Conrad veidt in the man who laughs 42cm x 30cm etsy. Begun as yet another fantastic vehicle for lon chaney, the drama instead stars conrad veidt, who possessed the one quality that chaney perhaps lacked. Based on the novel by victor hugo, the story centers on the extraordinary adventures of gwynplaine conrad veidt, whose wide and mirthless. Hans walter conrad veidt 22 january 1893 3 april 1943 was a german actor and trope maker extraordinaire. I am fin full respect of conrad veidts acting ability in this movie.
He is the man with a permanent smile, disfigured as a child because he was the unfortunate son of a unwise father. Painting a quick portrait of the man who inspired the creation of joker probably my favorite villain of all time. The man who laughs 1928 directed by paul leni and starring the outre emotive conrad veidt as the tragic gwynplaine and the lovely mary philbin as dea, the blind girl who touches his carved smile with her love. The original artwork was created as an interior illustration for the book a century of. A tribute to conrad veidt in the man who laughs 1928. In his first appearance he was a straight up murderer. Everything centers on the extraordinary face of gwynplaine, whose wide and mirthless grin inspired the joker character in the original batman comic books. The man who laughs is a superior costume drama with macabre overtones. The man who laughs 1928, directed by paul leni and carl.
Conrad veidt and mary philbin in the man who laughs, 1928 the man who laughs. Silent film with synchronized movietone soundtrack. Veidts american debut is as a man who with a permanent smile carved on to his face, joins a freak show. The third of four moody and mysterious films germanborn director paul leni made in hollywood was released a year after it was made in order to add music and sound effects. The man who laughs is one of conrads most popular and best known films in his entire career. The man who laughs is the forgotten silent film masterpiece directed by the german expressionist filmmaker paul leni. Gwynplaine becomes a traveling freak, selling his disfigurement for money, while falling in love with a blind woman. The man who laughs by paul leni conrad veidt, mary philbin.
Many stories predate heath ledger where the joker is certainly not just played for laughs. The highlyregarded paul leni film the man who laughs 1928 stars conrad veidt as the disfigured gwynplaine, hero of victor hugos novel. Directed by paul leni conrad veidt gwynplaine mary philbin dea based on the novel by victor hugo. The man who laughs 1928 conrad veidts gwynplaine and the. The man who laughs also published under the title by order of the king is a novel by victor hugo, originally published in april 1869 under the french title lhomme qui rit. The whole farrago is anchored by veidts sensitive rendering of the title character, so called because his mouth has been carved into a hideous grin by one of the. A tribute to conrad veidt in the man who laughs 1928 youtube. Grubb alexander, walter anthony, victor hugo, may mclean, marion ward, charles e. The man who laughs 1928, an american silent film directed by paul leni and starring conrad veidt, mary philbin and olga baclanova. One cant deny the striking resemblance of the joker to veidts gwyneplaine in the man who laughs. Veidt s appearance as gwynplaine is cited as a key influence on the character design of the comic book villain the joker. His performance is brilliant, and it is one of the few films in which connie will make you smile and cry from one scene to another.
Conrad veidt singswhen the lighthouse shines across the bay1933 duration. In this hightlydetailed sixth scale battle diorama, batman faces off against his archenemy the joker, one of the greatest comic book villains of all time. The story concerns erik conrad veidt, a superstar european illusionist who is about to embark on an american. His costumes in his last silent film made in hollywood are superb, and there are many ross postcards of him wearing a tuxedo and sometimes a. The character is the acknowledged inspiration for batman villain, the joker. Rent the man who laughs 1928 on dvd and bluray dvd. The way he worked with his eyes to portray the heros feelings should be a. It is slowly being rediscovered as the film that is credited for creating the image that bob kane. He also gets involved with beautiful claire, a coowner of the shipworks which will build the platform. Conrad veidt in bella donna fragments from the only copy of the film in existence by connieveidt. Sep 12, 2012 a powerhouse end justifies some clunky means in the man who laughs lhomme qui rit, jeanpierre ameris functional, liberal adaptation of victor hugos 1869 novel that builds stealthily to a. The man who laughs, at urban stages the new york times. In the man who laughs, veidt wore a mouth prosthetic complete with an array of teeth and a wide gumline, a plate much larger than his own, and hooks yes, hooks which held the extreme, exaggerated smile in place. It is the story of gwynplaine, the twoyearold heir to a rebel lord, who is abducted upon the orders of a vindictive monarch, and whose face is mutilated into a permanent grisly grin, then abandoned.
Jan 09, 2012 a documentary featured on the kino dvd edition about the making of the 1928 silent classic, the man who laughs. Conrad veidt should be a household name the way chaplin, garbo, and fairbanks are household names. The man who laughs is a magnificent classic based on the famous victor hugos novel. Rent the man who laughs 1928 starring conrad veidt and mary philbin on dvd and bluray. When a proud noble refuses to kiss the hand of the despotic king james in 1690, he is cruelly executed and his son surgically disfigured. The man who laughs 1928 conrad veidt, drama, horror. Dear conrad veidt fans, some months ago aol lost most of my conrad veidt site files, and they have not been able to restore them, which is why there are so many missing links on this site. A tribute to conrad veidt in the man who laughs 1928 duration.
The man who laughs 1928 unheimliche geschichten 1919 waxworks 1924 wilhelm tell 1923 movies ii. I would say that this is the motion picture in which he has the most expressive eyes. The man who laughs by paul leni conrad veidt, mary. Special thanks to marion goldmundlux for her contribution.
