January, 2005 -

Delta Entertainment is producing a new full-length documentary film about Douglas Fairbanks, to accompany the re-release of several of the great Fairbanks costume dramas on home video this fall. The documentary features interviews with museum curator Keri Leigh, and will include photographs and memorabilia from our collections. More information will become available as the release date nears - please check this page for updates. Also, see Delta's other silent and classic film offerings here.

Did you know that Douglas Fairbanks Sr. was the inspiration for the original Superman? And Batman, too? According to comic strip creator Bob Kane (who was a huge Fairbanks fan in his youth), Fairbanks was not only the role model for Superman in 1937, but two years later, Batman took shape in the form of a modern-day winged "Zorro," complete with black cape and half-mask! Kane even claimed that he based the character of Batman's trusty sidekick "Robin," after Fairbanks' "Robin Hood." Robin came out of his Kane's youthful fantasies of being a kid who would fight at the side of his hero Douglas Fairbanks.  Robin was even dressed in the green tunic, cape and shoes of Robin Hood' s era.

New Wave Entertainment is now producing a new documentary film called The History of Batman, to be released later this year by Warner Home Video, along with a new DVD box of all the Batman films. Look for Fairbanks to be featured prominently as the inspiration for two of the greatest superheroes of all time in this exciting new documentary film.

February, 2005 -

The Douglas Fairbanks Museum is open to the public by appointment only, Mon-Fri.., 1-6 p.m. We are also open on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of each month from 2-6pm. You can email us or call 512-233-2214 to set up an appointment if you live in the Austin, TX area or plan to be visiting here soon. Please allow as much notice as possible, and let us know your specific research need so that we may pull the articles of interest for you in advance of your visit.
 

March, 2005  -

A new in-depth feature on Fairbanks article has been added to our news section, written by museum volunteer and silent film historian Barbara Burkowsky. The story, entitled He Comes Up Smiling - Douglas Fairbanks: His Films, Life and Legacy, can be read in it's entirety by clicking here. Look for more of Burkowsky's articles about Doug in the months ahead.
 
 

One of Fairbanks' best early westerns, long unavailable on home video, is finally available again! WILD AND WOOLY (1917) has been re-issued as part of a double feature DVD with SKY HIGH (1922) by Reel Classics Entertainment. Directed by John Emerson, story by Anita Loos. Starring Douglas Fairbanks, Eileen Percy, Sam deGrasse, Charles Stevens, Monte Blue and Bull Montana. Fairbanks is an Easterner in love with the West and when he finally takes a trip out west to oversee his father's railroad, he gets more than he bargained for. Lots of action and comedy. Visit Reel Classics website here.

Mary Pickford (who was Mrs. Douglas Fairbanks from 1920-1936 and his business partner in United Artists) will be profiled in a new documentary film produced by WGBH Boston. It will air on PBS stations as part of "The American Experience" series across North America on April 4, 2005. For more information, please visit the PBS website.
 

April, 2005 -

Douglas Fairbanks in Robin Hood will be screened as part of the NY Silent Film Festival at the Lafayette Theater in Suffern, New York on Sunday April 10, 2005. Dennis James of Silent Film Concerts will accompany the film with a solo theatre
organ transcription of the original 1922 orchestral score by Victor Schertzinger that was composed for the premier of the film.
 
 

The Martin and Osa Johnson Safari Museum in Chanute, Kansas will hold a very special screening of Around The World in 80 Minutes with Douglas Fairbanks as part of their 2005 Film Festival on Saturday, April 16. This rarely-seen "all-talking" travelogue, produced by Fairbanks in 1931, documents his adventures in exotic locales such as India, Africa, the Philippines, and the Orient. Directed by Victor Fleming. There will be an afternoon matinee screening of a short documentary about Douglas Fairbanks at 3pm, and the evening feature will be introduced by Dr. John Tibbetts, Associate Professor at Kansas University and author of His Majesty The American: The Films of Douglas Fairbanks.

