Souvenirs from Bologna (3)

Last month, we were at the Cinema Ritrovato Festival 2026 in Bologna. We bought books and vintage postcards at the film book fair, 'Mostra mercato dell'editoria cinematografica'. This month, we share our souvenirs in three posts at EFSP. For this third and final post, Ivo Blom selected his postcards of non Italian stars and films. Arrivederci, Bologna!


French photo card by Pathé Frères, Nizza. Still from Une partie de campagne (N.N., 1912), an early comedy not to be confused with the famous 1936 film by Jean Renoir. On Pentecost Monday, Mr. Balandard, having the day off, takes his entire family on a country outing to the outskirts of Paris. They rent a donkey-drawn carriage, and no sooner have they passed through the gates than the Balandards breathe in with delight the smoke-filled air from the factories and marvel at the barren landscape. Finally, they find an oasis of greenery where the Balandards settle down for lunch. Everything is going swimmingly, and the family is thoroughly enjoying their little outing when Auguste, the heir to the family name, has the misfortune of throwing his balloon into a tree, where it gets stuck. To console him, Mr. and Mrs. Balandard try—in vain, of course—to dislodge the balloon using various projectiles: leftovers from the feast, a hat, a jacket, an overcoat—they try everything, to no avail. So, after engaging in this costly endeavor, the Balandards find themselves as destitute as Job. And the return journey is a miserable one.


Italian postcard by Ed. Vettori, Bologna, no. 337. Eva May in Paganini (Heinz Goldberg, 1923). The boy may be Martin Goldberg, who plays Paganini's son. Conrad Veidt starred as Paganini.


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, no. 762. Photo: Films Paramount, Roma. Gloria Swanson and Mary Thurman in Zaza (Allan Dwan, 1923).


Italian postcard by G.B. Falci, no. 433. Gloria Swanson in Her Love Story (Allan Dwan, 1924). Italian title: Lagrime di regina (Tears of A Queen). 


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, no. 141. Photo: Films Paramount, Roma. Gloria Swanson and Charles de Roche(fort) in Madame Sans-Gêne (Léonce Perret, 1925).


Italian postcard by Ed. A. Traldi, Milano, no. 843. Photo: First National Pictures. Anna Q. Nilsson (1888-1974) was a Swedish-American actress, who peaked in the silent era. She became one of the first major stars in the US film industry and contributed in total about 200 silent movies.


Italian postcard by Ed. A. Traldi, Milano, no. 890. Photo: Le grandi films, Verginio Rebua, Milano. With her exotic looks, Nita Naldi was one of the most famous Hollywood vamps of the 1920s. She notably co-starred with Rudolph Valentino in three movies. Interestingly enough, she also had a leading role in an early Alfred Hitchcock film. About her career, she once wittily declared: "They had ermine tails and paradises in my hair and a couple of snakes coiled around my neck. In real life, believe me, any man of sensibilities would have run 20 miles to get out of my sight".


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, no. 605. Photo: MGM. Mae Murray and Roy D'Arcy in Valencia (Dimitri Buchowetzki, 1926).


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, no. 606. Photo: MGM. Mae Murray and Roy D'Arcy in Valencia (Dimitri Buchowetzki, 1926).


Italian postcard by Ballerini & Fratini, no. 607. Photo: MGM. Mae Murray and Lloyd Hughes in Valencia (Dimitri Buchowetzki, 1926).


German postcard, no. 9226. Photo: Zander & Labisch. Maria Orska (1893-1930) was a Russian-Jewish actress of the German stage and screen in the 1910s and 1920s
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German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 6465/1, 1931-1932. Photo: Fox. Elmer Goodfellow 'El' Brendel (1890-1964) was an American vaudeville comedian turned movie star. He is best remembered for his dialect routine as a Swedish immigrant. His biggest role was as 'Single-0' in the Sci-Fi musical Just Imagine (1930), produced by Fox Film.


Il Cinema Ritrovato 2026. Photo: Paul van Yperen.