Feathers (Tanzania and Sudan: 1929). After the end of the silent era, foreign locations did not become part of American filmmaking again until the 1950s. William Powell later described the production of Romola as a 29-week comedy of errors starting with the capsizing of the boat for the pirate sequence at the onset of filming. Because no one in the company spoke Italian, the quest to obtain tights for Powell and Colman culminated in a two-week detour to Milan to a theatrical tailor for La Scala Opera House. When Powell and Colman returned to the sea-side town of Livorno, they found the film company had departed without leaving a forwarding address. Powell and Colman cabled company offices in London and New York but ran out of money for food while awaiting a response. Powell described it as the hungriest time of his life, when he envied town animals who had owners to feed them. Thankfully, the shoot later became an idyll, with plenty of time to savor the pleasures of Florence and learn Italian, thanks to a relaxed production schedule. Preservation A print of the film survives at the UCLA Film and Television Archive. See also Lillian Gish filmography References External links 1924 films 1924 drama films 1920s independent films Silent American drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films American independent films Films shot in Italy Films set in Florence Films directed by Henry King Films with screenplays by Jules Furthman Films based on British novels Cultural depictions of Girolamo Savonarola Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1920s American films