The Douglas Fairbanks Museum supports this project by donating several film stills and artifacts from our collections for use in the promotion, production and screening of this rarely-seen Fairbanks classic.

For more information about the film festival, please visit the Safari Museum's website.
 

May, 2005 -

On Monday, May 23, 2005, the Douglas Fairbanks Museum will hold our annual event to commemorate Doug's 122nd birthday. This year, we will be celebrating from 5-9pm with gallery tours, refreshments, live music, and a masquerade ball. The theme for this year's party is "Zorro," as the release of the new Zorro sequel is coming this fall, and we encourage everybody to wear a costume that fits this Hispanic flavor - we will even have a costume contest for the best Zorro!

On his birthday, we will also be opening a very special new exhibit ("The Sword of Zorro's Father") about Fairbanks'  father, H. Charles Ulman, who, despite his wandering ways, cast a long shadow over the actor's life. Museum curator Keri Leigh will present a talk about Fairbanks' mysterious and fascinating father, and why Douglas Fairbanks spend the rest of his life trying to forget him. In addition to rarely-seen photographs of Fairbanks as a little boy, his brother Robert, his mother Ella, and H. Charles Ulman, the exhibit will also feature relics from his childhood and his parents' lives.

The crowning centerpiece of this exhibition will be the display of his father's commemorative Civil War sword, engraved in the name of Union Army Captain H.C. Ulman and seen by the public here for the very first time. The sword is on temporary loan to the museum from the collection of Civil War historian Thomas L. Jones, who co-authored an article entitled The Sword of Zorro's Father with Fairbanks Museum curator Keri Leigh for the Winter 2004 issue of North South Civil War Magazine.

To learn more about Hezekiah Charles Ulman, and his profound influence on his famous son's life and work, you can read the complete article, The Sword of Zorro's Father, below. It is 7 pages long. (From the Douglas Fairbanks Museum Archives

"The Sword of Zorro's Father" exhibit will run from May 23-Sept. 15, 2005.

If you missed the opportunity to see the exhibit in person, you can see photos and highlights from the program HERE.

For more information, contact the Douglas Fairbanks Museum.
 
 

Zorro, the famed masked man first brought to the screen by Douglas Fairbanks in 1920, famous for fighting social injustice and for slashing a "Z" with his sword, is still making his mark on popular culture. Out this month is Zorro (HarperCollins), a new novel by acclaimed author Isabel Allende. More books, a movie, toys, games, comics and even a musical also are planned. Here's what Zorro fans have to look forward to in the months ahead:

• A three-part Zorro comics series, Scars, from Papercutz, will come out in May, June and July; a graphic novel version is scheduled for release in October.

• The Mark of Zorro, the original novel by Johnston McCulley that started the legend, will be reissued by Penguin in August.

• The Zorro Television Companion: A Critical Appreciation, by Gerry Dooley, tentatively is set for August publication by McFarland and Co.

• Play sets and action figures, including Zorro and his horse, Tornado, will be in stores in September.

• The Legend of Zorro, the film sequel to The Mask of Zorro, starring Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones, has wrapped shooting and is due to be released in October.

• Sony Pictures Digital, which has brought other film titles to the mobile gaming market, including Spider-Man and Charlie's Angels, will offer Zorro games, wallpaper and even ring tones to coincide with the movie's release in the fall.

•Young Zorro, a children's novel by Jan Adkins, is due from HarperCollins in January.

•Zorro, the Musical tentatively is scheduled to premiere in London's West End in February 2006. It will feature original music by the Gypsy Kings.

June, 2005 -
 

The latest essay on Fairbanks from the prolific pen of silent film historian and museum volunteer Barbara Burkowsky has just been published in our permanent archives. Douglas Fairbanks - The Father of Action Adventure Films examines each his classic works from the 1920s, and describes how Fairbanks carefully crafted the first enduring action hero of the movies.
 
