''The Three Musketeers'' is a 1921 American

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

based on the 1844 novel '' The Three Musketeers'' by

Alexandre Dumas, père Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where '' '' is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. ...

. It was directed by

Fred Niblo Fred Niblo (born Frederick Liedtke; January 6, 1874 – November 11, 1948) was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer. Biography He was born Frederick Liedtke (several sources give "Frederico Nobile", apparently erroneously) in Yo ...

and stars

Douglas Fairbanks Douglas Elton Fairbanks Sr. (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman; May 23, 1883 – December 12, 1939) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. He was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films including '' The Thi ...

as d'Artagnan. The film originally had scenes filmed in the

Handschiegl Color Process The Handschiegl color process (, , App: Nov 20, 1916, Iss: May 13, 1919) produced motion picture film prints with color artificially added to selected areas of the image. Aniline dyes were applied to a black-and-white print using gelatin imbibition ...

(billed as the "Wyckoff-DeMille Process"). The film had a sequel, '' The Iron Mask'' (1929), also starring Fairbanks as d'Artagnan and DeBrulier as

Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...

Plot summary

Cast

:''In opening credits order:'' * Adolphe Menjou as

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

Mary MacLaren Mary MacLaren (born Mary Ida MacDonald, also credited Mary McLaren; January 19, 1900 – November 9, 1985) was an American film actress in both the silent and sound eras."Thirteenth Census of the United States: 1910 Population", digital cop ...

Anne of Austria Anne of Austria (french: Anne d'Autriche, italic=no, es, Ana María Mauricia, italic=no; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was an infanta of Spain who became Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XIII from their marriage in 1615 un ...

* Nigel De Brulier as

* Thomas Holding as

Duke of Buckingham Duke of Buckingham held with Duke of Chandos, referring to Buckingham, is a title that has been created several times in the peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. There have also been earls and marquesses of Buckingha ...

* Marguerite De La Motte as Constance Bonacieux * Willis Robards as Captain de Treville * Boyd Irwin as Comte de Rochefort * Barbara La Marr as Milady de Winter * Lon Poff as Father Joseph *

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...

as d'Artagnan's Father *

Sidney Franklin Sidney Franklin may refer to: * Sidney Franklin (bullfighter) (1903–1976), American bullfighter * Sidney Franklin (director) (1893–1972), American film director and producer * Sidney Franklin (actor) Sidney Franklin (1870–1931) was an Amer ...

as Bonacieux * Charles Belcher as Bernajoux * Charles Stevens as Planchet * Léon Bary as

Athos Athos may refer to: Fictional or mythical characters * Athos (character), one of the title characters in the novel ''The Three Musketeers'' (1844) by Alexandre Dumas père * Athos (mythology), one of the Gigantes in Greek mythology * Athos Fadi ...

George Siegmann George A. Siegmann (also credited as George Seigmann; February 8, 1882 – June 22, 1928) was an American actor and film director in the silent film era. His work includes roles in notable productions such as ''The Birth of a Nation'' (1915), ' ...

as Porthos * Eugene Pallette as Aramis *

as d'Artagnan

Production

The athletic Douglas Fairbanks's one-handed handspring to grab a sword during a fight scene in this film is considered one of the great stunts of the early cinema period. Fairbanks biographer Jeffrey Vance enthuses, "''The Three Musketeers'' was the first of the grand Fairbanks costume films, filled with exemplary production values and ornamentation. Indeed, one ornament extended beyond the film: Fairbanks wore d'Artagnan's moustache—cultivated for ''The Three Musketeers''—to the end of his life. With ''The Three Musketeers'', he at last found his metier and crystallized his celebrity and his cinema." File:The Three Musketeers (1921) 1.jpg, Front row: Charles Stevens, Marguerite De La Motte,

Mary Pickford Gladys Marie Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American stage and screen actress and producer with a career that spanned five decades. A pioneer in the US film industry, she co-founde ...

(guest), Sidney Franklin. Second row: Boyd Irwin, Nigel De Brulier,

, Adolphe Menjou, Barbara La Marr, Thomas Holding. Back row: Lon Poff, Eugene Pallette,

, Léon Bary, Willis Robards.

Preservation status

In April 1939, Fairbanks donated his entire film collection to the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

(MoMA), including both a 35mm nitrate negative and a tinted positive print. The negative was duplicated in 1963, and this print was used for the restoration completed in May 2017 by MoMA, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, and Film Preservation Society. MoMA and Image Protection Services also finished a color restoration in February 2021.Preamble to a restoration.

References

External links

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Color poster
{{DEFAULTSORT:Three Musketeers, The 1921 films 1921 adventure films 1920s color films American silent feature films American historical adventure films American black-and-white films American swashbuckler films Films based on The Three Musketeers United Artists films Films directed by Fred Niblo Films set in the 1620s Films set in France Films set in Paris Articles containing video clips Cultural depictions of Cardinal Richelieu Cultural depictions of Louis XIII Early color films 1920s American films Silent adventure films 1920s English-language films 1920s historical adventure films