on September 14, 1927, in Nice, France. She was killed by her long neck scarf caught in the wheel of an open automobile in which she was a passenger. She was pulled from the car and dragged before the driver could stop. Duncan was cremated and her ashes were laid in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, France.

Her highly popular Russian school was closed in 1939, under the dictatorship of Joseph Stalin, and many of her Russian partners were repressed and exiled.

Isadora Duncan was portrayed by Vanessa Redgrave in the 1968 film Isadora (1968).

A native of Paris, France, a poet, journalist and novelist, Gaston Leroux is known for his many creative horror stories, including "Rouilable", "The Haunted Chair" and "The Wax Mask", but is probably best known for his work "The Phantom of the Opera", which became Leroux's prize possession. He wrote the novel in 1908 about a disfigured man who dresses in masks and capes and terrorizes the Paris Opera House while falling in love with the leading lady. "The Phantom of the Opera" was based much upon Leroux's own experiences. During his early years as a journalist in the late 1800s, Leroux spent time going the Paris Opera House and watching performances, and was influenced by Charles Gounod's opera "Faust", about a man who sells his soul to the devil. On one occasion, the chandelier which featured in the opera fell into the audience by accident. Combining the singers, Faust and the chandelier together, Leroux created "The Phantom of the Opera".

In 1923, Carl Laemmle, head of the new Universal Pictures in Hollywood, produced a film of the novel, The Phantom of the Opera (1925), with Lon Chaney in the lead. Leroux was impressed by this, but two years later he died. Since that time, "The Phantom of the Opera" has become so popular it has inspired five feature remakes, one in 1943 Phantom of the Opera (1943)), another in 1962 (The Phantom of the Opera (1962) and again in 1989 (The Phantom of the Opera (1989)). A television version was also made (The Phantom of the Opera (1983)) and then a remake made in 1999 (The Phantom of the Opera (1998)). The most recent remake is Joel Schumacher's The Phantom of the Opera (2004), produced and cast by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum and Patrick Wilson, three quite unknown actors, rather than Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman, the original actors of the Broadway show. The novel was also made into a major London and Broadway stage musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Gaston Leroux will forever be remembered for "The Phantom of the Opera".

Lizzie Borden has mystified and fascinated crime buffs for over a century. Few cases in American history have attracted as much attention as the hatchet murders and the unlikely defendant: a church-going, respectable "spinster" daughter charged with parricide, a crime worthy of Classical Greek tragedy. On August 4, 1892, a heavy, hot summer day in Massachusetts, a maid discovered the bodies of Andrew Borden, 70, a wealthy developer, and his second wife Abby, a short obese woman of 64. Mr. Borden's face had been struck 11 times while he slept on the couch; Mrs. Borden had been struck 19 times from the back. A broken hatchet was found in the basement. The day after the Bordens' funeral, a neighbor observed Lizzie burning a stained dress in the kitchen stove. The neighbor's testimony prompted Lizzie to be charged with the murders. The chaotic and stumbling murder investigation against Lizzie was circumstantial, without incriminating physical evidence or clear motive. After a trial in June 1893 and one hour of jury deliberations, Lizzie was found not guilty on all charges. Lizzie and her sister Emma moved into a 13-room stone Victorian house named Maplecroft. In 1904, she met actress Nance O'Neil, and the two became inseparable, prompting rumors of a romantic relationship. Lizzie died at age 67, after a long illness. Emma coincidentally died nine days later, after a fall down the stairs of her house. They were buried together in the family plot, along with their mother, stepmother, and father. Despite popular belief of Lizzie's guilt, it remains technically an unsolved crime.

Gregory Kelly was born on 16 March 1891 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Show-Off (1926) and Manhattan (1924). He was married to Ruth Gordon. He died on 9 July 1927 in New York City, New York, USA.

Rudolf Dworsky was born in 1882 in Germany. He was a producer and director, known for Ein rheinisches Mädchen beim rheinischen Wein (1927), Die geschiedene Frau (1926) and Familie Schimeck - Wiener Herzen (1926). He died on 6 July 1927 in Perleberg, Brandenburg, Germany.

Ryûnosuke Akutagawa was born on 1 March 1892 in Tokyo, Japan. He was a writer, known for Rashomon (1950), Stalker (1979) and Iron Maze (1991). He was married to Tsukamoto Fumi. He died on 24 July 1927 in Tokyo, Japan.

George Nichols was born on 28 October 1864 in Rockford, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and director, known for The Flirt (1922), The Midnight Express (1924) and Jess (1912). He was married to Viola Alberti. He died on 20 September 1927 in Hollywood, California, USA.

