THIS EVENT HAS SOLD OUT

The ‘world re-premiere’ of two silent film versions of ‘The Old Homestead,’ both recently rediscovered and restored.

Event: The screenings are free, but advance tickets are required; click here for tickets www.showroomkeene.org. For more info, call (603) 352-2033.

Location: at the Showroom, 20 Commercial St., Keene.

Photo: An original release poster for ‘The Old Homestead’ (1922), produced by Paramount Pictures.

It’s been six years since local film historian Lawrence Benaquist located two early 20th century silent film versions of the “play of the century,” The Old Homestead, in Europe.  By the time the films were produced, the original rural melodrama had been seen by over twenty million Americans.  Thanks to a collaboration with the Historical Society of Cheshire County, Benaquist raised the funds to needed to return the films to the United States and have them restored.  On Saturday, February 7th at 3pm the public will have an opportunity to see these two films plus a short documentary about their history at the Colonial Theatre Showroom in Keene, NH.

The Old Homestead play was written in 1886 by Denman Thompson, a farmer-turned-actor-turned-playwright, from Swanzey, NH.  It not only became a sensation, but the play helped to shape the image of the Yankee farmer for an entire nation.  Thompson himself played the lead character, Uncle Josh, who must search for his son who, accused of a crime he did not commit, has fled to New York City.  Thompson’s play, full of wit, song, and rural humor and pathos, came to the American stage at a time when young people were fleeing the rural life for work in the big cities; when labor strife was rampant, high unemployment, financial depression, hoboes roaming the country.  The rural values featured in the play and subsequent filmed versions held a great appeal for the American audiences of the late 19th century.  Excursion trains often took people to Boston expressly to see “The Old Homestead.”

The recently rediscovered silent films were produced by Paramount Pictures—the 1915 version having been found in Paris and the 1922 version in Belgium.  Each has now been restored through a collaboration between the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Royal Film Archive of Belgium, and the Library of Congress. “The survival of one of these films would have been unlikely; the survival of both is near-miraculous,” says Benaquist, retired Professor of Film Studies at Keene State College.  The films will be screened in two parts at the Colonial Theatre’s Showroom.  Beginning at 3pm, attendees will view one of the silent films followed by a short documentary by Slate Roof Films on the history of The Old Homestead. Live music accompaniment will be provided by Jeff Rapsis, silent film musicologist and musician.  Historians Larry Benaquist and Howard Mansfield will lead a discussion following the viewing. Ticket holders who are interested in coming back at 7 pm will have the opportunity to watch the second silent film (45 minutes).

This event is generously sponsored by New Hampshire Humanities, Eppes-Jefferson Foundation, NH Charitable Foundation, Kingsbury Fund, Madelaine Von Weber, and the Steadmans.