The Birth of a Nation, originally called The Clansman, is a 1915 American silent epic drama film directed by D. W. Griffith and starring Lillian Gish. The screenplay is adapted from Thomas Dixon Jr.'s 1905 novel and play The Clansman. Griffith co-wrote the screenplay with Frank E. Woods and produced the film with Harry Aitken.
David Wark Griffith was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the narrative film.
William II was sovereign Prince of Orange and Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, Overijssel and Groningen in the United Provinces of the Netherlands from 14 March 1647 until his death three years later. His only child, William III, reigned as King of England, Ireland, and Scotland.
The Nigger is a play by American playwright Edward Sheldon (1886–1946). It explores the relationship between blacks and whites in the melodrama of a politician faced with a sudden, personal dilemma. The play was first performed on Broadway in New York City at the New Theatre on December 4, 1909. The play was adapted to a novel, and a film adaptation, directed by Edgar Lewis, was made in 1915. Because the title was controversial, the film was released in some markets as The Governor or The New Governor.
The Leopard's Spots: A Romance of the White Man's Burden—1865–1900 is the first novel of Thomas Dixon's Reconstruction trilogy, and was followed by The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan (1905), and The Traitor: A Story of the Fall of the Invisible Empire (1907). In the novel, published in 1902, Dixon offers an account of Reconstruction in which he portrays a Reconstruction leader, Northern carpetbaggers, and emancipated slaves as the villains; Ku Klux Klan members are anti-heroes. While the playbills and program for The Birth of a Nation claimed The Leopard's Spots as a source in addition to The Clansman, recent scholars do not accept this.
The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan is a novel published in 1905, the second work in the Ku Klux Klan trilogy by Thomas Dixon Jr.. Chronicling the American Civil War and Reconstruction era from a pro-Confederate perspective, it presents the Ku Klux Klan heroically. The novel was adapted first by the author as a highly successful play entitled The Clansman (1905), and a decade later by D. W. Griffith in the 1915 movie The Birth of a Nation.
Sarah Blanche Sweet was an American silent film actress who began her career in the early days of the motion picture film industry.
Robert Emmett Harron was an American motion picture actor of the early silent film era. Although he acted in over 200 films, he is possibly best recalled for his roles in the D.W. Griffith directed films The Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916).
Hearts of the World is a 1918 American silent World War I propaganda film written, produced and directed by D. W. Griffith. In an effort to change the American public's neutral stance regarding the war, the British government contacted Griffith due to his stature and reputation for dramatic filmmaking.
Thomas Frederick Dixon Jr. was an American Baptist minister, politician, lawyer, lecturer, writer, and filmmaker. Referred to as a "professional racist", Dixon wrote two best-selling novels, The Leopard's Spots: A Romance of the White Man's Burden—1865–1900 (1902) and The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan (1905), that romanticized Southern white supremacy, endorsed the Lost Cause of the Confederacy, opposed equal rights for black people, and glorified the Ku Klux Klan as heroic vigilantes. Film director D. W. Griffith adapted The Clansman for the screen in The Birth of a Nation (1915). The film inspired the creators of the 20th-century rebirth of the Klan.
The Escape is a 1914 American silent drama film written and directed by D. W. Griffith and starred Donald Crisp. The film is based on the play of the same name by Paul Armstrong who also wrote the screenplay. It is now considered lost. The master negative of the production was destroyed in the disastrous 1914 Lubin vault fire in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The Flaming Sword was a 1939 novel by Thomas Dixon, Jr. It was his twenty-eighth and last novel. It has been described as "a racist jeremiad centered on the specter of black sexuality."
The Fall of a Nation, a Sequel to The Birth of a Nation is an invasion literature novel by Thomas Dixon Jr. Dixon described it as "a burning theme, our need of preparation to defend ourselves in the world war." First published by D. Appleton & Company in 1916, Dixon directed a film version released the same year. The film is now considered lost.
The Battle Cry of Peace is a 1915 American silent war film directed by Wilfrid North and J. Stuart Blackton, one of the founders of Vitagraph Company of America who also wrote the scenario. The film is based on the book Defenseless America, by Hudson Maxim, and was distributed by V-L-S-E, Incorporated. The film stars Charles Richman, L. Rogers Lytton, and James W. Morrison.
A list of books and essays about D. W. Griffith:
The One Woman: A Story of Modern Utopia is a 1903 novel by Thomas Dixon Jr.
The Sins of the Father: A Romance of the South is a 1912 novel by Thomas Dixon Jr.
The Undercurrent was a 1919 American silent directed by Wilfrid North, produced by Guy Empey, distributed by Select Pictures. It is based on a story by Arthur Guy Empey and though fictional, is considered a sequel to Over the Top which was a 1918 movie loosely based on his autobiographical book of the same name about his own experiences in the British Army in World War I. The New York City premier was held at the Capitol Theatre and was attended by General John J. Pershing who was in New York City for the International Trade Conference of 1919.
The Foolish Virgin is a lost 1924 American silent romantic drama film released by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by George W. Hill and stars Elaine Hammerstein. It is based on the 1915 novel The Foolish Virgin: A Romance of Today by Thomas Dixon Jr. This is the second known adaptation of the novel; the first was released in 1916.
Elmer Dewey was an actor in silent films. He was also known as Dan Danilo.