Married to actresses Dorcas Matthews and Ottie Ardine, George got his start at 14 years of age, as a singing and dancing waiter in Chicago. McKim began a long career on the stage with the Alcazar stock company in San Francisco. In vaudeville, he teamed for many years with Johnny Cantwell. He later worked for Triangle and the Ince Company and was one of the founders of the National Vaudeville Artists. McKim is best remembered as the rival of Douglas Fairbanks in "The Mark of Zorro" (1920). McKim was stricken with a cerebral hemorrhage while on stage in Salt Lake City and brought back to Hollywood where he passed away, leaving his wife, actress Dorcas, and two small children.

James Oliver Curwood was born on 12 June 1878 in Owosso, Michigan, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Code of the Mounted (1935), Back to God's Country (1919) and Valley of Terror (1937). He was married to Ethel Greenwood and Cora Leon Johnson. He died on 13 August 1927 in Owosso, Michigan, USA.

Arnold Daly was born on 4 October 1875 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for My Own United States (1918), The Exploits of Elaine (1914) and The New Exploits of Elaine (1915). He was married to Mary Blythe (remarried) and Mary Blythe (actress). He died on 13 January 1927 in New York City, New York, USA.

Cora Williams was born on 6 December 1870 in Chelsea, Massachusetts, USA. She was an actress, known for The Great Mail Robbery (1927), Temptations of a Shop Girl (1927) and His Parisian Wife (1919). She was married to A.H. Busby and Leon Williams Schnitzer. She died on 1 December 1927 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

His film resume belies the fact that he was the most important man in motion pictures at the time of his death. Born as Max Loew in New York City to a poverty-stricken Viennese waiter, his life could've easily gone the the way of many boys of the east side slums, except that he was hyper-enterprising. He was also extremely superstitious: he never walked under ladders, distrusted nearly every doctor he met and refused to sign anything on a Friday (a habit that was often mistaken for something semitic; he was Jewish but decidedly non-practicing). Loew left school at nine and never looked back. Loew sold newspapers and lemons on the street, worked like a dog in an industrial printing plant, and began and failed at several business ventures - a print shop, furniture store and a fur factory - going bankrupt before he was 20. It's a testimonial to his personality and self-assurance that he picked himself up from these early failures and persevered. A second stab at the fur business brought him in contact with Adolph Zukor who became a friend and partner. Loew bought into a Zukor's penny arcade business and set about expanding it around the country. While opening up a new arcade in Cincinnati he was told of a competitor who was scoring bigger money with motion pictures than his mechanical machines. Loew struck up a deal with the Vitagraph Company for the necessary equipment and films, borrowed chairs and based on nickel admissions, grossed almost $250 the first day. Back in New York, Loew bought a Brooklyn burlesque house and converted it into the Royal, a first class house mixing the vaudeville bill with movies. The success of the Royal convinced him to convert his penny arcades into movie houses. Loew struck up a fateful business deal with brothers Joseph M. Schenck and Nicholas Schenck in 1906 when the group formed the Fort George Amusement Company and began a Paradise Park concession stand. Over the next decade Loew worked a slow (being a relative term in the business), methodical plan for theatrical dominance. By Armistice Day he owned 112 theaters that continued to offer a mix of vaudeville and movies. Joe Schenck ventured away from the company to become a movie producer.

