Pioneers of African-American Cinema: Ten Nights in a Bar Room
TEN NIGHTS IN A BAR ROOM (1926) 64 Min. Directed by Roy Calnek. Cast: Charles S. Gilpin (Joe Morgan), Lawrence Chenault (Simon Slade), Harry Henderson (Willie Hammond, the Judge’s son), Arline Mickey (Mehitable Cartwright), Myra Burwell (Jannie Morgan, Joe’s wife), William A Clayton, Jr. (Harvey Green), William R. Johnson (Judge Hammond), Edward Moore (Sample Swichel), William F. Milton (Alfred Romaine), Reginald Hoffer (William Carr), Ethel Smith, Sam Sadler, Boxana Mickelby. Produced by Colored Players Film Corporation, Philadelphia, PA. Music by Donald Sosin. Orchestrated by Donald Sosin, Joshua Groffman, and Billy Novick. Performed by Susan Heerema (violin), Alexander Sovronsky (violin), Aaron Heick (reeds), James Hynes (trumpet), Art Baron (trombone), Roger Blanc (guitar), Rick Cutler (drums), Donald Sosin (piano, synth bass, drums), Billy Novick (reeds),
Michael Peipman (trumpet), Dan Fox (trombone). Music produced by Donald Sosin. Mixed by John M. Davis. Mastered in HD from 35mm film elements preserved by the George Eastman Museum.
Based on the hugely popular 1854 temperance novel by Timothy Shay Arthur (and William W. Pratt’s 1858 stage adaptation), Roy Calnek’s TEN NIGHTS IN A BAR ROOM boasts a masterful performance by Charles Sidney Gilpin as a father whose life and family are devastated by his alcoholism. A renowned stage actor, Gilpin was famous for having initiated the role of Brutus Jones (of Eugene O’Neill’s
The Emperor Jones) on Broadway in 1920. When the actor insisted that the playwright remove the word “nigger” from the script, he was replaced in the London production by Paul Robeson, which allegedly contributed to Gilpin’s own struggles with alcohol. In 1926, the same year in which TEN NIGHTS was released, Gilpin reclaimed the role of Jones, and also directed the play at New York's Mayfair Theatre.
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"This very special collection illuminates one of the most fascinating and unjustly neglected corners of American movie history. Every film included in Pioneers of African-American Cinema has been lovingly restored, and every one is essential viewing."
"From the perspective of cinema history — and American history, for that matter — there has never been a more significant video release than 'Pioneers of African-American Cinema.'”
"The new five-disk set 'Pioneers of African-American Cinema' (Kino Classics) is a landmark in the history of the art form..."
"'Pioneers of African-American Cinema' is an essential and groundbreaking Blu-ray set. It's more than worthy to be considered one of the most important and valuable releases of the year, as it brings to light an important aspect of black and cinema history that must not be forgotten or ignored."
LA TIMES
"One of the year’s most exciting and historically significant archival projects"
THE BOSTON HERALD
"Fascinating cinematic history...a look at independent cinema before that term came to suggest movies that would be film festival favorites at Sundance, Telluride and elsewhere."
RogerEbert.com (Blu-ray review):
"one of the most important and valuable releases of the year"
HUFFINGTON POST
"This is an historic release. ...for all its landmark status it’s a pleasure to report that your first real response will simply be pleasure...No wonder Martin Scorsese is proudly touting this set with a quote on the front of it: this is an historic release."
ROGEREBERT.COM (interview):
"Kino Lorber's Pioneers of African-American Cinema set is ready to dazzle film buffs with its extraordinary archive of rarely seen cinematic treasures."
DVD TALK
"Starting in 1915 and going through the early 1940's this set not only gives film buffs a chance to see what movies African-Americans were making, but also to see what they had to say about their society....This is a great collection.... Highly Recommended."
FLAVORWIRE
"The new box set is both a necessary contextualization of a cinematic movement and a counter-narrative to American film history."
DVD BEAVER
"I was blown-away by this package and watched transfixed hour after hour... Very strongly recommended - especially to fans who may not be initially interested - there is an absolute treasure-trove of value here."
CRITERIONCAST
"This collection of films is a must own for cinephiles, and a worthwhile purchase for those with other sociological interests."
IN THESE TIMES
"Rough, passionate and unconcerned with Hollywood conventions, these films constitute a bedrock of pre-civil rights era culture...A fastidious and earnest piece of history-keeping, with a plethora of newly commissioned essays, documentaries and musical scores."
