Ben Hur (1907 film)
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Ben Hur is a 1907 American silent drama film set in ancient Rome, the first screen adaptation of Lew Wallace's popular 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. Co-directed by Sidney Olcott and Frank
Scene of Judah Ben-Hur (right) discussing with his sister Rome's misrule of Jerusalem
William S. Hart's casting in the film remains unverified. This image likely relates to promotion of his many performances as Messala in the 1899-1900 Broadway production of Ben Hur.
Roman-era sets built by Pain's Fireworks Company at Manhattan Beach, c. 1903; the company where the film's co-director, Frank Oakes Rose, worked as a stage manager (Library of Congress Collection)
Advertisement in The Moving Picture World, December 1907
William S. Hart
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William Surrey Hart was an American silent film actor, screenwriter, director and producer. He is remembered as a foremost Western star of the silent era who "imbued all of his characters with honor a
Ben Hur (1907 film)
…Herman Rottjer as "Chief Chariotier" [sic] and possibly as Judah Ben-Hur William S. Hart as Messala (uncredited and unverified involvement in film) Gene Gauntier in unverified role…
Hart, c. 1918
Hart on the June 1917 cover of Motion Picture Magazine
William S. Hart and Winifred Westover in John Petticoats
Portrait of Hart in the June 1916 issue of The Photo-Play Journal