I'd think the OUP would be the place to check. My guess is the film is the
Historical Pageant, but the line-up of big names who got honorary degrees
was impressive enough to attract attention.
I've spent some time looking for Twain in the 1897 Jubilee footage and
various film clips on youtube of NYC, ca 1900-1910, without luck. Especially
interesting are the clips of people streaming around on the sidewalks on 5th
Ave in 1905, but none are wearing white suits or smoking cigars. I've also
not found any footage showing his home at 21 5th Ave, or the hotel at the
other end of the block. I invite others with better eyes to look at these
films. You never know!
I have Art Young's original sketch of Twain charging up 5th Ave, his cigar
pointing the way, and a letter written by some young woman who saw Twain
walking along 5th Ave. She was walking with a friend who elbowed her and
pointed out Twain just as he passed by them in the opposite direction. She
said he was smaller, thinner, and less jolly-looking than she would have
expected and that his mustache was yellowed from smoking. Odd that she saw
his face clearly enough to notice his mustache, but did not recognize who he
was until her friend nudged her.
Kevin
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-----Original Message-----
From: Barbara Schmidt
Sent: Tuesday, March 08, 2016 9:03 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: "Mark Twain at the Oxford Pageant" (1907)--
theatrically-released film?
The article that Cindy referenced to the _British Trade Journal_, October
1, 1907, p. 377 titled "New Catalogues and Price Lists" is available on
google book search and does make reference to the Gaumont company filming
various pageants including Oxford and Mark Twain. I think it is likely
that such a film was made.
YouTube currently includes a number of films from 1897 of Queen Victoria's
Jubilee (which Mark Twain attended) and they appear to be filmed from
various camera angles. (Picking Clemens out of the crowd in those films
would be a supreme challenge.) The fact that footage from 1897 still
survives seems to offer hope that footage of the 1907 Oxford pageant may
also survive. It does seem unusual that Clemens would make no reference to
the filming in his autobiography. Was the film the historical reenactment
of British history that he described in his autobiography or the awarding
of his honorary degree, or scenes from both?
However, another more pertinent question is whether or not the entry for
the film on the IMDB website (which shows the company issued hundreds of
films) was compiled from a printed catalog or whether it was compiled from
some public or private archive of actual footage.
Barb
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