 

Grapevine Video is back in action again, now making several of their old VHS titles available on DVD. This is good news for Fairbanks fans, as Grapevine has long been the only source for many of his early silent comedies, and the company's reported demise a couple of years ago left silent film enthusiasts wondering where they would go to find prints of their favorite films. The latest release from Grapevine Video is Fairbanks' American Aristocracy (1916), with Jewel Carmen, for the first time ever on DVD. Grapevine says they plan on making more of the early Fairbanks titles available on DVD in the months to come, so check this page often for updates.

July, 2005 -

Delta Entertainment is planning to release The Great Swashbuckler: Douglas Fairbanks, in July, 2005. The Great Swashbuckler series will kick off with the initial release of DVD double feature of The Three Musketeers and The Iron Mask in July, followed by more Fairbanks classics and a new documentary film in the fall. The exact release dates for the other Fairbanks titles and the new Delta documentary have not yet been announced - check this page often for news and updates.
 

Summer, 2005 -

The renowned early music ensemble Hesperus has is now presenting The Robin Hood Project in select cities throughout the United States. The group performs live with the original 1922 film Douglas Fairbanks In Robin Hood, providing an eclectic new/old score of period music from the middle ages and the Renaissance. The Robin Hood Project has already enjoyed successful engagements at Queens University in Charlotte, NC,  Early Music Now in Milwaukee, and the Grand Teton Music Festival in Wyoming. Hesperus is now planning future tour dates for Robin Hood. Request it for a theatre in your area!

For more information about The Robin Hood Project and Hesperus, visit the group's website.

September, 2005 -

Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. makes a cameo appearance in the new Jim Jarmusch film, "Broken Flowers," in theatres now. At the start of the movie, Fairbanks as the aging Don Juan flickers on the big screen t.v. in the darkened living room of the aging Don Johnston (Bill Murray). The film clip is from Fairbanks' farewell film, 1934's The Private Life of Don Juan, directed by Alexander Korda.
 
 

Delta Entertainment has released the first in their new DVD series, Douglas Fairbanks - The Great Swashbuckler. The first edition contains a double-feature of two Fairbanks favorites: The Three Musketeers (1921) and The Iron Mask (1929). Also included is the long-awaited full-length new documentary film, Intimate Biography Series: Douglas Fairbanks. This new release contains more than 5 hours of movies and extras! All this for less than $10 bucks. Wow!

Mueum volunteer Barbara Burkowsky has written an in-depth review of this new Fairbanks collection and documentary, which you can read here. Also, look for her review of The Great Swashbuckler on Amazon.com!

Look for more releases in this Douglas Fairbanks - The Great Swashbuckler series in the months ahead. Delta plans new releases of The Black Pirate, The Thief of Bagdad, Robin Hood, and more Fairbanks classics in future editions.

Douglas Fairbanks - The Great Swashbuckler is available on DVD (not yet available in VHS format) through web merchants such as Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Blockbuster, or from a retail store near you. This title can also be rented through Netflix.com.
 
 

"The Sword of Zorro's Father" exhibit closed on September 15. If you missed it, click here for photos and highlights.

October, 2005  -

The "Zorro" theme continues in our next exhibit, "The Legend of Zorro," which reveals Douglas Fairbanks' vision and genius in the creation of the Zorro character on the silver screen. From the 1919 short story by Johnston McCulley, Fairbanks adapted the mysterious masked, caped crusader role and made the first Zorro film, 1920's The Mark of Zorro, and again reprised his role in 1925's Don Q. - Son of Zorro.

Now, 85 years since Douglas Fairbanks first brought Zorro to the screen, and 80 years after he released the first Zorro sequel, Don Q. Son of Zorro, the museum commemorates these important anniversaries with rare original movie posters, film stills, books, documents and memorabilia on display for a limited time.

This new exhibit explores Zorro's onscreen origins and continuing popularity right up to the new Sony Pictures production of the same title. "The Legend of Zorro" exhibit runs October 1, 2005 through Jan. 30 ,2006.

If you can't make it to Austin to see the exhibition in person, you can take a virtual tour of the exhibit online HERE.
 

