The Call of the East

Last updated
The Call of the East
Sessue Hayakawa Film Advertisement.jpg
Advertisement for film
Directed by George Melford
Screenplay by Beulah Marie Dix
Produced by Jesse L. Lasky
Starring Sessue Hayakawa
Tsuru Aoki
Jack Holt
Margaret Loomis
James Cruze
Ernest Joy
CinematographyPercy Hilburn (French)
Production
company
Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release date
  • October 15, 1917 (1917-10-15)
Running time
50 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

The Call of the East is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by George Melford and written by Beulah Marie Dix. The film stars Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki, Jack Holt, Margaret Loomis, James Cruze, and Ernest Joy. The film was released on October 15, 1917, by Paramount Pictures. [1] [2]

Contents

Plot

As described in a film magazine, [3] Sheila Hepburn (Loomis), the half-sister of Alan Hepburn (Holt), is the daughter of a Japanese mother. While visiting Alan, who works in Tokyo, she attends a festival with her Japanese maid while wearing a Japanese kimono. There she meets the wealthy Arai Takada (Hayakawa), who is taken by the mysterious woman. Alan has dishonored and betrayed O'Mitsu (Aoki), and her brother Arai plans a terrible revenge. Alan loses heavily at cards to Arai and, to forget his losses, accompanies Arai to his country home. There Alan is about to be thrust into a pool of quicksand to die when Sheila appears, having been warned of Arai's plans. Dismayed that the woman he met at the festival is Alan's sister, Arai sees that she and Alan do not meet, but later agrees to release her brother as Sheila wins Arai's love and respect. At that moment Alan appears, having escaped from his prison, and strikes Arai down. Sheila bursts into tears and runs to the fallen man, and Alan, seeing his sister responding to the "call of the east," departs.

Cast

Reception

Like many American films of the time, The Call of the East was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. The Chicago Board of Censors required that these six intertitles be cut: "My sister is an outcast, but the man who shamed her shall pay", "You are my beloved - isn't that enough?", "At Haksima, Hepburn shall pay for O'Mitsu", "Tonight your sister she shall pay the price", "I am ready to marry O'Mitsu", and "I decline the honor". [4]

Criticism

The film allowed Americans to view the film without concerns about the taboo of miscegenation involving Arai Takada and Sheila Hepburn as an intertitle early in the film stated "In reality her mother was Japanese," and the plot indicates that, when Arai met Sheila at the festival, he believed she was Japanese because of the way she was dressed. [5] In contrast, Alan Hepburn treats O'Mitsu simply as his mistress, and the plot requires Arai to ultimately accept the victimization of his sister. [5]

Preservation

With no prints of The Call of the East located in any film archives, it is considered a lost film. [6] [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sessue Hayakawa</span> Japanese actor (1886–1973)

Kintarō Hayakawa, known professionally as Sessue Hayakawa, was a Japanese actor and a matinée idol. He was a popular star in Hollywood during the silent film era of the 1910s and early 1920s. Hayakawa was the first actor of Asian descent to achieve stardom as a leading man in the United States and Europe. His "broodingly handsome" good looks and typecasting as a sexually dominant villain made him a heartthrob among American women during a time of racial discrimination, and he became one of the first male sex symbols of Hollywood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tsuru Aoki</span> Japanese actress (1892–1961)

Tsuru Aoki was a Japanese stage and screen actress whose career was most prolific in the United States during the silent film era of the 1910s through the 1920s. Aoki may have been the first Asian actress to garner top billing in American motion pictures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vola Vale</span> American actress (1897–1970)

Vola Vale was a silent film actress.

<i>The Dragon Painter</i> 1919 film directed by William Worthington

The Dragon Painter is a 1919 English language silent romance drama film. It is based on the novel of the same name, written by Mary McNeil Fenollosa. It stars Sessue Hayakawa as a young painter who believes that his fiancée, is a princess who has been captured and turned into a dragon. It was directed by William Worthington and filmed in Yosemite Valley, Yosemite National Park, and in the Japanese Tea Garden in Coronado, California.

The Secret Game is a surviving 1917 American silent drama film produced by Jesse Lasky and released through Paramount Pictures. It was directed by William C. deMille and starred Sessue Hayakawa. It survives complete at the Library of Congress and was released on DVD.

