His Birthright

His Birthright
Film poster.
Directed by	William Worthington
Story by	Sessue Hayakawa Denison Clift
Produced by	Sessue Hayakawa
Starring	Sessue Hayakawa Marin Sais Howard Davies Mary Anderson Tsuru Aoki
Cinematography	Robert Newhard
Music by	Joseph O'Sullivan "Nipponese"
Production company	Haworth Pictures Corporation
Distributed by	Mutual Film
Release date	September 8, 1918 (1918-09-08)(USA)
Running time	50 minutes
Language	Silent (English intertitles)

Still of Sessue Hayakawa as Yukio.

His Birthright is a 1918 American drama film directed by William Worthington for Haworth Pictures Corporation. Sessue Hayakawa produced the film and played the lead role. ^{[1] [2]} The rest of the cast includes Marin Sais, Howard Davies, Mary Anderson, and Hayakawa's wife Tsuru Aoki. ^[3]

Plot

As described in a film magazine, ^[4] Yukio is a Japanese-American whose father, a naval officer, failed to return to his mother after the honeymoon. The mother commits harakiri and the son becomes determined to kill his father and goes to America. Influenced by a female German spy, Yukio steals an important document from his father, who is now an admiral. Rebuffed by the woman and ashamed to have sunk to the level of a thief, he then decides to recover the paper. He does so after a desperate battle with the woman's colleagues and returns the document to his father, who descends upon the place with police and captures the spies. Yukio announces that he came to take his father's life, but the admiral tells him that he loved Yukio's mother and did not return to her as he could not find her. Taking his place as the admiral's son, Yukio is now determined to join the U.S. army and fight in World War I, a cause in which Japan and America are united.

Cast

• Sessue Hayakawa as Yukio
• Marin Sais as Edna Kingston
• Howard Davies as Adm. John Milton
• Mary Anderson as Helen Milton
• Tsuru Aoki as Saki San
• Sidney De Gray as James Barnes (credited as Sydney De Grey)
• Harry von Meter as Adm. von Krug
• Mayme Kelso as Mrs. Harland Smith

Release

Soon after the New Orleans release of His Birthright, the film was seized by Naval Intelligence officers at the Palace on September 18th. A complaint was lodged by friends of Rear Admiral John B. Milton, stationed at New Orleans Navy Yard, who felt that the similar name of Howard Davies' character reflected poorly on the Rear Admiral. ^[5]

Reception

Variety's review was largely positive, praising the acting and settings, but found the plot element of Admiral John Milton having a love affair with a Japanese woman to be disagreeable. The reviewer said they would have preferred if the man was an ordinary American citizen who had to "bear the disgrace of being confronted with an illegitimate son." ^[6]

Preservation

Only 3 of the 5 reels of His Birthright are known to survive and they are held by the EYE Filmmuseum in the Netherlands. ^{[7] [8]}

References

1. Miyao, Daisuke (March 28, 2007). Sessue Hayakawa: Silent Cinema and Transnational Stardom. Duke University Press. p. 165. ISBN   978-0-8223-3969-4.
2. Bean, Jennifer M. (July 12, 2011). Flickers of Desire: Movie Stars of the 1910s. Rutgers University Press. p. 112. ISBN   978-0-8135-5072-5.
3. "His Birthright". afi.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
4. "Reviews: His Birthright". Exhibitors Herald. 7 (8). New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company: 26. August 24, 1918.
5. Variety. New York City: Variety Publishing Co. September 20, 1918. p. 3.
6. Variety. New York City: Variety Publishing Co. September 20, 1918. p. 45.
7. "The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: His Birthright". memory.loc.gov. Archived from the original on March 27, 2024. Retrieved March 29, 2025.
8. "Progressive Silent Film List: His Birthright". silentera.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.

External links

• His Birthright at IMDb