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The following is an overview of 1928 in film , including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths. Although some movies released in 1928 had sound , most were still silent .
Overview of the events of 1928 in film
Events
January 6 - The long-awaited Charlie Chaplin comedy The Circus premieres at the Strand Theatre in New York City .[1]
April 21 - The Passion of Joan of Arc is released.
July 6 – Lights of New York (starring Helene Costello ) is released by Warner Bros . It is the first "100% Talkie" feature film, in that dialog is spoken throughout the film. Previous releases Don Juan and The Jazz Singer had used a synchronized soundtrack with sound effects and music, with The Jazz Singer having a few incidental lines spoken by Al Jolson .[2]
September 19 – The Singing Fool , Warner Bros' follow-up to The Jazz Singer , is released. While still only a partial-talkie (sequences still featured intertitles ), 66 minutes of the film's 105 minute running time feature dialogue or songs, making it the longest talking motion picture yet. (Lights of New York runs a total of 57 minutes.) It is the highest-grossing film of the year, becomes Warner Bros' highest-grossing film for the next 13 years, and is the most financially successful film of Al Jolson's career.[3] [4]
October 23 - RKO Productions Inc. created
November 10 – At the beginning of White Shadows in the South Seas , Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 's mascot Leo the Lion roars for the very first time, giving voice to one of the most popular American film logos.[5] [6] [7]
November 18 – Disney 's Steamboat Willie premieres, marking the official introduction of Mickey Mouse . This animated short is the first film to include a soundtrack, completely created in post production, including sound effects, music, and dialogue.
December 25 – In Old Arizona , released by Fox Films , is the first sound-on-film feature-length talkie, utilizing the Movietone process. Previously, feature-length talkies used the less-reliable Vitaphone sound-on-disc process. It is also the first Western talkie, and the first sound film primarily shot outdoors.
Top-grossing films
Rank
Title
Studio
Worldwide rental
1.
The Singing Fool
Warner Bros.
$5,916,000[8]
2.
The Circus
United Artists
$3,800,000[9]
3.
The Road to Ruin
True-Life Photoplays
$2,500,000
4.
Noah's Ark
Warner Bros.
$2,305,000[8]
5.
Street Angel
Fox Film
$1,700,000[10]
6.
White Shadows in the South Seas
MGM
$1,599,000[11]
7.
The Trail of '98
MGM
$1,578,000[11]
8.
Abie's Irish Rose
Paramount Pictures
$1,500,000[9]
9.
Four Sons
Fox Film
$1,500,000[10]
10.
The Terror
Warner Bros.
$1,464,000[8]
Academy Awards
Note: Prior to 1933, awards were not based on calendar years, which is why there is no 'Best Picture' for a 1928 film.
Notable films released in 1928
U.S.A. unless stated
Accident (Polizeibericht Überfall) – (Germany )
Across to Singapore , starring Ramón Novarro and Joan Crawford
The Actress directed by Sidney Franklin ; starring Norma Shearer
Adam's Apple , starring Monty Banks – (GB )
Alraune , starring Brigitte Helm and Paul Wegener – (Germany )
L'Argent (Money), starring Pierre Alcover and Brigitte Helm – (France )
The Awakening , directed by Victor Fleming , starring Vilma Bánky and Louis Wolheim
Balaclava , starring Cyril McLaglen , Benita Hume – (GB )
Beau Sabreur , directed by John Waters , starring Gary Cooper and Evelyn Brent
Beggars of Life , directed by William Wellman , starring Wallace Beery and Louise Brooks
The Big City , starring Lon Chaney, Sr.
