Sunday, January 23, 2011
Photos from the lost ending of The Sheik?
I have always been confused / curious as to information about these photos. Without trying to ruin the ending for anyone who has not seen The Sheik (come on, you have had 90 years to see this film!) . These two photos appear to be from some scene after the film ends, due to the fact we never see Valentino in this outfit. This leads me to believe either these photos are from a scene that was cut out of the film, or from the original film that was unedited. If anyone wants to chime in with their thoughts or knowledge, please enlighten me.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I found your answer! I received today a August 1922 issue of Picture Play magazine and in a Q & A department titled "The Picture Oracle" a reader asks why the ending of The Sheik was chopped off at her local theater. The answer Quote: You say the scene showed Diana watching at the bedside of the wounded Sheik. After that there should have been a scene showing Diana and the Sheik under a palm tree, the Sheik attired for the first time in modern riding clothes, when they discover that they love each other. Hero Sheik says, "I think I'll make a devil of a husband", but the radiant Diana replies, "Oh no, I am not afraid with your arms around me, my desert lover", or something to that effect. See all you missed? Perhaps the censors didn't approve of this, if you have censors in your town, or maybe this part of the film was spoiled in the projection machine. Anyhow, it was a shame to deprive you of the grand climax. Why don't you ask your theater manager about it? End quote.
ReplyDeleteMy question is, why is this ending still not available today? These magazines are priceless sources of information and my favorite collectible!!
Wow Ana! That is a great find! My thoughts are when a film is to be released on DVD, they use the best copy available, instead of the most complete, but who knows, that ending has to be out there somewhere. Now the next mission is to find that ending! Great job!
ReplyDeleteYou were absolutely correct about the ending and it's interesting to know that it was in fact in release with the extra scene. I wonder why they started cutting it out? I love that the editor even included the gist of the title cards! I read a super interesting bit of gossip
ReplyDeleteregarding his domestic help in one of these books the other day...fabulous!
Maybe the copy that had been found or stored by Paramount was cut, and no one was aware of it. Being the movie buff you and I are, we know that the silent films were all but forgotten for many years. Maybe no one realized this copy was missing the original ending.
ReplyDelete