Erich Von Stroheim's "Greed"
Greed's Missing Hours
My article on "Greed's" missing pieces.
Greed Reconstructed
The six hour reconstructed version.
Background
On various aspects of the story and film.
Greed Picture Book
Stills and photos from "Greed" and Von Stroheim's career.
Links
Silents, Von Stroheim, Pitts, Norris, San Francisco, et al.
 | Erich von Stroheim's 1924 epic motion picture "GREED" |
Greed's Six Missing Hours
by Michael Mills
Blind Husbands
Stroheim's reign as a Hollywood director began at Universal Studios in 1919 with Blind Husbands, and continued with such films as The Devil's Passkey, Foolish Wives, Merry Widow and The Wedding March.
The first two films were brilliant successes at the box office and gave Stroheim the power to make the films that he wanted on his terms and conditions. Only Chaplin and Griffith had such control, but the seeds of his eventual ruin were sown at Universal when Universal's chief, Carl Laemmle, took a trip back to Germany and left his 21 year old assistant Irving Thalberg in charge of Stroheim and Foolish Wives.
Foolish Wives
Von Stroheim spent large sums of Universal's scarce cash on Foolish Wives, and the studio's future was at risk if the film was not a box office success.
Von Stroheim was a perfectionist on the set, and his keen eye for reality, nuance and mood pushed cast and crew to their limits, though in retrospect his actors acknowledged that their best dramatic performances were done under his direction. Cast and crew believed that they were doing quality work that was several cuts above the usual studio fodder.
(Who were the Stroheim Stock Company?)
Universal's publicity department ballyhooed the $750,000 Stroheim spent on Foolish Wives in the press, dubbed it the First Million Dollar Picture and spelled his name with a dollar sign: $troheim. The film was also Irving Thalberg's baptism of fire and an experience he would neither forget nor forgive.
Merry Go Round
The Merry Go Round was Von Stroheim's next Universal film, though again he was spending money Universal could not afford to lose on his one production. Despite the fact that Von Stroheim's films brought in hefty windfalls, Thalberg saw no place for mavericks in his factory system. Thalberg sought control and authority over the rank and file employees at Universal, and when it was obvious that Von Stroheim would not submit, Thalberg replaced Von Stroheim with Rupert Julian.
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