2nd Reel of Battle of the Century found

rogerskarsten · Post by **rogerskarsten** » Sun Jun 21, 2015 4:15 am

I see that BATTLE OF THE CENTURY is scheduled to be shown on August 6 at this year's silent film festival in Bonn, Germany. It probably won't include the newly discovered footage, will it?
~Roger

Hofmeister · Post by **Hofmeister** » Tue Jun 23, 2015 6:29 am

Roger, the reconstruction scheduled for Bonn is a different animal; it's pretty fresh (we showed it in Munich in our L&H series) and it was of course conceived and executed prior to the recent disclosure. It is more extensive and detailed than previous reconstructions, it involved a lot of research into the production background and it flows quite well. I do hope the effort wasn't all for nought.

It's not been decided yet how the news will impact the Bonn festival. I'm so glad that the 16mm print from the Berkow collection has been identified and I do hope that it actually delivers what we've been fantasizing about forever.

azjazzman · Post by **azjazzman** » Wed Jun 24, 2015 2:08 am

Hofmeister wrote: I'm so glad that the 16mm print from the Berkow collection has been identified and I do hope that it actually delivers what we've been fantasizing about forever.

Given the individuals involved, Jon Mirsalis, Serge Bromberg (and I assume David Shepard), as long as you restrict yourself to news coming directly via those folks, you are entirely safe. Just steer clear of the second, third or fourth hand accounts. "Tales grow taller on down the line." - REO Speedwagon

These are gentleman who are experienced in the handling of unique film materials and they would never engage in any "cry wolf" or exaggeration scenarios regarding same.

JonChaneyFan · Post by **JonChaneyFan** » Fri Jun 26, 2015 8:06 pm

OK, I stumbled across this thread and see I am being discussed, so let me try to answer some questions that were asked:

1. Yes, BATTLE OF THE CENTURY was in the Berkow collection. It was in a can marked (duh!) BATTLE OF THE CENTURY R2. I just assumed it was the Youngson cut and put it at the bottom of the preview pile. It wasn't until I opened the can and saw that it was a full 400' that my hands got sweaty. I assumed Gordon must have spliced something else on the reel (like the prize fight footage), so I still thought nothing of it. It wasn't until I put it on and started watching that I realized what I had found.

2. Serge Bromberg already has the print and has done a 2K scan. He has been promised all of R1 in 35mm from an archive I can't announce yet. So I believe the entire film will be restored.

3. I have no idea of release date. There are many rights holders on this. Serge has French theatrically only. Someone else has Germany. I think the Feiner family has the U.S. Getting this copied and restored will be one thing. Getting it shown will be another.

4. The additional footage is basically the L&H walk down the street that leads into the pie fight. There are a number of gags with various shop keepers, banana gags, banana peel gags, some business with Charlie Hall, etc. The first half isn't terribly funny in and of itself, but it basically sets up the pie fight.

5. The print was struck directly from the 35mm camera negative, is gorgeous and is absolutely complete from head leader to tail leader.

6. I am done going through all of the Berkow collection except for some 8mm stuff of no interest. Of the 2323 films in the collection, there were 14 lost (i.e., no known FIAF archive holding) feature films: GOOD BAY BOY (1924), GOLDEN TRAILS (1925), BROTHERS (1929), DARING DEEDS (1927), BIG PAL (1925), EAST SIDE WEST SIDE (1923), LASH OF THE WHIP (1924), THE RUSTLER'S END (1928), WITH DANIEL BOONE THROUGH THE WILDERNESS (1926), WOLF TRACKS (1923), THE FORBIDDEN TRAIL (1923), PASSION PLAY (1916? Italian? No one I've talked to can figure out what this is...9R version of life of Christ), THE SUNSHINE OF PARADISE ALLEY (1926), HERE HE COMES (1926).

7. There are also some fragments of otherwise lost features: THE WANDERER, A KISS IN THE DARK, THE FORBIDDEN WOMAN, etc.

8. I didn't mention this at the February Kansas Silent Film Festival talk because I hadn't found it at that point.

9. There are still about 300 titles that I haven't liquidated yet from the collection, but none of them are of any interest (a lot of Castle shorts and otherwise common features). The really good stuff never made it to a sale list, and the good stuff never made it to ebay. If it got to ebay it was of little interest with few exceptions.

I think that answers most of the questions asked here.

Jon Mirsalis

LandHfan · Post by **LandHfan** » Sat Jun 27, 2015 3:56 am

Hi Jon,

Well done on your remarkable find. You mentioned that Serge has access to the entire first reel in 35mm. Is that the same reel Leonard Maltin found? or is it from a different source with the Eugene Pallette salesman footage and Stan and Ollie walking down the street with Stan walking into a Victrola whereupon reel one ends on a fade-out?