By 1920 Loew was the dominant movie theater owner in New York and had recently expanded into Canada. With this expansion he faced increasing problems obtaining a reliable supply of quality films, especially problematic since audiences were pushing vaudeville acts off his stages. On January 3, 1920 he paid $3.1 million for Metro Pictures, a Hollywood studio with a lot of potential but suffering from poor management and a middling track record of success. Marcus Loew understood the value of his theatrical empire but felt that movie production was too huge a gamble to personally manage. At heart he was a New Yorker and felt comfortable handling the finances, not the mechanics of grinding out pictures in far-away Hollywood. It was at this juncture that Louis B. Mayer enters the story - Louis B. Mayer Productions was a far smaller shaker in town, but had three key assets: a successful track record of producing profitable melodramas that played well in the sticks, wunderkind producer Irving Thalberg - recently hired away from Universal and who rapidly proved his worth as a producer all consumed with movie production, and L.B. himself - admittedly a great macro manager, who shared Loew's rise from nothing life story. Oddly, Loew was only impressed with two of these factors; he didn't want Thalberg! He caved after Mayer insisted that any merger include his key producer (one of the wisest manoeuvrings L.B. would ever make). Loew's Metro company was then courting a third studio, troubled Goldwyn Productions (see Samuel Goldwyn). Loew was attracted to its state-of-the art studio and 40-acre lot, an asset that he understood. Unfortunately, the Goldwyn company was hemorrhaging red ink due to an out-of-control production in Italy, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925), and was, closer to home, immersed in Erich von Stroheim's costly exercise in artistic overindulgence, Greed (1924), which only further demonstrated the need for competent management. Louis B. Mayer Productions was, despite its relatively insignificant size, the key to the merger. The parties worked out a percentage agreement and Loew merging a third troubled company into the fold, Goldwyn Pictures, which he had purchased for $4.3 million. The conglomerate bought Louis B. Mayer Productions for a mere $76,500 which tells something of the state of L.B.'s hard assets at the time of the merger. Metro-Goldwyn Pictures was formed on May 16, 1924 and dominated by Mayer's management team with Thalberg quickly rallying the best writers, directors, actors and technicians amongst the 3 former concerns. Mayer himself was named vice president and general manager of the new company at $1,500 a week, but that was dwarfed by a profit participation deal that included Thalberg (adding to his $650 a week salary) and key secretary Robert Rubin. These three men would split 20% of the company's profits, an incredibly rich benefits package as it turned out). Marcus Loew had chosen his personnel well, leaving him exactly in the position he wanted to be, writing checks from his 46 acre Long Island mansion and long weekly constructive arguments with Mayer on the phone. Under Mayer and Thalberg, the combination of these 3 shaky production companies and a huge injection of cash from Loew's Inc. created the premier studio in Hollywood. It's first official Metro-Goldwyn release, He Who Gets Slapped (1924), starring Lon Chaney was a hit. The company's name soon reflected Mayer's presence (the MGM moniker first seen in Buster Keaton's Go West (1925)) and for the next three decades MGM stood apart from every other operation in Hollywood, or the world for that matter. Unfortunately the early balanced managerial dynamic of Loew, Mayer and Thalberg ended forever when Marcus Loew died on September 5, 1927 at only age 57, leaving a $30 million estate (including 400,000 shares of Loew's Inc. stock) to his wife Caroline and sons. The title as the most powerful man in the film industry was assumed by Nicholas Schenck and MGM, for better or worse, would never be the same.

Earle Williams was born on 28 February 1880 in Sacramento, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Scarlet Runner (1916), Arsene Lupin (1917) and The Wolf (1919). He was married to Florine Walz. He died on 25 April 1927 in Hollywood, California, USA.

Garry McGarry was born on 17 October 1889 in Franklin, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for The Scarlet Runner (1916), The Plaything of Broadway (1921) and A Prince in a Pawnshop (1916). He died on 15 November 1927 in New York City, New York, USA.

Sam Warner could rightly be called "The Father of Talking Pictures". Of the four Warner brothers, Sam was the most in favor of using synchronized sound with movies. He was the driving force behind the studio's partnership with Western Electric to create Vitaphone. At first, he only wanted to use Vitaphone to provide music and sound effects. (This was intended as a cost-saving device, allowing local theaters to dismiss their house musicians.) When Don Juan (1926) -- the first Vitaphone feature -- debuted, it was not nearly as well received as two of the Vitaphone shorts that immediately preceded it. One was of MPPDA president Will Hays giving a short introductory speech, the other was of an opera tenor singing a selection from "Il Pagliacci." Realizing that people wanted to hear movie actors' voices, Sam pushed his brothers to the next level: talkies. The result was The Jazz Singer (1927). Originally, Al Jolson was only supposed to sing. There was to be no dialogue. Jolson insisted on ad-libbing between songs. Sam convinced his brothers to include the ad-libbed scenes and, in fact, it is those few talking scenes that made the movie the sensation it was. Ironically, Sam never saw the revolution he started. He died the day before The Jazz Singer (1927) had its world debut in New York City.

Rube Miller was born on 22 May 1886 in Trottwood, Ohio, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Shy Thirty Cents (1916), Someone in the House (1920) and Whitewashing William (1915). He died on 1 April 1927 in Mexico City, Mexico.

Borisav Stankovic was born on 22 March 1876 in Vranje, Serbia. He was a writer, known for Sofka (1948), Ciganka (1953) and Whirlpool of Passion (1996). He was married to Angelina Milutinovic. He died on 22 October 1927 in Belgrade, Serbia, Yugoslavia.

Theodore Westman Jr. was born on 5 June 1903 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Flapper (1920), Get-Rich-Quick Wallingford (1921) and Romeo's Dad (1919). He died on 20 November 1927 in New York City, New York, USA.

