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Shanghai Express (film)
''Shanghai Express'' is a 1932 American pre-Code film about a group of train passengers held hostage by a warlord during the Chinese Civil War. It was directed by Josef von Sternberg and stars Marlene Dietrich, Clive Brook, Anna May Wong and Warner Oland. The screenplay was written by Jules Furthman based on a 1931 short story by Harry Hervey. ''Shanghai Express'' was the fourth of seven films that Sternberg and Dietrich created together. The film was released during the midst of the Great Depression. It was remade as ''Night Plane from Chungking'' (1943) and ''Peking Express'' (1951). Plot In 1931, China is embroiled in a civil war. Friends of British captain Donald "Doc" Harvey envy him because the fabulously notorious Shanghai Lily is a fellow passenger on the express train that he is taking from Peking to Shanghai. Because the name means nothing to him, they inform him that she is a "coaster" or "woman who lives by her wits along the China coast," in other words, a courtes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Josef Von Sternberg
Josef von Sternberg (; born Jonas Sternberg; May 29, 1894 – December 22, 1969) was an Austrian-American filmmaker whose career successfully spanned the transition from the silent to the sound era, during which he worked with most of the major Hollywood studios. He is best known for his film collaboration with actress Marlene Dietrich in the 1930s, including the highly regarded Paramount/UFA production, ''The Blue Angel'' (1930). Sternberg's finest works are noteworthy for their striking pictorial compositions, dense décor, chiaroscuro illumination, and relentless camera motion, endowing the scenes with emotional intensity. He is also credited with having initiated the gangster film genre with his silent era movie ''Underworld'' (1927). Sternberg's themes typically offer the spectacle of an individual's desperate struggle to maintain their personal integrity as they sacrifice themselves for lust or love. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director for ''Morocco'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peking Express (film)
''Peking Express'' is a 1951 American film-noir crime thriller action adventure film made by Paramount Pictures. It is the second remake of Paramount's earlier '' Shanghai Express'' (1932), remade as ''Night Plane from Chungking'' (1943) and the first film to be set in the newly emerged People's Republic of China (PRC). It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Hal B. Wallis, from a screenplay by John Meredyth Lucas, based on the original screenplay by Jules Furthman and Harry Hervey. The film stars Joseph Cotten, Corinne Calvet and Edmund Gwenn with Marvin Miller. ''Peking Express'' is notable for its production values. The music score was composed by Dimitri Tiomkin, the cinematography was by Charles Lang, the art direction by Franz Bachelin and Hal Pereira and the costume design by Edith Head. Plot Doctor Michael Bachlin (Joseph Cotten), is in Shanghai investigating a missing shipment of medical supplies for the United Nation's World Health Organization. He must tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Émile Chautard
Émile Chautard (7 September 1864 – 24 April 1934) was a French-American film director, actor, and screenwriter, most active in the silent era. He directed more than 100 films between 1910 and 1924. He also appeared in more than 60 films between 1911 and 1934. Life and work Chautard was born in Paris. After a significant career beginning as a stage actor at the Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe and moving up to the head of film production at Éclair Films' Paris studio in 1913, Chautard emigrated to the United States in January 1915, sailing on the S/S ''Rochambeau'', from Le Havre to New York. From 1915 to about 1918, Chautard worked for the World Film Company based in Fort Lee, New Jersey. At World, along with a group of other French-speaking film technicians including Maurice Tourneur, Léonce Perret, George Archainbaud, Albert Capellani and Lucien Andriot, he developed such films as the 1915 version of '' Camille'', and taught a young apprentice film cutter at the World s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louise Closser Hale
Louise Closser Hale (October 13, 1872 – July 26, 1933) was an American actress, playwright, and novelist. Early life Louise Closser was born in Chicago, Illinois, on October 13, 1872. Her father was Joseph Closser, a grain dealer, and her mother was Louise Paddock Closser. She had two sisters, Belle and Myla Jo. Hale studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and at the Boston School of Oratory. Career Acting Hale made her theatrical debut in Detroit in an 1894 production of '' In Old Kentucky''. She initially acted with touring troupes in the Midwest. Her Broadway debut was in ''Arizona'' (1900). Her first theatrical success came in 1903, when she appeared in a Broadway production of George Bernard Shaw's '' Candida''. In 1907, she made her London debut in '' Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch''. Twelve years after her husband's death in 1917, Hale began working in Hollywood. Her first film was '' The Hole in the Wall'' (1929). Also in 1929, she reprised her role as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gustav Von Seyffertitz
Gustav von Seyffertitz (4 August 1862 – 25 December 1943) was a German film actor and director. He settled in the United States. He was born in Haimhausen, Bavaria, and died in Los Angeles, California, aged 81. Biography Gustav von Seyffertitz was born into an aristocratic family as the son of Guido Freiherr von Seyffertitz and his wife Anna Gräfin von Butler Clonebough zu Haimhausen. His family expected him to start a military career, but was shocked when he said that he wanted to be an actor. He was a member of the Meiningen Court Theatre and also appeared in operas. He emigrated to the United States in 1896, after being asked by the Austrian-American theatre director Heinrich Conried. Despite his thick German accent, he was successful on Broadway where he worked as a stage actor and director during the 1900s and 1910s. He appeared as an actor in such lavish productions as ''The Brass Bottle'' in 1910. This play was turned into several films and was the idea for the televisi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eugene Pallette
