Richard Semler Barthelmess was an American film actor, principally of the Hollywood silent era. He starred opposite Lillian Gish in D. W. Griffith's Broken Blossoms (1919) and Way Down East (1920) and was among the founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1927. The following year, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for two films: The Patent Leather Kid and The Noose.
Tol'able David is a 1921 American silent film based on the 1917 Joseph Hergesheimer short story of the same name. It was adapted to the screen by Edmund Goulding and directed by Henry King for Inspiration Pictures. A rustic tale of violence set in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, it was filmed in Blue Grass, Virginia, with some locals featured in minor roles.
The Noose is an American silent drama film adaptation of the Willard Mack play The Noose, which was released in 1928. It stars Richard Barthelmess, Montagu Love, Robert Emmett O'Connor, and Thelma Todd. The movie was adapted by Garrett Graham and James T. O'Donohoe from the play. It was directed by John Francis Dillon and Richard Barthelmess's performance was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Shore Leave is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by John S. Robertson and starring Richard Barthelmess and Dorothy Mackaill. It was produced by Barthelmess's production company, Inspiration, and released by First National Pictures.
Soul-Fire is a 1925 American silent drama film starring Richard Barthelmess and Bessie Love. It was directed by John S. Robertson and was based on the Broadway production Great Music (1924) by Martin Brown.
Classmates is a 1924 American silent drama film starring Richard Barthelmess, produced by his company Inspiration Pictures, and distributed by Associated First National Pictures. The film was directed by John S. Robertson and starred Richard Barthelmess and a still teenaged Madge Evans. The film is based on a popular 1907 play by William C. deMille and Margaret Turnbull.
Fury is a 1923 American silent drama adventure film produced by and starring Richard Barthelmess. It was directed by Henry King and released through First National Pictures which was then called Associated First National.
Gloria's Romance is a 1916 American silent film serial starring Billie Burke. Serial films, also called chapter plays, were shorter films that were typically run before the main feature film, each of which was part of a longer story, and ended in a cliffhanger, thus encouraging the audience to return every week.
Weary River is a 1929 American romantic drama film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Richard Barthelmess, Betty Compson, and William Holden. Produced and distributed by First National Pictures, the film, like many made during the changeover from silent to sound movies, is mostly silent with a few sequences featuring synchronized dialogue and singing. Based on a story by Courtney Riley Cooper, the film is about a gangster who goes to prison and finds salvation through music while serving his time. After he is released and falls back into a life of temptation, he is saved by the love of a woman and the warden who befriended him. The film received a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Director in 1930.
Scarlet Days is a 1919 American silent Western film produced and directed by D. W. Griffith and released through Paramount/Artcraft Pictures, Artcraft being an affiliate of Paramount. Richard Barthelmess stars in a role for which Griffith had screentested Rudolph Valentino. In today's time, this film is considered by many to be one of Griffith's worst films though it might have worked better as a short film. This film was unlike others created by D.W. Griffith. According to an article written for The Cincinnati Enquirer, written on the 16 of November 1919: "Unlike other recent Griffith production, Scarlet Days is a story of the old West, of the gold rush days of 49- Bret Harte transferred to the screen!" The Western film genre was expanding at this time and Scarlet Days fits into this category. Western films were popular for this time.
Mademoiselle Modiste is a 1926 American silent romantic comedy film produced by and starring Corinne Griffith and distributed by First National Pictures. Robert Z. Leonard directed Griffith in a story based on a popular 1905 Victor Herbert operetta on Broadway, Mlle. Modiste, with a libretto by Henry Martyn Blossom, which was similar to the MGM film The Merry Widow. It is now considered a lost film.
Rose of the Golden West is a surviving 1927 American silent romantic drama film produced by Richard A. Rowland and released by First National Pictures. It was directed by George Fitzmaurice and starred Mary Astor and Gilbert Roland.
Scarlet Seas is a surviving 1929 American sound romantic adventure film produced by Richard A. Rowland and distributed by First National Pictures. Although there is no audible dialogue, the film was released with a musical score with sound effects using the Vitaphone sound-on-disc recording process. The picture was directed by John Francis Dillon. It starred Richard Barthelmess, Betty Compson, and a teen-aged Loretta Young. Originally, the film was presumed lost.
The Amateur Gentleman is a 1926 American silent drama film produced by Inspiration Pictures and distributed through First National Pictures. It was directed by Sidney Olcott as a vehicle for star Richard Barthelmess.
I'll Get Him Yet is a lost 1919 American silent comedy film starring Dorothy Gish and directed by Elmer Clifton. It was produced by D. W. Griffith under his production unit New Art Film. Paramount Pictures distributed the film.
Young Nowheres is a 1929 American drama film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Richard Barthelmess, Marian Nixon and Bert Roach. It was produced and released by First National Pictures with a Vitaphone soundtrack in both silent and sound versions.
The Bond Boy is a lost 1922 American silent drama film directed by Henry King and starring Richard Barthelmess. It was produced by Barthelmess and Charles Duell and released through Associated First National Pictures.
The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come is a lost 1928 silent film drama directed by Alfred Santell and starring Richard Barthelmess. It was produced and distributed by First National Pictures. The film is a remake of a 1920 Goldwyn Pictures film with the same title starring Jack Pickford, also lost.
Wheel of Chance is a lost 1928 silent film feature directed by Alfred Santell and starring Richard Barthelmess. It was produced and distributed by First National Pictures.
New Toys is a 1925 American comedy film directed by John S. Robertson and written by Josephine Lovett and Agnes Smith. It is based on the 1924 play New Toys by Oscar Hammerstein II and Milton Herbert Gropper. The film stars Richard Barthelmess, Mary Hay, Katherine Wilson, Clifton Webb, Francis Conlon, and Bijou Fernandez. The film was released on March 1, 1925, by First National Pictures.
