Romeo and Juliet (1916 Fox film)

Romeo and Juliet is a 1916 American silent romantic drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. The film was based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and was produced by the Fox Film Corporation.[1] The film was shot at the Fox Studio in Fort Lee, New Jersey,[2] and is now considered to be lost.[1][3]

Romeo and Juliet
Film poster
Directed byJ. Gordon Edwards
Written byAdrian Johnson
Based onRomeo and Juliet
1597 play
by William Shakespeare
Produced byWilliam Fox
StarringTheda Bara
Harry Hilliard
CinematographyPhil Rosen
Edited byAlfred DeGaetano
Distributed byFox Film Corporation
Release date
  • October 22, 1916 (1916-10-22)
Running time
70 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguagesSilent
English intertitles
Bara (center, seated) in a scene from the film

Competing versions of Shakespeare

This film and other Shakespeare-oriented pictures were released in 1916, the 300th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death. This film went up against direct competition from another feature-length Romeo and Juliet film from Metro Pictures starring Francis X. Bushman and Beverly Bayne.

In a recorded interview, Bushman states that William Fox had spies working for Metro, and stole some of the intertitles from the Metro version. Fox rushed his version into the theatres in order to capitalize on exhibiting his film first. Bushman recalled going to see Fox's Romeo and Juliet and was startled to see the intertitles from his film flash on the screen.

Plot summary

Cast

See also

References
  1. "Romeo and Juliet". silentera.com. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  2. Fort Lee: Birthplace of the Motion Picture Industry. Arcadia Publishing. 2006. p. 64. ISBN 0-738-54501-5.
  3. Romeo and Juliet (1916 Fox) at TheGreatStars.com; Lost Films Wanted (Wayback Machine)
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