I believe the incomplete copy of reel one which Leonard Maltin found became separated from the rest of the film as it was Amber tinted and was never spliced back onto the B&W Eugene Pallette salesman footage.

Regards,

Trevor D

Tboneator64 · Post by **Tboneator64** » Sat Jun 27, 2015 10:56 am

Jon Mirsalis did state the following in his previous post:

2. Serge Bromberg already has the print and has done a 2K scan. He has been promised all of R1 in 35mm from an archive I can't announce yet. So I believe the entire film will be restored.

My interpretation of the above is that we ought to wait for any further details that relate to said R1 Battle Of The Century footage.

CHEERS!

Post by **Christopher Jacobs** » Sat Jun 27, 2015 1:33 pm

I have split a number of the responses in this thread, which have been starting to drift away from the film in the subject head, into a new thread on "Rediscovered Films" in the "Collecting and Preservation" forum at http://nitrateville.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=20498" target="_blank .

boblipton · Post by **boblipton** » Thu Jul 09, 2015 5:39 am

Made the New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/12/movie ... egion&_r=0" target="_blank

Bob

Norma Desmond · Post by **Norma Desmond** » Tue Jul 14, 2015 5:53 pm

Possibly this bit of good news has been brought to NITRATEVILLEVILLE's attention previously:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/12/movie ... d=25900865" target="_blank

entredeuxguerres · Post by **entredeuxguerres** » Tue Jul 14, 2015 7:20 pm

"...those who find pie throwing beneath their refined comic sensibility deserve nothing more than a lemon meringue treat, smack in the kisser..."

That's me; but also Gloria Swanson (& quite a few others whose names escape me), who apparently shared my "refined comic sensibility." Hilarity, to me, would be catching up to that pie-thrower with a baseball bat.

Donald Binks · Post by **Donald Binks** » Tue Jul 14, 2015 8:05 pm

entredeuxguerres wrote:"...those who find pie throwing beneath their refined comic sensibility deserve nothing more than a lemon meringue treat, smack in the kisser..."

That's me; but also Gloria Swanson (& quite a few others whose names escape me), who apparently shared my "refined comic sensibility." Hilarity, to me, would be catching up to that pie-thrower with a baseball bat.

I am inclined to agree with you. I prefer my slapstick to be a trifle more subtle. I suppose the greatest custard pie fight ever was in "The Great Race". About 10 seconds would have been long enough but this scene went on for ages and became increasingly unfunny.

Norma Desmond · Post by **Norma Desmond** » Tue Jul 14, 2015 9:49 pm

My purpose in posting the NYT article was not to defend pie-throwing as a comical device but rather to applaud one more discovery of previously lost film. It raises the hope for me that one day a brilliant copy of DESERT SONG 1929 will be found.

Whatever one's attitude toward "pie-throwing", it does give us just a bit more of L&H; surely, there's no one out there who doesn't love them; even the Grinch is a fond fan.

Rick Lanham · Post by **Rick Lanham** » Tue Jul 14, 2015 11:07 pm

Norma Desmond wrote:My purpose in posting the NYT article was not to defend pie-throwing as a comical device but rather to applaud one more discovery of previously lost film. It raises the hope for me that one day a brilliant copy of DESERT SONG 1929 will be found.

Whatever one's attitude toward "pie-throwing", it does give us just a bit more of L&H; surely, there's no one out there who doesn't love them; even the Grinch is a fond fan.

There's been another thread on the topic, so more responses are there:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=20423" target="_blank" target="_blank

Rick

Joe Migliore · Post by **Joe Migliore** » Wed Jul 15, 2015 2:35 am

entredeuxguerres wrote:

Hilarity, to me, would be catching up to that pie-thrower with a baseball bat.

I never had you pegged for a Three Stooges fan.

entredeuxguerres · Post by **entredeuxguerres** » Wed Jul 15, 2015 7:06 am

Joe Migliore wrote:entredeuxguerres wrote:
Hilarity, to me, would be catching up to that pie-thrower with a baseball bat.
I never had you pegged for a Three Stooges fan.

Gotta admire the short shrift Moe gave fools & pranksters. Love to see him teamed with Laurel when the latter commenced one of his weepies.

Post by **silentfilm** » Wed Jul 15, 2015 11:15 am

I've merge these two similar topics together.

Jim Roots · Post by **Jim Roots** » Thu Jul 16, 2015 5:52 am

silentfilm wrote:I've merge these two similar topics together.

And in doing so, have upset the balance of the universe.

Jim

syd · Post by **syd** » Thu Jul 16, 2015 9:00 pm

Their Purple Moment (1928) has a pie
fight in its climax. Not just pies, either,
but fists full of fillings flung furiously.