The Burning of the Red Lotus Temple (Huo shao hong lian si) – (China ) – Released in 18 parts as the film runs for a total of 27 hours
The Cameraman , a Buster Keaton film
The Cardboard Lover , directed by Robert Z. Leonard ; starring Marion Davies , Nils Asther , and Jetta Goudal
Champagne , directed by Alfred Hitchcock – (GB )
The Circus , starring, directed and written by Charles Chaplin
The Constant Nymph , starring Ivor Novello – (GB)
The Cossacks starring John Gilbert , Renée Adorée and Ernest Torrence
The Crowd , directed by King Vidor
Dawn , directed by Herbert Wilcox , starring Sybil Thorndike – (Britain )
The Devious Path (Abwege), directed by G.W. Pabst – (Germany )
The Divine Woman , starring Greta Garbo
The Docks of New York , directed by Josef von Sternberg , starring George Bancroft , Betty Compson and Olga Baclanova
Easy Virtue , directed by Alfred Hitchcock – (GB )
The Fall of the House of Usher , directed by James Sibley Watson
The Fall of the House of Usher (La Chute de la maison Usher) – (France )
The Farmer's Wife , directed by Alfred Hitchcock – (GB )
Feel My Pulse , starring Bebe Daniels , Richard Arlen and William Powell
The First Born , starring Miles Mander , Madeleine Carroll – (GB)
Four Sons , directed by John Ford
The Gallant Hussar , directed by Géza von Bolváry , starring Ivor Novello , Evelyn Holt (Britain/Germany)
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes , starring Ruth Taylor and Alice White , subtitles written by Anita Loos
A Girl in Every Port , directed by Howard Hawks , starring Victor McLaglen , Robert Armstrong , Louise Brooks
The Godless Girl , directed by Cecil B. DeMille
The Guns of Loos , directed by Sinclair Hill , starring Madeleine Carroll (Britain)
Hangman's House , directed by John Ford , starring Victor McLaglen and June Collyer
His House in Order , starring Tallulah Bankhead (Britain)
Homecoming (Heimkehr) – (Germany )
The House on Trubnaya (Дом на Трубной), directed by Boris Barnet – (U.S.S.R. )
Hungarian Rhapsody , directed by Hanns Schwarz , starring Lil Dagover , Willy Fritsch , Dita Parlo (Germany)
Interference , Paramount's first ever all talking movie
The Italian Straw Hat (Un chapeau de paille d'Italie), directed by René Clair – (France )
Jujiro – (Japan )
Kurama Tengu – (Japan)
Ladies of the Mob , starring Clara Bow , Richard Arlen and Helen Lynch
The Last Command , directed by Joseph von Sternberg , starring Emil Jannings , Evelyn Brent and William Powell
Laugh, Clown, Laugh , starring Lon Chaney and Loretta Young
Lights of New York
A Little Bit of Fluff , starring Sydney Chaplin and Betty Balfour – (GB )
Lonesome , directed by Paul Fejos – (a silent and a sound version)
The Man Who Laughs , directed by Paul Leni , starring Conrad Veidt and Mary Philbin
Maria Marten , starring Trilby Clark and Warwick Ward (Britain)
The Matinee Idol , directed by Frank Capra , starring Bessie Love and Johnnie Walker.
The Midnight Taxi
Mother Machree , directed by John Ford
Moulin Rouge directed by Ewald André Dupont – (GB )
The Mysterious Lady , starring Greta Garbo and Conrad Nagel
Noah's Ark , starring George O'Brien
The Noose , starring Richard Barthelmess
Number 17 , directed by Géza von Bolváry , starring Guy Newall and Lien Deyers – (GB /Germany )
October: Ten Days That Shook the World (Oktyabr': Desyat' dney kotorye potryasli mir), directed by Sergei Eisenstein – (U.S.S.R. )
On Trial , sound film , starring Pauline Frederick and Bert Lytell
Our Dancing Daughters , starring Joan Crawford and Johnny Mack Brown
The Passion of Joan of Arc (La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc), directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer , starring Maria Falconetti – (France )
The Patsy , directed by King Vidor , starring Marion Davies and Marie Dressler
Piccadilly , starring Anna May Wong , Gilda Gray and Cyril Ritchard (Britain)
The Power of the Press , directed by Frank Capra , starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr
The Racket , directed by Lewis Milestone , starring Thomas Meighan , Marie Prevost , and Louis Wolheim .