Eugene William Pallette (July 8, 1889 – September 3, 1954) was an American actor who worked in both the silent and sound eras, performing in more than 240 productions between 1913 and 1946. After an early career as a slender leading man, Pallette became a stout character actor. He had a deep voice, which some critics have likened to the sound of a croaking frog, and is probably best-remembered for comic character roles such as Alexander Bullock ( Carole Lombard's character's father) in '' My Man Godfrey'' (1936), Friar Tuck in ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938), and his similar role as Fray Felipe in '' The Mark of Zorro'' (1940). He also co-starred in '' Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' (1939) and '' Heaven Can Wait'' (1943). Early life He was born in Winfield, Kansas, the son of William Baird Pallette and Elnora "Ella" Jackson. His parents had been actors in their younger years, but by 1889 Pallette's father was an insurance salesman. His sister was Beulah L. Pal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lawrence Grant
Percy Reginald Lawrence-Grant (30 October 1870 in Bournemouth, Hampshire, England – 19 February 1952 in Santa Barbara, California, USA) was an English actor known for supporting roles in films such as ''The Living Ghost'', '' I'll Tell the World'', '' Shanghai Express'', ''The Mask of Fu Manchu'' and ''Son of Frankenstein''. He was host of the 4th Academy Awards ceremonies in 1931. Selected filmography * '' The Eternal City'' (1915) - English Ambassador * ''To Hell with the Kaiser!'' (1918) - The Kaiser / Robert Graubel * ''Someone Must Pay'' (1919) - Walter Hargrave * '' Held In Trust'' (1920) - Dr. Babcock * ''The Chorus Girl's Romance'' (1920) - Jose Brasswine * ''Someone in the House'' (1920) - Walter Hargrave * '' Extravagance'' (1921) - Uncle Mark * '' The Great Impersonation'' (1921) - Emperor William of Germany * ''The Dramatic Life of Abraham Lincoln'' (1924) - Actor at Ford's Theatre * ''Happiness'' (1924) - Mr. Rosselstein * ''His Hour'' (1924) - Stephen Str ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eurasian (mixed Ancestry)
A Eurasian is a person of mixed Asian people, Asian and Ethnic groups in Europe, European ancestry. Terminology The term ''Eurasian'' was first coined in mid-nineteenth century Colonial India#British Raj, British India. The term was originally used to refer to those who are now known as Anglo-Indians, people of mixed British people, British and Indian people, Indian descent. In addition to British people, British many were also of mixed Portuguese people, Portuguese, Dutch people, Dutch, Irish people, Irish or French people, French descent. The term has been used in Anthropology, anthropological literature since the 1960s. Central Asia Historically, Central Asia has been a "melting pot" of Genetic history of Europe, West Eurasian and Genetic history of East Asians, East Eurasian peoples, leading to high genetic admixture and diversity. Physical and genetic analyses of ancient remains have concluded that while the Scythians – including those in the eastern Pazyryk cultur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Opium
Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which is processed chemically to produce heroin and other synthetic opioids for medicinal use and for the illegal drug trade. The latex also contains the closely related opiates codeine and thebaine, and non-analgesic alkaloids such as papaverine and noscapine. The traditional, labor-intensive method of obtaining the latex is to scratch ("score") the immature seed pods (fruits) by hand; the latex leaks out and dries to a sticky yellowish residue that is later scraped off and dehydrated. The word '' meconium'' (derived from the Greek for "opium-like", but now used to refer to newborn stools) historically referred to related, weaker preparations made from other parts of the opium poppy or different species of poppies. The production methods have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shanghai Express Ad In The Film Daily, Jan-Jun 1932 (page 203 Crop)
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowing through it. With a population of 24.89 million as of 2021, Shanghai is the most populous urban area in China with 39,300,000 inhabitants living in the Shanghai metropolitan area, the second most populous city proper in the world (after Chongqing) and the only city in East Asia with a GDP greater than its corresponding capital. Shanghai ranks second among the administrative divisions of Mainland China in human development index (after Beijing). As of 2018, the Greater Shanghai metropolitan area was estimated to produce a gross metropolitan product (nominal) of nearly 9.1 trillion RMB ($1.33 trillion), exceeding that of Mexico with GDP of $1.22 trillion, the 15th largest in the world. Shanghai is one of the world's major centers for fin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Courtesan
Courtesan, in modern usage, is a euphemism for a "kept" mistress (lover), mistress or prostitute, particularly one with wealthy, powerful, or influential clients. The term historically referred to a courtier, a person who attended the Royal court, court of a monarch or other powerful person. History In European feudalism, feudal society, the court was the centre of government as well as the residence of the monarch, and social and political life were often completely mixed together. Prior to the Renaissance, courtesans served to convey information to visiting dignitaries, when servants could not be trusted. In Renaissance Europe, courtiers played an extremely important role in upper-class society. As it was customary during this time for royal couples to lead separate lives—commonly marrying simply to preserve bloodlines and to secure political alliances—men and women would often seek gratification and companionship from people living at court. In fact, the verb 'to court' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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