Frederica · Post by **Frederica** » Fri Jul 17, 2015 12:20 pm

syd wrote:...
but fists full of fillings flung furiously.

Nice alliteration there.

syd · Post by **syd** » Fri Jul 17, 2015 3:18 pm

Frederica wrote:
syd wrote:...
but fists full of fillings flung furiously.
Nice alliteration there.

Thank you.

All Darc · Post by **All Darc** » Sun Jul 19, 2015 6:09 pm

Gordon Berkow, a film collector, died in 2004. The second reel was in his collection.
Wasn't he aware of the lost scenes he had in his print?

Quality of the print (Eugene Pallet on center):

http://www.nuttynutnewsnetwork.co.uk/bo ... 0found.htm" target="_blank" target="_blank

16mm print, but made direct from câmera negative with film stock from 1950's

All Darc · Post by **All Darc** » Sun Jul 19, 2015 6:26 pm

"OK, since everyone is mentioning me, I hate to feed the already overheated blogosphere, because we were going to keep this a bit under wraps until completed, but yes, I have ALL of R2 of THE BATTLE OF THE CENTURY in 16mm from the "Start R2" leader to the "The End" title. Serge Bromberg is going to do the restoration and combine it with other material so we will have about 90% of the enti re film. The print came from the Robert Youngson collection that Gordon acquired in 1990. When you see a can marked "BATTLE OF THE CENTURY R2" you don't get too excited until you open the can and realize it's a full 400'. Please don't inundate me with requests for screenings, projections of release dates, etc. It's complicated and will take time, but I promise it will be out there as soon as possible."

http://www.hollywoodparty.org/lost-film-found.html" target="_blank

If reel 2 is complete, and Serge said they have 90% of the film, I supose reel 1 wasn't complete.

All Darc · Post by **All Darc** » Sun Jul 19, 2015 6:40 pm

Jim Roots · Post by **Jim Roots** » Mon Jul 20, 2015 6:16 am

All Darc wrote:

Your signature line, "Keep thinking", at the bottom of these pictures, is ... sublime.

Jim

All Darc · Post by **All Darc** » Mon Jul 20, 2015 7:15 am

Thanks Jim.

Robert W · Post by **Robert W** » Mon Jul 20, 2015 9:40 am

All Darc wrote:Gordon Berkow, a film collector, died in 2004. The second reel was in his collection.
Wasn't he aware of the lost scenes he had in his print?

Quality of the print (Eugene Pallet on center):

http://www.nuttynutnewsnetwork.co.uk/bo ... 0found.htm" target="_blank" target="_blank" target="_blank

16mm print, but made direct from câmera negative with film stock from 1950's

This photo is not a frame grab from a print and can't be said to represent the quality of the 16mm print that has been found - it's an official studio still as evidenced by the inventory number in the bottom right-hand corner.

All Darc · Post by **All Darc** » Mon Jul 20, 2015 11:32 am

Uhnn... I supose you arer ight Robert.
I should had corrected that after post the larger one in my following post, that was looking like a still (too sharp to be from 16mm)

I got that image in here: http://www.nuttynutnewsnetwork.co.uk/bo ... 0found.htm" target="_blank

And they said:

"In the photo you see Laurel and Hardy with Eugene Pallette in a scene from the now discovered second reel of the film."

Maybe I interpreted it wrong cause the image was very small, and it's just a still.

Do you have some screen capture of sany film on DVD or BD, mastered from a 16mm print made from the roginala câmera negative in the 50's ?

LandHfan · Post by **LandHfan** » Sun Aug 02, 2015 7:23 am

http://silentlondon.co.uk/2015/07/31/th" target="_blank" target="_blank ... -festival/

The restored Battle Of The Century will be screened at the 34th Giornate del Cinema Muto in Pordenone, Italy this October. 'A near-complete restoration' suggests there is likely some footage still missing, presumably the insurance salesman footage in the park at the end of reel one. After this screening we should know exactly what if anything is missing from the film.

LandHfan · Post by **LandHfan** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 3:14 pm

Leonard Maltin writes about the recent screening of The Battle Of The Century and confirms that the park scene with Eugene Pallette is still unfortunately missing...

http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmalti ... a-20150909" target="_blank

JFK · Post by **JFK** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 6:09 pm

LandHfan wrote:Leonard Maltin writes about the recent screening of The Battle Of The Century and
confirms that the park scene with Eugene Pallette is still unfortunately missing...

http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmalti ... a-20150909
Maltin also writes:
"Serge Bromberg .... treated the audience at the Sheridan Opera House to meticulous restorations of
Charlie Chaplin’s The Bank (1915) and
Buster Keaton’s Daydreams (1922)....
He also treated us to recently discovered Keaton footage from The High Sign and Hard Luck."

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