Panthea (film) explained

Panthea
Director:Allan Dwan
Producer:Allan Dwan
Joseph M. Schenck
Norma Talmadge
Starring:Norma Talmadge
Earle Foxe
L. Rogers Lytton
Cinematography:Roy Overbaugh
Harold Rosson
Distributor:Selznick Pictures
Runtime:78 minutes
Country:United States
Language:Silent (English intertitles)

Panthea is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Allan Dwan and starring Norma Talmadge. This was the first film Talmadge made after leaving D. W. Griffith's company to form her own production company with Joseph M. Schenck.[1] [2] It is believed to be a lost film.[3] It was last shown in Venice in 1958.[4]

Cast

Production

The film was shot at the former Biograph studio in New York.[2]

Release

Panthea opened in U.S. theaters in January, 1917, and performed well at the box office. Talmadge made several personal appearances to help the film, often wearing her costumes from the film.[5] It was well reviewed; Julian Johnson of Photoplay described the film as "staged with an eye both to artistic lighting and dramatic effect, true to life even in its most melodramatic moments, tingling with suspense, saturate with sympathy."[6]

Selznick Enterprises re-released Panthea in 1923 to extremely good business.[5] It was screened at the Venice Film Festival in 1958, but has since not been available, leading to the consensus that it is a lost film.[7]

Notes and References

  1. Spears, Jack (1971). Hollywood: The Golden Era. New York:A.S. Barnes & Co. p. 119
  2. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/500853/Panthea/notes.html Turner Classic Movies
  3. http://www.silentera.com/PSFL/data/P/Panthea1917.html Progressive Silent Film List: Panthea
  4. Web site: The Feature films [sic] of Norma Talmadge ]. Greta de Groat (Electronic Media Cataloger at Stanford University Libraries).
  5. Spears. p. 121
  6. https://web.stanford.edu/~gdegroat/NT/oldreviews/panthea.htm The Norma Talmadge Website
  7. Lombardi, Frederic. Allan Dwan and the Rise and Decline of the Hollywood Studios. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. p. 73