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Shakespeare in Silent Films |
Excerpted from Kenneth S. Rothwell, "Shakespeare Film in America: O Brave New World of Bardolatry!" Shakespeare in American Life exhibition catalog. Folger Shakespeare Library, 2007.
(Page 4 of 5) In 1916 the American Shakespeare movie launched its own public relations blitz when warring companies Metro and Fox fought over rights to commemorate the three-hundredth anniversary of Shakespeare's death by simultaneously releasing two Romeo and Juliets plus an Antony and Cleopatra. Francis X. Bushman—a matinee idol out of central casting, with his square jaw, enviable physique, and sleazy personal life—played Romeo opposite Beverly Bayne's virginal Juliet in the now-lost $250,000 Metro film, released as "refined entertainment…for ladies and gentlemen."
While the Metro film was highly praised for its "beautifully composed scenes of the streets of Verona" and Juliet's funeral procession,9 the casting of "vampire" Theda Bara (née Theodosia Goodman) as Juliet opposite Harry Hilliard in the rival Fox production set up a formidable competitor. As with the Metro version, "no expense [was] spared" on design, and Theda Bara's inspired eyerolling captivated the fans, though it was admitted that perceiving her as a "sweet, innocent" Juliet was a huge leap from her famous roles as a "vamp."10
9 Billboard (27 October 1916).
10 Ray, "WM. Fox's Romeo and Juliet," Billboard (29 October 1916).
Romeo and Juliet (1908). Vitagraph. Library of Congress.