Ramona , starring Dolores del Río and Warner Baxter
The Red Dance , directed by Raoul Walsh , starring Dolores del Río and Charles Farrell
Red Hair , starring Clara Bow
The Ringer directed by Arthur Maude – (Britain )
The Road to Ruin
Rose-Marie , starring James Murray and Joan Crawford
Sadie Thompson , starring Gloria Swanson and Lionel Barrymore
The Seashell and the Clergyman (La Coquille et le clergyman) – (France )
Sex in Chains (Geschlecht in Fesseln), starring and directed by William Dieterle – (Germany )
Show People , directed by King Vidor , starring Marion Davies and William Haines
The Singing Fool , starring Al Jolson and Betty Bronson
Sins of the Fathers starring Emil Jannings and Ruth Chatterton
Skyscraper , directed by Cecil B. DeMille , starring William Boyd , Alan Hale , Sue Carol and Alberta Vaughn
The Smart Set , starring William Haines , Jack Holt , and Alice Day
A South Sea Bubble , starring Ivor Novello , Benita Hume (Britain)
Speedy , starring Harold Lloyd
Spione (Spies), directed by Fritz Lang – (Germany )
Steamboat Bill, Jr. , a Buster Keaton film
Steamboat Willie , a Walt Disney Mickey Mouse short
Storm Over Asia (Potomok Chingis-Khana), starring Valéry Inkijinoff – (U.S.S.R. )
Street Angel , starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell
Sweeney Todd , starring Moore Marriott – (GB )
Take Me Home , a lost film directed by Marshall Neilan , starring Bebe Daniels
Tempest , starring John Barrymore , Camilla Horn and George Fawcett
The Terror , starring May McAvoy , Edward Everett Horton , and Louise Fazenda
Tesha , directed by Victor Saville , starring María Corda , Jameson Thomas – (GB)
Thérèse Raquin , directed by Jacques Feyder – (France )
Three Sinners starring Pola Negri , Warner Baxter and Olga Baclanova
Tillie's Punctured Romance , starring W. C. Fields , Louise Fazenda and Chester Conklin
Tommy Atkins , starring Lillian Hall-Davis (Britain )
Toni starring Jack Buchanan – (GB )
The Trail of '98 , starring Delores del Rio
The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel , starring Matheson Lang (Britain)
Two Tars , starring Laurel and Hardy
Underground , directed by Anthony Asquith – (GB )
The Viking – the first feature-length Technicolor film
Vormittagsspuk (Ghosts Before Breakfast), a dadaist animated short – (Germany )
The Vortex , starring Ivor Novello – (GB )
We Faw Down , starring Laurel and Hardy
The Wedding March , directed by and starring Erich von Stroheim with Fay Wray and ZaSu Pitts
West of Zanzibar , starring Lon Chaney and Lionel Barrymore
West Point , starring William Haines and Joan Crawford
What a Night! , directed by A. Edward Sutherland ; starring Bebe Daniels
While the City Sleeps , directed by Jack Conway ; starring Lon Chaney
White Shadows in the South Seas , starring Monte Blue and Raquel Torres
The Wind , directed by Victor Sjostrom , starring Lillian Gish and Lars Hanson
A Woman of Affairs , starring Greta Garbo and John Gilbert
Zvenigora , directed by Alexander Dovzhenko – (U.S.S.R. )
Short film series
Animated short film series
Births
January 2 - Ellen Kaarma , Estonian actress (d. 1973)
January 7 - William Peter Blatty , screenwriter (d. 2017)
January 23 - Jeanne Moreau , French actress, singer, screenwriter and director (d. 2017)
January 26 – Roger Vadim , director, screenwriter, actor (d. 2000)
February 1 – Stuart Whitman , film & television actor
February 8 – Jack Larson , actor (died 2015)
February 11 – Conrad Janis , actor
February 29 – Tempest Storm , burlesque performer, actress
March 1 – Jacques Rivette , film director (d. 2016)
March 19 – Patrick McGoohan , actor (died 2009)
March 24 – Vanessa Brown (d. 1999 )
April 7 – James Garner , actor (d. 2014)
April 23 – Shirley Temple , actress (d. 2014)
