Promotion of Signs.  By A. Long

Promotion of "Philly".  By A. Long

Not only is this another in the line of Cassavetes retrospectives in Philadelphia, but the International House has gone one step further in canonizing Cassavetes and turning the retrospective into a means of carrying on film history by showing Charles Kiselyak’s three-hour and twenty-minute documentary, “A Constant Forge”. The role of retrospectives like this one is not lost on the International House, as they begin their write-up on the event with “Since his death in 1989, recognition of John Cassavetes’ significance has grown steadily – a recognition that often eluded him in life.”  By G. Bond

This film received the highest audience rating of the entire film festival: 4.46 out of 5, causing it to receive the audience award in the “Danger After Dark Film” category.  By S. Plukas

Opening night film for the 2005 Philadelphia Film Festival.  The director of this film, Álex de la Iglesia, prior to “Ferpect Crime” had received the Phantasmagoria Award at the 2003 Philly Film Festival.  His 2005 opening night screening proved to be the most popular film shown for residents of Philadelphia.  There was an unusually high attendance for the film festival with a showing of 1,277 people.  It was actually the highest attendance of people for the entire history of the festival, breaking last years record of 905 for Robert Hall’s film Lightening Bug.  Even though this was a foreign film with subtitles, it was still highly appreciated which shows that Philadelphia film has begun to expand its interests internationally since last year when the opening night film was Spade, which was a U.S. based.  By S. Plukas

Although not produced in Philadelphia, Mad Hot Ballroom won the Audience award for best documentary. The film scored a 4.86 rating on a 5 point scale. The film recieved over 600 viewers in its showing. Mad Hot Ballroom caught the interest of many film goers in Philadelphia as well as around the country.  By S. Plukas

State Property II was one of two films in this years Film Festival that  took place in the city of Philadelphia. The film gives a straightforward look on crime that still takes place today in the 'rough' neighborhoods of Philadelphia. To an outside viewer, this gives a negative insight on Philadelphia culture. By S. Plukas

Stallone writes a very detailed synopsis of the training for his part as a boxer in Rocky.  The article explains how Stallone learned the art of boxing, the pain of filming his intense training sequences in Philadelphia, and how he came upon Carl Weathers for the role of Apollo Creed.  Stallone also details the arduous process of writing and choreographing the nine-minute final fight scene, which he claims took 35 hours of practice.  Obviously, the time spent in producing a film does not correlate to the length of the final product.  By D. Goldstein

This is a list of the filming locations for Rocky.  The list includes specific places such as Pat’s King of Steaks and the Philadelphia Art Museum.  Since Pat’s Steaks is such a landmark of Philadelphia, it makes sense that Alvidsen included it in the film.  By D. Goldstein

This is the original trailer for Rocky in WMA format.  It includes many shots of the streets of Philadelphia and showcases the movie’s gritty, documentary-style appearance.  By D. Goldstein

This article gives a brief history of Stallone’s creative inspiration for creating Rocky.  It also discusses the numerous problems that Alvidsen and his team ran into while filming the movie in Philadelphia, such as lack of a sufficient budget, extreme weather conditions, and lack of equipment.  The article describes how people threw food at Stallone while Alvidsen filmed Rocky jogging through the streets of Philadelphia.  It is apparent that most people did not know they were witnessing the production of a future blockbuster.  By D. Goldstein

This article includes some background history on the production of the film. The article discusses the director’s motivations for filming in Philadelphia and mentions some of the specific location in the city where the movie was filmed. The most interesting section of the article talks about the dilemma that arose out from filming the famous Philadelphia Art Museum steps scene. Rickey notes the use of the Steadicam as a suitable solution to this problem and gives a brief description of how the camera operated. The article also notes how much the audience loved the grittiness of the film that came as a result of its filming on the streets of Philadelphia. By D. Goldstein

This short article discusses the use of the Steadicam in the famous Philadelphia Art Museum steps scene in Rocky.  The article also notes that the use of the Steadicam in the fight scenes made the movie a sensational sports film.  It also reveals a production mistake in the film where the audience can see Garrett Brown filming the fight scene with the Steadicam.  By D. Goldstein

This webpage offers an extremely long and detailed summary of the movie Rocky.  It includes dialogue exchanges and detailed descriptions of setting, characters, props, etc. and would be a good tool for anyone who wants to look at important scenes and dialogue from the film without watching the movie or reading the script.  By D. Goldstein

This is Sports Illustrated’s original review of Rocky.  Coursen criticizes Rocky’s unrealistic boxing scenes and concludes the movie is purely fantasy.  He finds the scene of Apollo Creed’s entrance as George Washington crossing the Delaware particularly amusing.  From what I have read of Stallone’s interviews, his motive to create Rocky was not as an homage to the sport of boxing but rather as a Cinderella story of hope.  By D. Goldstein

This is Ebert’s original review of the film Rocky.  Most of the review is a synopsis of the movie.  Ebert compares Stallone to Marlon Brando from On The Waterfront and points out that Alvidsen purposely filmed Stallone in conspicuously deserted streets in Philadelphia in order to detract from the sensation of the film feeling like a documentary.  By D. Goldstein