Conrad veidt stars as gwynplaine and olga baclanova stars as duchess josiana in the man who laughs. His performance is brilliant, and it is one of the few films in which connie will make. It takes place in england in the 1680s and 1700s, during the reigns of james ii and queen anne, respectively, and depicts englands royalty and aristocracy of the time as. In the man who laughs, veidt plays gwynplaine, a victim of a horrific act of torture and wickedness. Conrad veidt attended the sophiengymnasium secondary school in the schoeneberg district of berlin, and graduated without a diploma in 1912, last in his class of. This item has been crafted and compiled by ourselves and will be neatly presented on a high quality brand dvd with printed artwork on the disc, in a dvd case with artwork as shown. The man who laughs is one of conrad s most popular and best known films in his entire career. A documentary featured on the kino dvd edition about the making of the 1928 silent classic, the man who laughs. Feb 19, 20 victor hugos 1869 novel, the man who laughs, has been adapted several times for the screen, notably in 1928 by the german expressionist paul leni, with conrad veidt the cabinet of dr. The man who laughs conrad veidt by igor amidzic youtube. The man who laughs first published in 1869 is victor hugos scathing indictment of the injustice and inequality within britains political system. Conrad veidt and liane haid in lucrezia borgia 1922 1 duration. The man who laughs is a melodrama, at times even a swashbuckler, but so steeped in expressionist gloom that it plays like a horror film. The last performance was partly a sound film, but the soundtrack is considered lost.
A lot of footage is missing, including a memorable scene in which erik the great has a nervous breakdown and turns his room upside down, tearing his masks into pieces. Celebrity pilot ellissen conrad veidthans albers goes to considerable lengths to implement his engineer friend drostes plans for a midatlantic floating landingtakeoff strip for airplane refueling. The clip contains sequences from all the 50 movies i have with conrad veidt. But he looks like conrad veidt you know, the actor in the man who laughs so bill finger had a book with a photograph of conrad veidt and showed it to me and said, heres the joker. You might not know his name, but its very likely youve met someone based on one of his characters. The first of these successes was a filmed version of victor hugos the hunchback of notre dame in 1923, and the second was of gaston le rouxs the phantom of the opera in 1925. The film is an adaptation of victor hugos 1869 novel of the same name and stars mary philbin as the blind dea and conrad veidt as gwynplaine. Victor hugos 1869 novel, the man who laughs, has been adapted several times for the screen, notably in 1928 by the german expressionist paul. The tragic figure of veidts character, gwynplaine, is left with a morbid. German director paul lenis second film for universal, the man who laughs, remains a stirring experience. The man who laughs was the latest in a succession of largescale costume pictures with grotesque themes, which universal had struck gold with earlier in the decade. Created by bill finger, bob kane and jerry robinson the joker is inspired by actor conrad veidt in the 1928 film the man who laughs.
Youtube audio, fictional characters, fantasy characters. Conrad liked animals, theater, cinema, fast cars, pastries, thunderstorms, gardening, swimming and golfing. In 1919, he rose to fame playing cesareyes, that cesare, the somnambulist in the cabinet of dr. May 04, 2011 the man who laughs 1928 directed by paul leni and starring the outre emotive conrad veidt as the tragic gwynplaine and the lovely mary philbin as dea, the blind girl who touches his carved smile with her love.
Veidt s american debut is as a man who with a permanent smile carved on to his face, joins a freak show. Connie himself recorded some lines on the telephone, after he returned to germany. The second of german director paul lenis american films cat and the canary was the first, the man who laughs is a lavish adaptation of the novel. The performances of conrad veidt and brandon hurst are amazing and there are many touching and heartbreaking. As a young boy gwynplaine, the son of a disfavoured lord, becomes the victim of revenge.
For more information, check out the kino international web site. Although among hugos most obscure works, it was adapted into a popular 1928 film, directed by paul leni and starring conrad veidt, mary philbin and olga baclanova. The authorized english translation of victor hugos lhomme qui rit abridged by metcalfe wood. The man who laughs 1928 disfigured by a king as a child, an 18thcentury clown conrad veidt again becomes the pawn of royalty.
The man who laughs 1928 drama, horror, mystery silent. Gwynplaine is one of my favorite characters in literature, one of hugos more obscure works, leni captured. My portrait of conrad veidt in the classic silent horror the man who laughs. Posts about a mans past written by moniqueclassique. The frozen, disturbed, unwelcoming grin is obvious, but also the pallor, the hair and shape of the hairline, as well as the dashing actors strong, distinguished nose. With conrad veidt, mary philbin, olga baclanova, josephine crowell, george siegmann, brandon hurst.
A device he wore on his mouth gave the effect of a permanently and grotesquely extended smile, which meant that veidt had to rely on his eyes to express the range of emotions he goes through. Download yify movies acted by conrad veidt via yify. I believe ed brubakers the man who laughs plays him similarly, although i havent read it in awhile. Enter your email address to subscribe to this website and receive notifications of new posts by email. He followed this with a successful career playing tortured and.
In the man who laughs veidt gives what is, to say the last, a committed performance. Search, discover and share your favorite the man who laughs gifs. Lets not forget the original inspiration for the joker. Years ago i placed the backup files on zip discs which i no longer use. Jan 24, 2011 conrad veidt short documentary connieveidt. Images from the family life and friends of conrad veidt.
The man who laughs is a 1928 american silent romantic drama film directed by the german expressionist filmmaker paul leni. Scans of the german program of the lost silent film a mans past 1927 for this, see the other silent films page. Celebrity pilot ellissen conrad veidt hans albers goes to considerable lengths to implement his engineer friend drostes plans for a midatlantic floating landingtakeoff strip for airplane refueling. The killing joke has him tell jokes but mostly act in a brutal manner.