Like each of Louise Brooks’ other films, Pandora’s Box was shown all around the world in the years following its 1929 release. In fact, it circulated for more than six years on five continents — all across Europe (where and when it wasn’t banned), in north Africa, in a few countries in Asia, in the United States, the Caribbean, and South America. This page presents a selection of newspaper advertisements for screenings of Pandora’s Box held between the years 1929 and 1932. Ads such as these help tell the story of Pandora’s Box — where and when it was exhibited, and how it was promoted. (The articles and reviews which often accompanied these ads tells the story of how the film was received.) These ads come mostly from Europe, but include a few advertisements from the former Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.), Cuba, and the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). This selection represents just a small fraction of the 200-plus advertisements gathered so-far in the Louise Brooks Society archive. These advertisements and others will likely be included in volume 2 of the forthcoming book, Around the World with Louise Brooks, by Thomas Gladysz. A bit of commentary accompanies each advertisement.
For more about the film, check out the Pandora’s Box (filmography page). The Louise Brooks Society is always on the look-out for additional material about Pandora’s Box, especially from Eastern Europe (and especially from the former Czechoslovakia and the former Yugoslavia, as well as Hungary, Romania, Greece, etc…) and elsewhere. Please visit the HELP WANTED page here on the LBS for notes on what is needed. If you have additional information or a scan you would like to share, please CONTACT the Louise Brooks Society.
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| A newspaper advertisement for the film’s premiere at the Gloria-Palast. Berlin, Germany – February 1929 |
Die Büche der Pandora played in theaters across Vienna, with multiple venues listed in this newspaper advertisement. Vienna, Austria – March 1929 |
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The former Free City of Danzig was a city-state under the protection and oversight of Die Büchse der Pandora debuted in Danzig at the Kammer Lichtspiele theater at the It is also notable in this ad that the film is given a variant title, (Lulu) Die Büchse der |
| Free City of Danzig – March 1929 |
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| Pandoras kaste enjoyed a week long run at the Splendid-Palace, an 824-seat venue with its own orchestra. This historic theatre, which opened in 1923, was the first in the Latvian capitol built to show motion pictures. Notably, Fricis Kortners is promoted as the film’s primary star. Riga, Latvia – March 1929 | Pandoras kaste was popular enough to return to Riga a few more times. This ad includes a coupon to the Stars theatre, which offered free admittance on Monday, May 21st to what it describes as a recommended film. Notably, Luizi Brooks un Franci Ledeveri are now promoted as the film’s primary stars. |
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| This ad appeared on the front page of the Kurjer Warszawski. Adam Furmanskiego was a noted Jewish conductor who led the orchestra at Lulu’s Polish premier. Later, he founded and for a time led the Jewish Symphony Orchestra in the Warsaw Ghetto, dying there in 1943. Warsaw, Poland – May 1929 |
Bi-lingual movie listings from one of Poland’s Jewish newspapers. Notably, it gives Brooks’ name |
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The Dutch-language newspaper De Indische Courant was published on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia). Over the course of a week at the end of 1929, it ran a series of teaser ads promoting De doos van Pandora, which was showing at the local Kranggan theater (or Bioskop Kranggan). The ad shown here, except for the use of Dutch, the same as those run earlier in some German and Polish newspapers.Notably, De Doos van Pandora was shown with “special music from our orchestra conducted by Martin Grobe.” Also accompanying the film was a Dutch newsreel titled Marine Manoeuveres, which showed images of the Graf Zeppelin airship over The Netherlands. |
| Batavia, Dutch East Indies – December 1929 |
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A “Programme formidable” or “great program” playing at a theatre whose name |
In Cuba, Pandora’s Box premiered at the Rialto in Havana, where it ran for a week. Along with an unusual spelling of Brooks’ name, the “sensational” story took on the title Lulu la Pecadora, which translates into English as Lulu the Sinner. April 1930 |
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| Lulu, in Cyrillic Лулу, is the third ad at the bottom in this Russian newspaper ad. Moscow, U.S.S.R. – June 1932 |
The same showing in the Moscow Daily News, an English-language newspaper published in the Soviet capitol. Lulu is being shown at the historic Hermitage theatre, home to Russia’s literary avant-garde. |