1917 in film was a particularly fruitful year for the art form, and is often cited as one of the years in the decade which contributed to the medium the most, along with 1913. Secondarily the year saw a limited global embrace of narrative film-making and featured innovative techniques such as continuity cutting. Primarily, the year is an American landmark, as 1917 is the first year where the narrative and visual style is typified as "Classical Hollywood".
Chicago is a 1927 American silent crime comedy-drama film produced by Cecil B. DeMille and directed by Frank Urson. The first film adaptation of Maurine Dallas Watkins' play of the same name, the film stars Phyllis Haver as Roxie Hart, a fame-obsessed housewife who kills her lover in cold blood and, after trying to coerce her husband into taking the blame, is put on trial for murder.
Frank Dwight Alexander was an American silent film comedian and actor. He was occasionally billed as Fatty Alexander.
Charles K. Gerrard, also known as Charles Kavanagh, was an Irish-American motion-picture actor, and the elder brother of actor and film director Douglas Gerrard.
The Virginian is a 1914 American silent Western film based on the 1902 novel The Virginian by Owen Wister. The film was adapted from the successful 1903–04 theatre play The Virginian, on which Wister had collaborated with playwright Kirke La Shelle. The Virginian starred Dustin Farnum in the title role, a role he reprised from the original play. It was directed by Cecil B. DeMille.
Brewster's Millions is a 1914 American comedy film directed by Oscar Apfel and Cecil B. DeMille and starring Edward Abeles. It is an adaptation of the 1902 novel written by George Barr McCutcheon. The novel had also been turned into a successful 1906 Broadway play of the same name that also starred Edward Abeles. Abeles's success in the play led to his being cast in this film.
The Call of the North is a 1914 American silent adventure-drama film directed by Oscar Apfel and Cecil B. DeMille. It is based on the 1903 novel, The Conjuror's House; a Romance of the Free Forest by Stewart Edward White and its 1908 play adaptation The Call of the North by George Broadhurst. Robert Edeson starred in the play and reprises his role in this film. He played a dual role of both Ned Stewart and his own father, Graehme Stewart.
Rose of the Rancho is a 1914 American silent Western film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. It is based upon the play of the same name by David Belasco and Richard Walton Tully. The film cost $16,988 to make, and grossed $87,028.
The Girl of the Golden West is a surviving 1915 American Western silent black-and-white film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. It was based on the 1905 play The Girl of the Golden West by David Belasco. Prints of the film survive in the Library of Congress film archive. It was the first of four film adaptations that have been made of the play.
The Warrens of Virginia is a 1915 American drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. Prints of the film survive at the George Eastman House Motion Picture Collection.
George Frederick Walsh was an American actor. An all-around athlete, who became an actor and later returned to sport, he enjoyed 40 years of fame and was a performer with dual appeal, with women loving his sexy charm and men appreciating his manly bravura.
Bobbie of the Ballet is a 1916 American silent drama film directed by Joe De Grasse and starring Lon Chaney, Louise Lovely, Gretchen Lederer and Jay Belasco. It was written by Ida May Park, based on a story by Grant Carpenter.
Soul Mates is a surviving 1925 American silent drama film directed by Jack Conway, based on the 1911 novel The Reason Why by Elinor Glyn. The movie was the second successful collaboration between Glyn and Conway.
Three on a Spree is a 1961 British comedy film directed by Sidney J. Furie and starring Jack Watling, Carole Lesley and John Slater. It is based on the 1902 novel Brewster's Millions by George Barr McCutcheon, which became the hit 1906 play written by Winchell Smith and Byron Ongley. It had been previously filmed by Edward Small in 1945.
The Immigrant is a 1915 American silent drama film directed by George Melford and starring Valeska Suratt, an actress who specialized in playing vamp roles and who was one of Theda Bara's film rivals. The film is now considered lost.
Frank Losee was an American stage and screen actor. A veteran of the Broadway stage he began in silent films in 1915. Often he played the father of Mary Pickford, Pauline Frederick and Marguerite Clark.
Missing Millions is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by Joseph Henabery and written by Jack Boyle and Albert S. Le Vino. The Boston Blackie film stars Alice Brady, David Powell, Frank Losee, Riley Hatch, John B. Cooke, William B. Mack, and George LeGuere. The film was released on September 17, 1922, by Paramount Pictures.
Sirens of the Sea is a 1917 American silent fantasy film directed and written by Allen Holubar based upon a screen story by Grace Helen Bailey. Featuring Louise Lovely, it was distributed by the Jewel Productions division of Universal Film Manufacturing Company. It is not known whether the film currently survives.
The Finger of Justice is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by Louis Chaudet. The film is based upon the campaign to close down the red-light district of the Barbary Coast of San Francisco.
Velma Virginia Whitman was an American actress who appeared in comedy theatre and silent films during the 1900s and 1910s. A Virginian, she began appearing in theatre roles in 1905 and became known for her portrayal of complicated emotional characters. After appearing with multiple different theatre groups, she established her own in 1906 named Whitman's Comedians and acted as the leading woman for most performances, alongside her husband as the leading man. The large theatre company became well known throughout the American South for their numerous and varied plays up through 1910.
