That Royle Girl

Last updated

That Royle Girl
That Royle Girl poster.jpg
Film poster
Directed by D. W. Griffith
Written by Paul Schofield
Based onThat Royle Girl
by Edwin Balmer
Produced by Jesse L. Lasky
Starring Carol Dempster
W. C. Fields
James Kirkwood
Harrison Ford
Cinematography Harry Fischbeck
Harold S. Sintzenich
Edited by James Smith
Production
company
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release date
  • December 7, 1925 (1925-12-07)
Running time
114 minutes
CountryUnited States
Language Silent (English intertitles)
Budget$595,000 [1]
Box office$900,000 [1]
The cover of the still-extant novel that the film was based on That Royle Girl cover.jpg
The cover of the still-extant novel that the film was based on
That Royle Girl, 1925 ad That Royle Girl ad in Motion Picture News, September-October 1925 (page 7 crop).jpg
That Royle Girl, 1925 ad
That Royle Girl publicity photo That Royle Girl (SAYRE 14360).jpg
That Royle Girl publicity photo

That Royle Girl is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by D. W. Griffith and released by Paramount Pictures. The film was based on the novel of the same name by Edwin Balmer, and starred Carol Dempster, W. C. Fields and Harrison Ford. It is now considered lost. [2] [3]

Contents

Plot

As described in a film magazine review and other references, [4] [5] a poor mannequin from the slums of Chicago fancies she is in love with a jazz music composer and orchestra leader who is married but does not live with his wife. One night his wife is murdered and the modiste’s assistant is held as a material witness because she is known to have been friendly with the musician. After he is improperly convicted and sentenced to death for murder, she succeeds in clearing him just as he is to be hanged. Only then does she learn that she loves the district attorney who secured the conviction. Her love of him is reciprocated.

Cast

Production

This film, along with Sally of the Sawdust , marked Griffith's return to working for an important Hollywood studio like Paramount Pictures, something he had not experienced since leaving Biograph in 1914, though his independently produced features were released through Triangle, Paramount, and United Artists. He also had to work with a tight shooting script as Paramount executives Adolph Zukor and Jesse L. Lasky insisted the film be brought on schedule and on budget.

Griffith had been a founding partner in Triangle Studios in 1915 and United Artists in 1919, and these ventures allowed him leeway in the way he made films. However, now the leisurely approach to filmmaking Griffith had enjoyed at his own Mamaroneck, Long Island, New York studio was gone. Griffith had been for all intents and purposes an independent producer since leaving Biograph. Griffith shot That Royle Girl on locations across Chicago. The film's climactic sequence, a devastating tornado, was filmed on a football field at Paramount's Astoria Studio in Queens, New York, where Griffith created a fully built village. Griffith used the power of 24 airplane propellers to recreate the wreckage and ruin of the tornado's fury.

While the production was underway, Griffith added W. C. Fields to the cast for a comedy relief supporting role as the heroine's inebriated stepfather. [6]

Preservation

No print of That Royle Girl is known to exist. [2] [7] [8] In 1980, the American Film Institute included this title among its list of the “Ten Most Wanted” lost films of all time. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Pickford</span> Canadian actress and producer (1892–1979)

Gladys Marie Smith, known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian actress resident in the U.S., and also producer, screenwriter and film studio founder, who was a pioneer in the US film industry with a Hollywood career that spanned five decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mack Sennett</span> Canadian-American silent film producer (1880–1960)

Mack Sennett was a Canadian-American producer, director, actor, and studio head who was known as the "King of Comedy" during his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biograph Company</span> Defunct American film studio

The Biograph Company, also known as the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, was a motion picture company founded in 1895 and active until 1916. It was the first company in the United States devoted entirely to film production and exhibition, and for two decades was one of the most prolific, releasing over 3000 short films and 12 feature films. During the height of silent film as a medium, Biograph was the most prominent U.S. film studio and one of the most respected and influential studios worldwide, only rivaled by Germany's UFA, Sweden's Svensk Filmindustri and France's Pathé. The company was home to pioneering director D. W. Griffith and such actors as Mary Pickford, Lillian Gish, and Lionel Barrymore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mae Marsh</span> American actress

Mae Marsh was an American film actress whose career spanned over 50 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carol Dempster</span> American actress (1901–1991)

Carol Dempster was an American film actress of the silent film era. She appeared in films from 1916 to 1926, working with D. W. Griffith extensively.

<i>The Sorrows of Satan</i> (1926 film) 1926 film

The Sorrows of Satan is a 1926 American silent drama film directed by D. W. Griffith, and based on the 1895 allegorical horror novel The Sorrows of Satan by Marie Corelli.

<i>Dream Street</i> (film) 1921 film by D. W. Griffith

Dream Street is a 1921 American silent romantic drama film directed by D. W. Griffith, and starring Carol Dempster, Charles Emmett Mack, and Ralph Graves in a story about a love triangle set in London, and based on two short stories by Thomas Burke, "Gina of Chinatown" and "Song of the Lamp". The cast also features Tyrone Power, Sr.

