| Enlighten Thy Daughter | |
|---|---|
 Advertisement | |
| Directed by | Ivan Abramson |
| Written by | Ivan Abramson |
| Produced by | Enlightenment Photoplay Corporation |
| Starring | Frank Sheridan, Katharine Kaelred, Zena Keefe |
| Distributed by | Ivan Film Productions |
Release date |
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Running time | 7 reels |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
Enlighten Thy Daughter is a 1917 American silent drama film directed and written by Ivan Abramson.
The exploitation/sexual hygiene film warns against the dangers of premarital sex. Lillian Stevens (played by Zena Keefe) is young woman who ends up having sex with Harold Winthrop (played by James W. Morrison) after both are caught in an unexpected storm during a date. Of course, she gets pregnant. Mom does not realize Lillian has been out all night due to her own gambling addiction. The same young man later starts dating Lillian's cousin Ruth (played by Rubye De Remer). They get engaged, but Lillian's pregnancy—and the identity of the father—is revealed when she dies from an illegal abortion, and Ruth breaks off the engagement. [1]
The New York Times was critical of the film, calling it an "inept and melodramatic variant of the theme of the danger that lurks in the failure to apprise the young of dangers by which they are beset." [2] Other reviews were not as unkind, however, calling it a "remarkable drama, tense and thrilling," [3] and agreeing with the movie's advertising claim to be "the most tremendous moral force the screen has ever known." [4]
The movie was a box office success, and has been described as director Abramson's biggest hit. [5]
A remake of the same title was released in 1934 (the only Abramson film ever remade). [6]
Helen Dunbar was an American theatrical performer and silent film actress.
Rubye De Remer was an American dancer and actress in silent films. She began her stage career with the Midnight Frolic, a Florenz Ziegfeld show, in New York City.
Is Your Daughter Safe?, also known as The Octopus, was an early American silent exploitation film produced and directed by S. S. Millard. Written by Max Abramson, it was originally released in 1927 and presented around the United States in the following years.
Lillian Walker, born Lillian Wolke, was an American film actress of the silent era. She appeared in more than 170 films, most of them shorts, between 1909 and 1934.
The Scarlet Runner is a 1916 American drama film serial directed by William P. S. Earle and Wally Van. The film is considered lost.
James W. Morrison was an American actor and author. He appeared in 187 films between 1911 and 1927.
The Battle of the Sexes is a 1928 American comedy film directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Jean Hersholt, Phyllis Haver, Belle Bennett, Don Alvarado, and Sally O'Neil, and released by United Artists. The film was a remake by Griffith of an earlier film he directed in 1914, which starred Lillian Gish. Both films are based on the novel The Single Standard by Daniel Carson Goodman; the story was adapted for this production by Gerrit J. Lloyd.
Ivan Abramson was a director of American silent films in the 1910s and 1920s.
Zena Virginia Keefe was an American actress in silent film, active in the 1910s and 1920s.
The Echo of Youth is a lost 1919 American silent drama film written and directed by Ivan Abramson, and featuring Charles Richman, Leah Baird, Pearl Shepard, and Marie Shotwell.
The Auction Block is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Laurence Trimble and starring Rubye De Remer. The film was produced by Rex Beach, upon whose novel, The Auction Block, the film is based. It is not known whether the film survives. The film was remade as a comedy in 1926 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Charles Ray and Eleanor Boardman.
La Bohème is a 1916 American silent historical film directed by Albert Capellani and distributed by World Pictures. The star of this version is Alice Brady, whose father William A. Brady was the founder of World Pictures. This film is one of many silent versions, actually the third or fourth. Later silent versions appeared in 1917 and 1926 starring Lillian Gish. Director Albert Capellani's brother, Paul Capellani, who appears in this film, had made his own short version in 1912.
Tillie Wakes Up, also known as Meal Ticket, is a 1917 American slapstick comedy film, and a quasi-sequel to Tillie's Punctured Romance (1914) and Tillie's Tomato Surprise (1915) starring Marie Dressler as Tillie for the third time, albeit with a different last name in Tillie Wakes Up, which could be explained by the fact that her character has been married. The film was produced by Peerless Pictures Studios and World Film Corporation, directed by Harry Davenport, and written by Frances Marion from a story by Mark Swan. The supporting cast features Johnny Hines, Frank Beamish, Rubye De Remer, Ruth Barrett and Jack Brawn.
Young Mrs. Winthrop is a lost 1920 American silent drama film starring Ethel Clayton. It is based on the 1882 Victorian era Broadway play by Bronson Howard. The film was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures.
The Mills of the Gods is an American silent film. It was the first three-reel "feature" directed by Ralph Ince; production company Vitagraph entrusted him with this longer project after being impressed by his work on the two-reel Double Danger.
Marooned Hearts is a lost 1920 American silent drama film directed by George Archainbaud. It starred Conway Tearle and Zena Keefe.
What's a Wife Worth? is a 1921 silent American melodrama film directed by Christy Cabanne and starring Casson Ferguson, Ruth Renick, and Cora Drew. It was released on March 27, 1921.
Oliver Twist, Jr. is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by Millard Webb and starring Harold Goodwin, Lillian Hall, George Nichols, Harold Esboldt, Scott McKee, Clarence Wilson, and G. Raymond Nye. It is based on the 1838 novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. The film was released by Fox Film Corporation on March 13, 1921.
Enlighten Thy Daughter is a 1934 American drama film directed by John Varley and starring Herbert Rawlinson, Charles Eaton and Claire Whitney. It was shot at the Photocolor Studios in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. It is a remake of the 1917 silent film of the same title by Ivan Abramson.
Out of the Snows is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Ralph Ince and starring Ince, Zena Keefe and Gladys Coburn. It was filmed on location in Lake Placid, New York, with Whiteface Mountain as a backdrop.
