Vintage original 8 x 10 in. US single-weight glossy proof photograph from the 1920's Irish bowery-themed silent film drama/romance, FOOL'S HIGHWAY, released in 1924 by Universal Pictures and directed by Irving Cummings.
 
The image features a very close shot of Mamie Rose (Mary Philbin) in a happy moment with gang member Mike Kildare (Pat O'Malley). This is a proof photograph, which features irregular black borders with credits from the film in the top border. It is in good- condition only.
 
*"Fools Highway is a 1924 American silent romantic drama film directed by Irving Cummings and starring Mary Philbin. The film was produced and released by Universal Pictures."
*(source: Wikipedia)
 
*"The 15 Sep 1923 Motion Picture News announced that Mary Philbin's first film under her new starring contract with Universal Pictures would be My Mamie Rose, with a starting date of “about September 7.” Other sources, including the 8 Sep 1923 Camera, placed the day at Monday, 9 Sep 1923. Two months later, the 10 Nov 1923 Motion Picture News noted that Philbin was completing the picture. The title was changed to Fool’s Highway, according to the 29 Dec 1923 Motion Picture News, but Universal generally dropped the apostrophe. For example, its early full-page advertisements, which ran in the trade papers, including the 9 Jan 1924 FD and 26 Jan 1924 Exhibitors Herald, spelled the title Fools Highway in prominent letters.
 
Set designer Elmer Sheeley built a Bowery street at Universal Studios, based on “old photographs and memories of many at the…studio,” including director Irving Cummings, the 20 Oct 1923 Camera reported. The set included landmarks, including a recreation of the interior of Barney Flynn’s saloon that was noted for its thousands of photographs of famous boxers. The Elevated—an elevated train—was added to the back lot neighborhood, and Universal’s chief engineer, Arthur E. Shadur, created lights inside the windows of tenement facades. The production peopled the street with “several hundred…quaint characters,” from pushcart vendors, Eastern European clothing merchants, pawnshop keepers, Bowery toughs, and “bloomer girls riding bicycles.” For scenes along New York City’s East River, Universal built a set at Los Angeles Harbor."
*(source: AFI Catalog of Feature Films)
 
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