| Ten Nights in a Barroom | |
|---|---|
 film still | |
| Directed by | Roy Calnek |
| Written by | Timothy Shay Arthur |
| Based on | Ten Nights in a Bar-Room 1860 play by William W. Pratt |
| Starring | Charles Gilpin Lawrence Chenault Myra Burwell |
| Music by | Philip Carli |
| Color process | Black and White |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 63 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent |
Ten Nights in a Barroom is an American film released in 1926.
Directed by Roy Calnek [1] and starring Charles Gilpin, the film had a temperance theme and an African American cast. It followed on Timothy Shay Arthur's 1854 novel Ten Nights in a Bar-Room and What I Saw There and William W. Pratt's play, as well as earlier film adaptations (listed at Ten Nights in a Barroom ) albeit with white casts. A man's drinking causes him to lose money, his business, and his daughter. [2]
Oscar Micheaux's film company was a rival and released films that competed with the newer film company's releases, in this case The Spider's Web , which was released a week after it debuted. The newer film company also poached actors from Micheaux including Chenault, and both firms claimed they had the greatest star. [3]
Released during the Prohibition era [4] the film was positively reviewed by critics. [5] It is the second of four films released by Colored Players Film Corporation and one of two, along with The Scar of Shame , that remain in existence. A copy of Ten Nights in a Barroom which came from 35mm film elements preserved by the George Eastman Museum was released on home video in 2016 by Kino Lorber as part of the five-disc Pioneers of African-American Cinema set. [6]
In 2025, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant." [7]
A man begins drinking heavily after he is swindled out of his mill. After his daughter is killed by a blow to the head during a bar fight, he is reborn and runs for mayor.