Lillian Gish in Romola (Program)

Lillian Gish in Romola

Her every characterization is attempted with her own persuasive charm and wistful beauty … Always she reveals suffering and sacrifice, not of the flesh but of the spirit … Never has Lillian Gish failed to create a role which did not become a classic.

Lillian and Dorothy Gish

Wherever motion pictures are shown in the world over, the name GISH stands for pre-eminence. In six of the nine or ten truly great pictures thus far made, Lillian Gish created roles which will live forever. What an artiste! Never will the world forget her inspired acting. In two of these immortal classics, “Hearts of the World” and “Orphans of the Storm,” her talented sister, Dorothy Gish, shared the honors. In “Romola,” they are together again, and they are more wonderful than ever before.

There never was such a praise!

“I like ‘Romola’ better than ‘The White Sister’ (Louella O. Parsons in NY American)

“Lillian Gish’s ‘Romola’ is a beautiful portrait.” (Peter Milne in N.Y. Morning Telegraph)

“Fine Work that – work that brought a cheer from the audience.” (Mildred Spain in N.Y. Daily News)

“Amazingly wondrous to behold! … To the end, the charm of the Gishes holds one.” (Allene Talney in N.Y. World)

“Romola is a touching story … a delicate, beautifully-shaded pastoral.” (N.Y. Evening Post)

“Lillian Gish in the title role seems to step out of an artist’s canvas … while Dorothy Gish is excellent as the peasant girl.” (Rose Pelswick in N.Y. Eveining Journal)

“Lillian Gish brings to ‘Romola’ all the wistful charm and the indefinable sense of pathos which make her unique among film stars.” (Helen Bishop in N.Y. Evening Journal)

What the great of Europe say about “Romola”

Georges Clemenceau, former premier of France: “Such a work of art merits every success.”

Dr. Guido Biagi, director of the Laurentian Library Florence: “As editor of the novel ‘Romola’ I desire to express my appreciation that you came to Florence where the scenes of the book actually were laid and here reproduced them for the screen. I congratulate you upon the beauty and sumptuousness with which the production has been staged.”

Leonce Benedite, director of the Luxembourg Museum and the Rodin Museum, Paris: “It is notable for its settings, its costumes and its vibrant semblance of reality.”

Santiago Alba, former minister of Fine Arts in Spain: “It is a page of the most delicate art and appeals like few other films.”

Giovanni Poggi, director of the Uffizi Gallery, Florence: “In the film ‘Romola’, the costumes, the principals and the ensembles seem to have been studied with the greatest possible care. Bravo for the beautiful work of Inspiration Pictures.”

Firmin Gemier, director of the Odeon National Theatre, Paris: “I must tell you how marvelous I think ‘Romola’ is. Your reconstruction of the golden age of Florence gave me one of the greatest surprises of my life. It is a glorious moment from an epoch in which all true artists, all people of culture, all those who have loved and thought passionately, would like to have lived.”

P. Bonnard, one of the greatest living French painters: “It will awaken longings for the glorious past and enthuse all souls that follow ideals.”