The Legend of Zorro, the blockbuster sequel to 1998's The Mask of Zorro, brings Catherine Zeta-Jones and Antonio Banderas together again in a new adventure. Filmed in Mexico last fall, this long-awaited sequel already promises to be full of thrills and stunts faithful to the original Fairbanks portrayal of the character. The museum plans to book group seating for museum members and Fairbanks fans at the nearby Tinseltown North movie theatre - if you'd like to be part of the opening night party, call us at 512-233-2214 or email to reserve a seat.

The fifth biennial meeting of the International Society for Robin Hood Studies will take place at the University of Delaware from 29 Sept. to 1 Oct. Events planned for the occasion include a showing of the Douglas Fairbanks silent film with live musical accompaniment by the acclaimed Early Music group, Hesperus; lectures on all aspects of the legend throughout the ages; a small book exhibit in the Library; free film and video showings in the Library Media Room (separate leaflet available); and a poetry reading, with music, of Daniel Hoffman’s A Little Geste.

November, 2005 -

The Historic Elsinore Theatre in Salem, Oregon features Douglas Fairbanks as "Don Q. - Son of Zorro" in its annual clasic film series on November 9th. Includes live accompaniment by Rick Parks on the Mighty Wurlitzer Organ. All films are $5 each and tickets can be purchased at the theater box office, at TicketsWest locations and at www.elsinoretheatre.com

The box office and doors open at 6 p.m. and the movies start at 7 p.m. Historic Elsinore Theatre is at 170 High St. SE, Salem. Call: (503) 375-3574. Here is the schedule:

Nov. 9: "Don Q, Son of Zorro," (1925). Douglas Fairbanks plays both Zorro and his son in this sequel to "Mark of Zorro."

December, 2005 -

Several biographies of Douglas Fairbanks have been published through the years, but who could tell the story better than the man himself? The Douglas Fairbanks Museum combed our archives to assemble a complete collection of the writings of Douglas Fairbanks, telling his remarkable life story In His Own Words.

In addition to being the author of his own photoplays and publishing two books, Fairbanks also wrote hundreds of articles for newspapers and magazines during his career. Compiled into one volume, these stories make for a fascinating read - even more so considering most of them have not been seen by the public since their initial publication nearly a century ago.

From his first published fictional short story in 1912 to his own autobiographical accounts, random thoughts, tall tales and advice, rare correspondence, and his original story treatments for classic films like The Three Musketeers, Robin Hood, The Thief of Bagdad, and The Black Pirate, this book demonstrates that Fairbanks was a writer of great depth, sincerity, humor and appeal. This talent often gets obscured by his fame as an actor, producer, and Hollywood visionary, but reading his words all these many decades later brings us a fresh perspective on the man that no other biography can quite capture.

Edited and Introduced by Keri Leigh, Curator of the Douglas Fairbanks Museum. Images from the museum's archives.

Douglas Fairbanks - In His Own Words will be available for order on July 15, 2006 through Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, or a fine bookseller near you. Click here to purchase a copy of "Douglas Fairbanks: In His Own Words."

The official launch/preview party will be May 23, 2006, to coincide with the 123rd birthday of Douglas Fairbanks. Also, be sure not to miss the accompanying exhibit, Douglas Fairbanks - In his Own Words at the museum in the summer of 2006. . Check this page for more information as details become available.

The Douglas Fairbanks Museum will be open through December 20th. We will then close to the public on December 21st and remain closed through the Christmas holidays. We will be open from Dec. 26-30 from 2-6pm daily. Normal hours of operation will resume on Monday, January 2, 2006.
 

For more information, please call 512-233-2214 or email the museum.

* Museums, Archives, Film Societies, and Festivals are encouraged to keep us informed of your upcoming Fairbanks film screenings, or other events! Please email press releases and announcements to: FairbanksMuseum@cs.com.

All text and images copyright 2005, The Douglas Fairbanks Museum.
www.DouglasFairbanks.org