1927 IN FILM

Contents

Events

Top grossing films

Academy Awards

Films released in 1927

Short film series

Animated short film series

Births

Deaths

Events

★ January 10 - The film ''Metropolis'' by Fritz Lang premieres.

★ April 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx marries Marion Benda.

★ May 11 - The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was formed. The first Academy Awards (Oscars) went to films released in 1927 or 1928.

★ October 6 - ''The Jazz Singer'', starring Al Jolson and May McAvoy, is released. Although not the first 'talkie', ''The Jazz Singer'' is the first big hit and popularizes sound motion pictures.

★ FOX Films acquires the rights to the Tri-Ergon sound-on-film technology, which had been developed in 1919 by three German inventors, Josef Engl, Hans Vogt, and Joseph Massole.

★ Italian Alberto Rabagliati wins a Rudolph Valentino look-alike contest and moves to Hollywood to start his acting career.

Top grossing films

# ''The Jazz Singer''

Academy Awards

★ Best Production: '''Wings'''

★ Best Artistic Quality: '''Sunrise'''

★ Best Actor: 'Emil Jannings' for ''The Way of All Flesh'' and the 1928 movie ''The Last Command''

★ Best Actress: 'Janet Gaynor' for ''Seventh Heaven'' and ''Sunrise'', as well as the 1928 movie ''Street Angel''

Films released in 1927

★ '' (documentary)

★ ''The Cat and the Canary''

★ ''College'', starring Buster Keaton

★ ''The General'', starring Buster Keaton

★ ''Hula'', starring Clara Bow

★ ''Huntingtower'', by George Pearson (John Buchan novel)

★ ''It'', starring Clara Bow and Antonio Moreno

★ ''The Jazz Singer'', starring Al Jolson & May McAvoy

★ ''The Kid Brother'', a comedy starring Harold Lloyd

★ ''The Lodger''

★ ''London After Midnight'', starring Lon Chaney, Sr., Conrad Nagel and Marceline Day, directed by Tod Browning

★ ''Metropolis'', directed by Fritz Lang

★ ''Napoléon'' directed by Abel Gance

★ ''

★ ''The Private Life of Helen of Troy''

★ ''The Scar of Shame'', a race movie starring Harry Henderson and Lucia Lynn Moses

★ ''Seventh Heaven'', starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell

★ ''The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg'', starring Ramón Novarro and Norma Shearer, directed by Ernst Lubitsch

★ ''Sunrise'', starring George O'Brien and Janet Gaynor, directed by F.W. Murnau

★ ''Underworld''

★ ''The Unknown''

★ ''The Way of All Flesh'', starring Emil Jannings

★ ''Wings'', starring Clara Bow, Charles 'Buddy' Rogers, Richard Arlen and Jobyna Ralston

Short film series

★ ''Buster Keaton'' (1917-1941)

★ ''Our Gang'' (1922-1944)

★ ''Laurel and Hardy'' (1921-1943)

Animated short film series

★ ''Felix the Cat'' (1919-1930)

★ ''Aesop's Film Fables'' (1921-1933)

★ ''Ko-Ko Song Car-Tunes'' (1924-1927)

★ ''Alice Comedies'' (1924-1927)

★ ''Krazy Kat'' (1925-1940)

★ ''Un-Natural History'' (1925-1927)

★ ''Pete the Pup'' (1926-1927)

★ ''Inkwell Imps'' (1927-1929)

★ ''Oswald the Lucky Rabbit'' (1927-1938)

★ ''Newslaffs'' (1927-1928)

Births

★ January 17 - Eartha Kitt, actress, singer

★ February 7 - Juliette Greco singer, actress

★ February 20 - Sidney Poitier, actor

★ March 1 - Harry Belafonte actor, singer

★ March 20 - Cairbre (also known as Leo), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's lion mascot, born in Dublin Zoo

★ May 13 - Herbert Ross, director

★ June 23 - Bob Fosse, director

★ July 4 - Gina Lollobrigida, actress

★ July 6 - Janet Leigh, actress (d. 2004)

★ September 16 - Peter Falk, actor

★ October 14 - Roger Moore, actor

★ October 18 - George C. Scott, film and stage actor (d. 1999)

★ October 31 - Lee Grant, actress

Deaths

★ June 03 - Einar Hanson, Swedish actor

★ Robert McKim, June 4, actor (the villain in Fairbank's "Mark of Zorro")