Ben-Hur Chariot Race (1925) | Complete Chariot Race

(1925) Erstwhile childhood friends, Judah Ben-Hur and Messala meet again as adults, this time with Roman officer Messala as conqueror and Judah as a wealthy, though conquered, Israelite. A slip of a brick during a Roman parade causes Judah to be sent off as a galley slave, his property confiscated and his mother and sister imprisoned. Years later, as a result of his determination to stay alive and his willingness to aid his Roman master, Judah returns to his homeland an exalted and wealthy Roman athlete. Unable to find his mother and sister, and believing them dead, he can think of nothing else than revenge against Messala.
This film had an "extra" cast like no other. Many Hollywood stars showed up on set to watch the shooting and were pressed into service as extras, especially in the chariot race. In addition, many who would later become Hollywood's top stars, but who were at the time just struggling actors, were also in the crowd scenes as extras. Among well-known and soon-to-be-well-known names "working" in the film were John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Gary Cooper, Marion Davies, Myrna Loy, John Gilbert, Douglas Fairbanks, Clark Gable, Harold Lloyd, Carole Lombard, Janet Gaynor, Fay Wray, Mary Pickford, Colleen Moore, Lillian Gish, Dorothy Gish, Samuel Goldwyn and Rupert Julian.
According to The Guinness Book of World Records (2002), the movie contains the most edited scene in cinema history. Editor Lloyd Nosler compressed 200,000 feet (60,960 meters) of film into a mere 750 feet (228.6 meters) for the chariot race scene - a ratio of 267:1 (film shot to film shown).
#Ben-Hur#Chariot Race

[@RetiredSchoolCook]

😃Thank you 👍

[@Hunpecked]

Wow. Pretty good for 1925.

[@mtpocketswoodenickle2637]

So sorry Cecil B. Demille. Wasn't you!

[@teastrainer3604]

In 1968, at age 69, star Ramon Navarro was beaten to death by two hustlers who mistakenly believed he had a lot of cash hidden in his home.

[@oluhamilton2121]

Magnificent Hollywood FOOKERY. Wonder how many horses were sacrificed for the sake of realism.

[@jamessheridan4306]

I've seen figures of up to 150 but who's counting? This is the film that put the newly minted Metro Goldwyn Mayer on the map. Considering all those fabulous stars they would go on to use up like Kleenex and then kick to the curb once they'd finished with them, what are the lives of 150 horses give or take? That's Entertainment!

[@gpozdol7912]

The js were thick then.