Basic info on the Sam’s Place theater, along with historical photographs.  By A. Solether

Basic info on the Milgram theater, along with historical photographs.  By A. Solether

Basic info on the Sameric theater, and many photographs of Philadelphia’s most famous movie theater.  By A. Solether

Basic info on the Fox theater, along with historical photographs.  By A. Solether

Website advocating the historical importance of Philadelphia’s famous Sameric Theater (formerly Boyd Theater), including many pictures of the old picture palace. By A. Solether

By S. Stein

A 1955 promotional film for the Delaware Valley area made by the WPTZ motion picture unit.  An interesting film in and of itself, Miracle On the Delaware briefly features the Boyd Theater (then generally known as Philadelphia’s Cinerama Theater) in 1955.  By A. Migdail

This is a digital version of the book by Glasser.  It has detailed pictures of each theater from the 20^th century.  The website has tons of links to everything from a full history of each venue to a brief synopsis of the main figures involved with the theater over the years.  By W. Wright

This website is a very detailed examination of old film theaters that have come and gone.  It has a database of every theater worth mentioning in the Philadelphia area.  By W. Wright

This website has pictures of what the Keith Theater and many other picture palaces looked like back in the mid 20^th Century. It allows for a perspective of what Goldman actually did to the picture palaces and how the theaters’ evolved over time. By W. Wright

Provides facts about buildings in Philadelphia. By Peggy DeAngelo

A website that brings attention to the Boyd theater in Philadelphia and asks for support in restoring it.  By Peggy DeAngelo

Gives factual information about old theaters.  Also provides an open comment space where people involved with the theater or who were alive to experience the theater can write what they know.  The collection includes information and first hand acounts about old theaters in Philadelphia.  By Peggy

Acclaimed as perhaps the best theatre in Philadelphia in terms of acoustics and comfort level. Cites specific acts that performed there.  By Lee Forest Black

Opened in 1928 by the architect of the Philadelphia Art Museum, Horace Trumbauer as a vaudeville/movie house. Best recognized for its architecture and acoustics, suburban atmosphere.  By Lee Forest Black

The article details the public rejection of Freaks and helps explain why the film was not shown in any mainstream theaters in Philadelphia.  By Conor Fitzpatrick

Article written by Esther Pennington in 1915 when he visited a scene at Lubinville while recording. Lubinville was the city “back lot” the Lubin Manufacturing Company used for its films. By Lara Fine

Covers an overview of Sigmund Lubin’s career. Includes legal proceedings with Edison when Edison filed a copyright infringement suit in 1898. By Lara Fine

(courtesy of IMDB): As a young boy with crutches is selling newspapers, one of his customers drops some money. The child's father, standing nearby, reaches to take the money for himself, but the child hurriedly alerts the customer and returns it. The grateful customer treats the boy to some food and some new clothes, and then takes him home. When the child's mother dies soon afterwards, she entrusts the boy to the kindly man. But the boy's drunken father is not willing to let his son go in peace.

Popular early film from Sigmund Lubin, a film pioneer of Philly. By Lara Fine

Popular early film from Sigmund Lubin, a film pioneer of Philly. By Lara Fine

Describes the beginning of Lubin’s career in Philadelphia from his roots in Germany and optics. By Lara Fine

Contains four original films from Sigmund Lubin. By Lara Fine

(courtesy of IMDB): This is a very amusing scene, showing three little girls indulging in a pillow fight. The fight grows fast and furious until at length the feathers fly all around.

Popular early film from Sigmund Lubin, a film pioneer of Philly. This film is presumed lost but was seen a lot when it was available. By Lara Fine

(courtesy of IMDB): Frenchman Count Hardup advertises for a wife. He gets more than he bargained for when women start chasing him. He's caught by an old maid.

Popular early film from Sigmund Lubin, a film pioneer of Philly. By Lara Fine

Listed films of the Lubin Manufacturing Company 1902-1916. By Lara Fine

The fate of Lubinville 100 years after its prime is office buildings! By Lara Fine

Outline of Edison’s battle against the smaller motion picture companies, including the Lubin Manufacturing Company. By Lara Fine

History of the KCET studio lot where the original Great Train Robbery was filmed in Los Angeles and how Lubin recreated the scenes in Philadelphia. Additionally, there is more detail about the legal battle with Edison. By Lara Fine

Concise timeline of Sigmund Lubin’s life from 1851-1923. By Lara Fine

Even more details of the Edison-Lubin patent battle. Edison had some dirty practices too! By Lara Fine

Site contains a shot by shot comparison of Lubin’s copy of the Edison-Porter film of the same name. Sigmund Lubin was a notorious film plagiarizer. By Lara Fine

Thorough biography of Sigmund Lubin’s life and career in Philadelphia.  By Lara Fine

Photos of Sigmund Lubin and his Cineograph Theater in Philadelphia.  By Lara Fine