Richard III (1912 film)

Richard III
Directed by	André Calmettes James Keane
Produced by	J. Stuart Blackton M.B. Dudley
Written by	James Keane William Shakespeare
Starring	Frederick Warde Robert Gemp
Distributed by	States Rights Independent Exchanges
Release date	October 15, 1912
Running time	55 min.
Country	France United States
Language	English
Budget	$30,000 (estimated)

Richard III is a 55-minute film adaptation of Shakespeare's play, starring Frederick Warde as the title character. The 1912 film, a French/U.S. international co-production, was produced by Film d'Art and released through the independent states rights film distribution system. The film was co-directed by French film director André Calmettes, who had previously directed the films The Assassination of the Duke of Guise (1908), La Tosca (1909 – based on the play by Victorien Sardou), and La Dame aux Camélias (1910) with Sarah Bernhardt. Richard III was adapted from Shakespeare's original and Colley Cibber's 1699 adaptation by playwright James Keane, who also served as co-director and actor (playing Richmond). The film was shot around Westchester, New York and City Island Long Island Sound.

When the film was released in the U.S., actor Frederick Warde would often appear at screenings, giving a short lecture, and then reading extracts from the play during the changing of the reels that were then titled as 'acts'. The film itself begins with Warde, in modern dress, emerging from behind a theatrical curtain and bowing, and concludes with him bowing again, and returning behind the curtain. A traveling actor, Warde discovered it was more economical to single-handedly tour with the film rather than perform the play with an entire theatrical company. The film also features two scenes from 3 Henry VI (the murder of Prince Edward and Richard's murder of Henry VI).

...
Wikipedia