Cloudy Monday

When the Clouds Roll by (1919)
Monday June 2, 7:00pm The Paramount, Seattle

"Never despair, folks,
everything will be Jake ..
.. when the clouds roll by."

Youthful enthusiasm, show-stopping feats of athletic lunacy and hilarious, eye-catching gimmicks were Douglas Fairbanks’ stock-in-trade. When the Clouds Roll by (1919) opens cleverly with film of the crew as their names appear on screen.

A psychologist treating Daniel Boone Brown (Fairbanks) secretly plans to drive him insane in the name of science. After a prescribed bedtime supper of onions, lobster and mince pie, Daniel is chased through his stomach and across the countryside by his bizarre meal, in a brilliant surrealist nightmare.

Perpetually late for work, Daniel gets the sack, then wanders around until he literally bumps into Lucette (Kathleen Clifford), a girl as nutty as himself, and the two are instantly smitten. "Are you superstitious?" "Terribly so …" Needles!" "Pins!"

Her hayseed fiancé arrives just in time to spoil their plans. A frantic chase by boat and train concludes with a storm, a colossal flood and finally, true love.

Christmas at The Coliseum …

The Sunday Seattle Times advertised Douglas Fairbanks in, When the Clouds Roll by on December 20, 1919 at the Coliseum Theater under direction of Jensen and Von Herberg, with, "Keates on the Wurlitzer" featuring, "El Capitan … Sousa, Gypsy Love Song … Herbert, Sextette … Donizetti and Southern Melodies. Concert – 1:30 Today." Also on the bill, "Symphony Orchestra 31 artists, under Reginald Dunn, playing the overture, 1812, by Tschaikovsky," and "Coliseum’s News Service."

"Noah said it! When the clouds roll by, we ought to have good weather."

Seattle Theater Group, The Paramount and Trader Joe’s present Silent Movie Mondays: Douglas Fairbanks, June 2 – 30, 2008. Musical accompaniment for the series featuresDennis James on the Paramount’s original Publix 1, 4/20 Wurlitzer.