Beverly of Graustark | 1926 | Romance, Comedy

Title: Beverly of Graustark by Sidney Franklin | 1926 | Romance, Comedy Director: Sidney Franklin Studio: Cosmopolitan Productions Starring: Marion Davies, Antonio Moreno, Creighton Hale, Roy D’Arcy, Albert Gran, Paulette Duval Based on: Beverly of Graustark by George Barr McCutcheon Release Date: March 22, 1926 Runtime: 70 Format: Silent; 35mm; black-and-white with two-strip Technicolor ending; 1.33:1; English intertitles Country: United States Language: Silent Genres: Romance, Comedy, Drama --- Chapters: 00:00:00 Cousins arrive in Graustark 00:11:30 Alpine accident and a plan 00:24:00 The impersonation begins 00:37:00 Danton becomes protector 00:50:30 Conspiracy and duel 01:03:00 Technicolor finale --- Summary: American heiress Beverly Calhoun travels to the European kingdom of Graustark with her cousin, Prince Oscar. When Oscar is injured in a skiing accident, the regent persuades Beverly to impersonate him to prevent a coup. Her masquerade draws the attention of Danton, a mountain guide and leader of loyalists, who becomes her bodyguard. As plots by the pretender General Marlanax intensify, Beverly navigates court intrigue, romantic confusion, and escalating danger. Revelations about true identities culminate in a celebratory finale, underscored by themes of duty, performance, and the fluidity of gender roles in a royal farce. --- Background: Produced by Cosmopolitan Productions and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the film adapts George Barr McCutcheon’s popular Graustark series. Directed by Sidney Franklin, with art direction from Cedric Gibbons and Richard Day, it was shot at MGM’s Culver City studios with location work in the Sierra Nevada. Filming briefly paused in January 1926 due to Marion Davies’s bout of influenza. A final sequence was photographed in two-strip Technicolor, and the film opened nationally in March 1926 with a New York engagement at the Capitol Theatre in April. --- Trivia: The film’s final reel includes a two-strip Technicolor sequence, an early use of color in a major silent-era feature. Prince Oscar was initially reported for another actor before Creighton Hale assumed the role during production. Irving Thalberg served as supervising producer, reflecting MGM’s emphasis on polished star vehicles for Marion Davies. The film was a financial success for its time, earning a strong box office relative to its budget. The Library of Congress completed a 4K restoration from a 35mm nitrate print, and a home-video edition with a new score was later issued. --- Public Domain / Rights: Original Release: March 22, 1926 Original Studio / Distributor: Cosmopolitan Productions / Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Copyright Status: Public Domain Renewal: Unknown --- Hashtags: BeverlyOfGraustark MarionDavies SilentFilm PublicDomain ClassicCinema 1926 MGM Technicolor SidneyFranklin CosmopolitanProductions Source page: https: //commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beverly_of_Graustark_(1926)_by_Sidney_Franklin.webm Direct media URL: https: //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Beverly_of_Graustark_%281926%29_by_Sidney_Franklin.webm