<i>The Wrath of the Gods</i> (1914 film) 1914 American film

The Wrath of the Gods is a 1914 American silent drama film directed by Reginald Barker and starring Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki, Frank Borzage, Thomas Kurihara and Henry Kotani. This was the first feature film appearance of Hayakawa and the directorial debut of Barker.

The Honorable Friend is a 1916 American silent drama film and Edward LeSaint's directorial debut. It was written by Elizabeth McGaffey and Eve Unsell. The film stars Sessue Hayakawa and Tsuru Aoki. The film was released on August 27, 1916, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>The Soul of Kura San</i> 1916 film by Edward LeSaint

The Soul of Kura San is a 1916 American drama silent film directed by Edward LeSaint and written by Charles Sarver. The film stars Sessue Hayakawa, Myrtle Stedman, Tsuru Aoki, George Webb, Kisaburo Kurihara and George Kuwa. The film was released on October 30, 1916, by Paramount Pictures.

Each to His Kind is a 1917 American drama silent film directed by Edward LeSaint and written by George DuBois Proctor and Paul West. The film stars Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki, Vola Vale, Ernest Joy, Eugene Pallette and Guy Oliver. The film was released on February 5, 1917, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>O Mimi San</i> 1914 film

O Mimi San is a 1914 American short silent drama film directed by Charles Miller, featuring Tsuru Aoki in the title role and Sessue Hayakawa.

<i>The Courageous Coward</i> 1919 film by William Worthington

The Courageous Coward is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by William Worthington and featuring Sessue Hayakawa and Tsuru Aoki in lead roles.

<i>The Bravest Way</i> 1918 film by George Melford

The Bravest Way is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by George Melford and written by Edith M. Kennedy. The film stars Sessue Hayakawa, Florence Vidor, Tsuru Aoki, Yukio Aoyama, Jane Wolfe, and Winter Hall. The film was released on June 16, 1918, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>The Curse of Iku</i> 1918 American film

The Curse of Iku is a 1918 American drama film directed by Frank Borzage and featuring Borzage, Tsuru Aoki, and Thomas Kurihara in lead dual roles.

<i>His Birthright</i> 1918 film

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. The rest of the cast includes Marin Sais, Howard Davies, Mary Anderson, and Hayakawa's wife Tsuru Aoki.

<i>A Heart in Pawn</i> 1919 film by William Worthington

A Heart in Pawn is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by William Worthington. Sessue Hayakawa's Haworth Pictures Corporation produced the film and Worthington played the lead role along with Vola Vale and his wife Tsuru Aoki.

<i>The Gray Horizon</i> 1919 film by William Worthington

The Gray Horizon is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by William Worthington. Sessue Hayakawa's Haworth Pictures Corporation produced the film and he himself played the lead role. Bertram Grassby, Tsuru Aoki, Eileen Percy, Mary Jane Irving, and Andrew Robson also featured in the film.

<i>Black Roses</i> (1921 film) 1921 film

Black Roses is a 1921 American crime drama film directed by Colin Campbell. Sessue Hayakawa, Myrtle Stedman, Tsuru Aoki, Andrew Robson, and Toyo Fujita appeared in the film.

<i>Five Days to Live</i> 1922 film by Norman Dawn

Five Days to Live is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by Norman Dawn and featuring Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki, Goro Kino, Misao Seki, Toyo Fujita, and George Kuwa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gina Palerme</span> French actress and dancer

Gina Palerme was a French actress and dancer.

<i>The Hidden Pearls</i> 1918 film by George Melford

The Hidden Pearls is a surviving 1918 American silent drama film directed by George Melford and starring Sessue Hayakawa. It was produced by Adolph Zukor and Jesse Lasky and distributed by Famous Players–Lasky and Paramount Pictures. The production was shot in Hawaii.

References

  1. ↑ "The Call of the East (1917) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  2. ↑ "The Call of the East". afi.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Reviews: The Call of the East". Exhibitors Herald. 5 (18). New York: Exhibitors Herald Company: 31. October 27, 1917.
  4. ↑ "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. 5 (17). New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company: 33. 20 October 1917.
  5. 1 2 Miyao, Daisuke (2007). Sessue Hayakawa: Silent Cinema and Transnational Stardom. Duke University Press. pp. 123–25. ISBN   978-0-8223-8982-8.
  6. ↑ "American Silent Feature Film Database: The Call of the East". Library of Congress. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  7. ↑ "Progressive Silent Film List: The Call of the East". silentera.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.