 Title page of the first edition. | |
| Authors | Thomas Dixon, Jr. |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Publisher | D. Appleton and Company |
Publication date | 1915 |
| Pages | 352 |
The Foolish Virgin: A Romance of Today is a 1915 novel by Thomas Dixon, Jr.
| Title page of the first edition. | |
| Authors | Thomas Dixon, Jr. |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Publisher | D. Appleton and Company |
Publication date | 1915 |
| Pages | 352 |
The Foolish Virgin: A Romance of Today is a 1915 novel by Thomas Dixon, Jr.
Mary Adams, a schoolteacher in New York City, dreams of finding a husband. She starts a relationship with Jim Anthony, a criminal she meets at the New York Public Library.
Mary and Jim visit North Carolina to meet Anthony's mother. Now a drunk, she tries to murder her son in order to retrieve the valuables from his suitcase that he has stolen. Mary escapes when she finds out about Anthony's criminal activities, and she is rescued by a physician. She is pregnant with Jim's son. Later, he returns his stolen items, builds a family home for his wife and son, and promises to get a job and provide for his family. [1]
The book title is taken from the Christian parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins.
The novel is a criticism of the emancipation of women. [2]
In a January 1916 review for Bookman , critic P.G. Hulbert, Jr. argued that the ending of the novel was absurd. [1]
Biographer Anthony Slide has suggested that there is 'a vague hint of eugenics' when Mary is worried that her son may inherit Jim's criminal propensions. [1] He added, 'It is not Jim who is the hero here, or even the friendly doctor, but rather the South. The South has a regenerative effect on Jim and helps cure him of the ills—that is, crime—that he developed in New York.' [1]
The film rights were purchased by the Clara Kimball Young Film Corporation, headed by actress Clara Kimball Young and Lewis J. Selznick. [1] Filming began in August 1916. [1] The film received good reviews in the Motion Picture News , the Exhibitor's Trade Review and the Evening Express . [1]
Another cinematic adaptation was released in 1924. [1] Directed by George W. Hill, it starred Elaine Hammerstein and Robert Frazer. [1] The storyline was strayed from the novel, and the film received bad reviews in Variety and Photoplay. [1]
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.
Charles William Brackett was an American screenwriter and film producer. He collaborated with Billy Wilder on sixteen films.
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.
Clara Kimball Young was an American film actress who was popular in the early silent film era.
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.
Sons and Lovers is a 1960 British period drama film directed by Jack Cardiff and adapted by Gavin Lambert and T. E. B. Clarke from the semi-autobiographical 1913 novel of the same name by D. H. Lawrence. It stars Trevor Howard, Dean Stockwell, Wendy Hiller, Mary Ure, and Heather Sears.
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 is a 1916 American silent drama film directed by Thomas Dixon Jr., and a sequel to the 1915 film The Birth of a Nation, directed by D. W. Griffith. Dixon, Jr. attempted to cash in on the success of the controversial first film. The Fall of a Nation is considered to be the first ever feature-length film sequel, though it was predated by short film sequels such as The Little Train Robbery and Sherlock Holmes II: Raffles Escaped from Prison. Based upon Dixon's novel The Fall of a Nation, the film is now lost, although the complete score survives.
Leroy Magnum McAfee was an American Confederate veteran and politician. He was a member of the North Carolina House of Representatives. He later served as the inspiration for the protagonist of his nephew Thomas Dixon Jr.'s infamous 1905 play The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan and its 1915 film adaptation The Birth of a Nation.
Young Eagles is a 1930 American pre-Code romantic drama film directed by William A. Wellman for Paramount Pictures. It stars Charles "Buddy" Rogers, Jean Arthur, and Paul Lukas. The story is based on the stories "The One Who Was Clever" and "Sky-High", written by American aviator and war hero Elliott White Springs. The film's hero is a "heroic combat aviator of the Lafayette Escadrille".
The One Woman: A Story of Modern Utopia is a 1903 novel by Thomas Dixon Jr.
Comrades: A Story of Social Adventure in California is a 1909 novel by Thomas Dixon, Jr. It deals with the establishment of a socialist commune on a Californian island and its subsequent unraveling. Widely reviewed, it was later adapted as a play and as a film.
The Root of Evil is a 1911 novel by Thomas Dixon, Jr.
The Sins of the Father: A Romance of the South is a 1912 novel by Thomas Dixon Jr.
The Traitor: A Story of the Fall of the Invisible Empire is a 1907 novel by Thomas Dixon Jr. It is the third part in a trilogy about the Ku Klux Klan during Reconstruction. The two previous installments were The Leopard's Spots, published in 1902, and The Clansman: An Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan, published in 1905.
My Official Wife is a 1914 American silent film directed by James Young and starring Clara Kimball Young, Harry T. Morey and Rose E. Tapley.
Selznick Pictures was an American film production company active between 1916 and 1923 during the silent era.
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.
Leslie Stowe was an American actor. He appeared on stage and screen. He played the evil Herman Wolff character in Bolshevism on Trial. Anthony Slide praised his performance as the film's villain.
The Foolish Virgin is a 1916, American silent drama film directed by Albert Capellani and starring Clara Kimball Young, Conway Tearle, and Paul Capellani. It was shot at Fort Lee in New Jersey. Future star Rudolph Valentino appeared as an uncredited extra. It was adapted from Thomas Dixon's book and was marketed as "a worthy successor" to the film The Common Law.