<i>The Greatest Thing in Life</i> 1918 film

The Greatest Thing in Life is a 1918 American silent drama film about World War I, directed by D. W. Griffith and starring Lillian Gish, Robert Harron, and David Butler. The film is now considered lost as no prints are known to exist.

<i>The Biograph Girl</i> Musical

The Biograph Girl is a musical with a book by Warner Brown, lyrics by Brown and David Heneker, and music by Heneker. Its plot focuses on the silent film era and five pioneers of American cinema - actresses Mary Pickford and Lillian Gish, directors D. W. Griffith and Mack Sennett, and Paramount Pictures founder Adolph Zukor.

<i>Sally of the Sawdust</i> 1925 film

Sally of the Sawdust is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by D. W. Griffith and starring W. C. Fields. It was based on the 1923 stage musical Poppy. Fields would later star in a second film version, Poppy (1936).

<i>Scarlet Days</i> 1919 film

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.

<i>The Girl Who Stayed at Home</i> 1919 film by D. W. Griffith

The Girl Who Stayed at Home is a 1919 American silent drama film produced and directed by D. W. Griffith and released by Paramount Pictures. Prints of the film exist.

<i>The Love Flower</i> 1920 film by D. W. Griffith

The Love Flower is a 1920 American silent drama film produced by D. W. Griffith and released through the then nascent United Artist company of which Griffith was a founding partner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James and Rose Smith</span>

JamesSmith and Rose Smith were film editors known for their work in the early days of Hollywood, specifically for their work at the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company working as editors for D.W. Griffith.

<i>On the Level</i> (1917 film) 1917 film

On the Level is a lost 1917 American silent Western film directed by George Melford and written by Marion Fairfax and Charles Kenyon. The film stars Fannie Ward, Jack Dean, Harrison Ford, Lottie Pickford, James Cruze, and Jim Mason. The film was released on September 10, 1917, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>A Regular Fellow</i> (1925 film) 1925 film by A. Edward Sutherland

A Regular Fellow is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by A. Edward Sutherland and written by Joseph A. Mitchell, Reggie Morris and Keene Thompson. The film stars Raymond Griffith, Mary Brian, Tyrone Power, Sr., Edgar Norton, Nigel De Brulier, Gustav von Seyffertitz, and Kathleen Kirkham. The film was released on October 5, 1925, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>Wet Paint</i> (1926 film) 1926 film by Arthur Rosson

Wet Paint is a 1926 American silent comedy film directed by Arthur Rosson and starring Raymond Griffith, Helene Costello, Bryant Washburn, Natalie Kingston, and Henry Kolker. Written by Lloyd Corrigan and Reggie Morris, the film was released on May 3, 1926, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>The Marriage Whirl</i> 1925 film

The Marriage Whirl is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by Alfred Santell and written by Bradley King. It is based on the 1922 play The National Anthem by J. Hartley Manners. The film stars Corinne Griffith, Kenneth Harlan, Harrison Ford, E. J. Ratcliffe, Charles Willis Lane, Edgar Norton, and Nita Naldi. The film was released on July 19, 1925, by First National Pictures.

Edna Foster was an American child actress who was active during the silent film era.

<i>The Road to the Heart</i> 1909 film

The Road to the Heart is a 1909 American short film, a dramedy directed by D. W. Griffith and produced by the Biograph Company of New York City. Starring David Miles, Anita Hendrie and Herbert Yost, the production was filmed in two days in March 1909 at Biograph's studio in Manhattan. It was released in April that year and distributed to theaters on a "split-reel", which was a single film reel that included more than one motion picture. The other picture that accompanied this comedy was the Biograph comedy Trying to Get Arrested.

References

  1. 1 2 "Griffith's 20 Year Record". Variety. September 5, 1928. p. 12. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  2. 1 2 Simmon, Scott (1993). The Films of D. W. Griffith. CUP Archive. p. 25. ISBN   0-521-38820-1.
  3. The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: That Royle Girl
  4. "New Pictures: That Royle Girl", Exhibitors Herald, Chicago, Illinois: Exhibitors Herald Company, 23 (4): 49, October 17, 1925, retrieved October 17, 2022PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  5. Langman, Larry (1998). American Film Cycles: The Silent Era. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 208. ISBN   0-313-30657-5.
  6. Fields, Ronald J. (1984). W.C. Fields: A Life on Film, pp. 31-33. St. Martin’s Press ISBN   0-312-85312-2
  7. "That Royle Girl". silentera.com. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
  8. That Royle Girl at TheGreatStars.com; Lost Films Wanted (Wayback Machine)
  9. Thomson, Frank. “Lost Films: Important Movies That Disappeared,” page xiv. Citadel Press, 1996. ISBN   0-8065-1604-6

Commons-logo.svg Media related to That Royle Girl at Wikimedia Commons