Oscar Stribolt was born on 12 February 1873 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was an actor and director, known for En tro og villig Pige (1917), Det spøger i Villaen (1918) and Et nydeligt Trekløver (1918). He died on 27 May 1927 in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Ray Raymond starred in musicals in the 20's and did some early films. He was mostly known for musical comedy, touring the country. Ray Raymond died following a fist fight with another actor, Paul Kelly. The two men fought over Ray's wife, Dorothy Mackaye. Dorothy was convicted of concealing evidence and served 10 months; Paul Kelly was found guilty of manslaughter and served 2 years.

Julia Hurley was born in 1848 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Il trovatore (1914), The Jungle (1914) and Little Women (1918). She died on 4 June 1927 in New York City, New York, USA.

Diana Miller was born Ruth Diana Moreland on March 18, 1902 in Seattle, Washington. Her parents divorced and she was raised by her mother Ella Moreland. When she was a teenager Diana moved to Los Angeles and became friends with actor Wallace Reid. He helped her get a job at the the Famous Players-Laskey studio. After working as an extra for five years the studio fired her. She was signed by Fox in 1924 and cast in the drama Honor Among Men. Diana quickly became one of the busiest actresses in Hollywood. In 1925 she appeared in nine films including The Hunted Woman, The Kiss Barrier, and The Fighting Heart with George O'Brien. The beautiful redhead was known for playing "heavy" roles and vamps.

She bought a charming home with large windows that looked out over Los Angeles. On November 26, 1925 Diana married director George Melford, who was twenty-five years older than her. Soon after she decided to quit acting and become a housewife. Her final film was the 1926 western The Cowboy and The Countess. Sadly in the Spring of 1927 she was diagnosed with tuberculosis. She spent more than six months in the Pottenger Sanitarium in Monrovia, California. Tragically on December 18, 1927 she died from a pulmonary hemorrhage caused by the tuberculosis. Diana was only twenty-five years old. She was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.

Kay Laurel was born Ruth M. Leslie on June 28, 1890 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Sadly her father George died when she was eight. She briefly worked as a telephone operator. Then she moved to New York City and became an artist's model. Kay started dating George Messinger, a merchant from San Francisco. When he broke up with her in 1913 she sued him for $25,000 for breach of promise. Florenz Ziegfeld discovered her in 1914 and offered her a role in the Ziegfeld Follies. The shapely brunette caused a sensation when she appeared as a semi-nude Aphrodite in the opening of the show. Kay quickly became famous for her perfect figure and her willingness to be nude on stage. Florenz Ziegfeld said she was "the embodiment of feminine beauty." At the height of her popularity she was earning $500 a week. She married producer Winfield Sheehan in 1916 and retired from the stage. They had a very rocky relationship and legally separated in 1918.

That Spring she returned to the Ziegfeld Follies. Kay made her film debut in the 1919 drama The Brand. Then she appeared in the films The Valley Of The Giants and Lonely Heart. Unfortunately she wasn't offered any other film roles. Kay starred in the Broadway shows Quarantine and Nocturne. She also performed vaudeville. In 1925 she moved to Europe and acted with a French stock company. She fell in love with Joseph Whiteside Boyle, a businessman, and moved to London, England. The couple wanted to get married but she was still legally married to Winifred Sheehan. She became pregnant in the Spring of 1926. Tragically on January 31, 1927 she died shortly after giving birth. When she was told it was a boy she spoke her last words "That is just what I wanted." Kay was only thirty-six years old. Her body was cremated in London. The press falsely reported that she had died from pneumonia. She left her entire $100,000 estate to her fiance who raised their son Joseph Kay Boyle.

Cécile Guyon was born on 4 December 1890 in Paris, France. She was an actress, known for Sapho (1912), Les filles du saltimbanque (1912) and L'enfant prodigue (1916). She was married to Henri Bosc. She died on 29 January 1927 in Paris, France.

Native American actor Tote Du Crow born in Watsonville, California in 1858. Became a popular circus clown from the 1870's until the mid 1910's. Later in his career he was often seen playing the roles of Indian Chief or Mexican bandit in many westerns, dramas and adventure films, making his film debut in the starring role as Capoldo the old shoemaker in 'The Old Shoemaker' co-starring Miriam Cooper for the Reliance Film Co in 1915. He appeared in more than 40 silent movies, most notably opposite Douglas Fairbanks, as Bernardo in 'The Mark of Zorro' in 1920 and 'Don Q, Son of Zorro' in 1925 and as the Soothsayer in 'The Thief of Bagdad' in 1924. Tote was last seen as Pedro in Noel M. Smith's 'The Blue Streak' starring Richard Talmadge in 1926.