May 7 – Georgi Rusev , Bulgarian actor (died 2011)
June 12 – Vic Damone , singer, entertainer
June 13 – Nikola Todev , Bulgarian actor (died 1991)
June 19 – Nancy Marchand , actress (died 2000)
June 20 – Martin Landau , actor (d. 2017)
June 22 – Ralph Waite , actor (d. 2014)
July 14 – Nancy Olson , actress
July 26 – Stanley Kubrick , director (died 1999)
August 6 – Andy Warhol , artist, director (died 1987)
August 15 – Nicolas Roeg , director
August 16 – Ann Blyth , actress
August 31 – James Coburn , actor (died 2002)
September 4 – Dick York , actor (died 1992)
September 11 - Earl Holliman , actor
September 17 – Roddy McDowall , actor (died 1998)
September 19 – Adam West , actor (died 2017)
October 1 – George Peppard , actor (died 1994)
October 2 – George McFarland , actor (died 1993)
November 1 – Emmaline Henry , actress (died 1979 )
November 3 – Wanda Hendrix , actress (died 1981 )
November 13
December 9 – Dick Van Patten , actor (died 2015)
December 25 – Dick Miller , actor
Deaths
January 2 – Emily Stevens , American stage & film actress (born 1882)
January 3 - Claude France , German film actress (born 1893)
January 25 – Charles Gorman , American stage and screen actor (born 1865)
February 22 - Rudolph J. Bergquist American cinematographer
March 5 – Lidia Quaranta , Italian actress (born 1891)
March 13 - Poppy Wyndham , British actress and heiress; lost at sea (born 1893)
April 22 – Frank Currier , American director, stage & silent film actor (born 1857)
June 22 – George Siegmann , American silent film actor (born 1882)
June 24 – Holbrook Blinn , American stage & silent film actor (born 1872)
July 20 – Scott Sidney , American film director (born 1872)
July 21
Ellen Terry , British stage actress of the Victorian and Edwardian times and later a silent film actress (born 1847)
Ward Crane , American film actor (born 1890)
August 10 – Rex Cherryman , American actor (born 1896)
August 17 – Frank Urson , American film director (born 1887)
August 26 - Colin Campbell , British-born film director (born 1859)
October 8 – Larry Semon , American film comedian (born 1889)
November 10 - Anita Berber , German film actress (born 1899)
November 19 - Jeanne Bérangère , French stage and film actress (born 1864)
December 14 – Theodore Roberts , American film actor (born 1861)
December 25 – Fred Thomson , American film actor (born 1890)
Film debuts
References
^ "The Circus (1928)" . British Film Institute . Retrieved February 20, 2015 .
^ Neibaur, James L. (2015). James Cagney Films of the 1930s . London: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781442242203 .
^ Kiner, Larry F.; Evans, Philip R. (1992). Al Jolson: A Bio-Discography . Scarecrow Press. p. 107. ISBN 9780810826335 .
^ Furia, Philip; Patterson, Laurie (2010). The Songs of Hollywood . Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. p. 26. ISBN 9780199792665 .
^ Munden, Kenneth White (1971). The American Film Institute Catalog - Feature Films 1921-1930 . Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. WH1. ISBN 9780520209695 .
^ Brown, Allen (November 29, 2014). "The Story Behind MGM's Lion Logo" . Movie Review World . Retrieved February 20, 2015 .
^ Stafford, Jeff. "White Shadows in the South Seas" . Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved February 20, 2015 .
^ a b c Glancy, H Mark (1995). "Warner Bros Film Grosses, 1921–51: the William Schaefer ledger". Historical Journal of Film Radio and Television . 15 .
^ a b "Biggest Money Pictures" . Variety . June 21, 1932. p. 1.
^ a b "The All Time Best Sellers" . International Motion Picture Almanac 1937-38 . Quigley Publishing Company . p. 942. Retrieved April 8, 2018 .
^ a b The Eddie Mannix Ledger , Los Angeles, California: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study .