The Wishing Ring Man | |
---|---|
Directed by | David Smith |
Based on | The Wishing Ring Man (novel) by Margaret Widdemer |
Starring | Bessie Love J. Frank Glendon |
Cinematography | Charles R. Seeling [1] |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 50 minutes; [2] 5 reels [3] |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
The Wishing Ring Man is a 1919 American silent drama film produced by Vitagraph Studios [2] and directed by David Smith. [4] It was based on the novel by Margaret Widdemer, [4] [5] and stars Bessie Love, with J. Frank Glendon in the title role. [4]
Joy Havenith (Love) is kept away from other young people so that she can inspire her grandfather's poetry. She is unhappy with her situation, and believes the "wishing ring man" (Glendon) when he says that, if she wishes hard enough, she will get everything she wants.
When she is given the opportunity to go to the city, her grandfather refuses to let her go because she is not engaged. Joy claims to be engaged to the doctor, and the doctor is forced to play along. [2] [4] [7]
On its release, it was shown with various serials and shorts, including Terror of the Range , [8] the Pathé/Harold Lloyd comedy Billy Blazes, Esq. , [9] Mutt and Jeff , or Outing Chester pictures. [10]
The film received positive reviews, [11] [12] and it was noted that Love wore seventeen different costumes throughout the film. [13]
Bessie Love was an American-British actress who achieved prominence playing innocent, young girls and wholesome leading ladies in silent and early sound films. Her acting career spanned nearly seven decades—from silent film to sound film, including theatre, radio, and television—and her performance in The Broadway Melody (1929) earned her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
A Yankee Princess is a 1919 American silent comedy-drama film produced and distributed by the Vitagraph Company of America. It was directed by David Smith and stars Bessie Love, who also wrote the screenplay. It is a lost film.
Slave of Desire is a 1923 American silent drama film directed by George D. Baker, produced and distributed by Goldwyn Pictures. It was based on the novel La Peau de chagrin by Honoré de Balzac, first published in 1831. The Balzac novel had previously been filmed in 1909 as The Wild Ass's Skin, which was more faithful to the original novel.
The Ghost Patrol is a 1923 American silent romantic melodrama film directed by Nat Ross from a short story by Sinclair Lewis, produced and distributed by Universal Pictures. It starred Ralph Graves and Bessie Love and is now considered lost.
Over the Garden Wall is a lost 1919 American silent romantic comedy film produced and distributed by the Vitagraph Company of America. It was directed by David Smith, brother of one of the Vitagraph founders Albert E. Smith. The film stars Bessie Love.
The Vermilion Pencil is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by Norman Dawn, and produced and distributed by Robertson–Cole. It is based on the eponymous 1908 novel by Homer Lea. The film stars Japanese actor Sessue Hayakawa in multiple roles, and white actors Ann May, Bessie Love, and Sidney Franklin, all in Asian roles. It is now a lost film.
Gentle Julia is a 1923 American silent romantic drama film based on the popular novel Gentle Julia by Booth Tarkington. Directed by Rowland V. Lee, the film starred Bessie Love. It was produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation, and is considered a lost film.
Sally of the Scandals is a 1928 American silent crime drama film produced and released by Film Booking Offices of America. It was directed by Lynn Shores and starred Bessie Love.
The Dawn of Understanding is a lost 1918 American silent Western comedy film produced by The Vitagraph Company of America and directed by David Smith. It stars Bessie Love in the first film of her nine-film contract with Vitagraph. It is based on the short story "The Judgement of Bolinas Plain" by 19th-century Western writer Bret Harte.
The Enchanted Barn is a 1919 American silent drama film produced by Vitagraph Studios. It was directed by David Smith and starred Bessie Love and J. Frank Glendon. The script was written by Kathryn Reed, based on the novel by Grace Livingston Hill Lutz. Bessie Love had been familiar with the source novel, and was instrumental in optioning it for this film.
Carolyn of the Corners is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by Robert Thornby, and starring Bessie Love, Charles Edler, and Charlotte Mineau.
The Little Boss is a 1919 American silent romantic comedy film directed by David Smith and produced by Vitagraph Studios. The story and screenplay were by Rida Johnson Young, and it starred Bessie Love and Wallace MacDonald.
A Fighting Colleen is a 1919 American silent comedy-drama film directed by David Smith and produced by Vitagraph Company of America. It stars Bessie Love and Charles Spere.
Pegeen is a 1920 American silent drama film based on the 1915 novel of the same name by Eleanor Hoyt Brainerd. It was produced by Vitagraph Studios and directed by David Smith. It stars Bessie Love in the title role.
Bonnie May is a lost silent 1920 American comedy-drama film based on the 1916 novel by Louis Dodge. It was directed by Ida May Park and Joseph De Grasse and starred Bessie Love. It was produced by Andrew J. Callaghan Productions and distributed by Federated Film Exchanges of America, Inc.
Penny of Top Hill Trail is a 1921 American silent Western comedy film based on the 1919 novel by Belle Kanaris Maniates. It was directed by Arthur Berthelet and stars Bessie Love. The film was produced by Andrew J. Callaghan Productions and distributed by Federated Film Exchanges of America. The film is presumed lost.
Three Who Paid is a 1923 American silent Western film directed by Colin Campbell, and starring Dustin Farnum, with Bessie Love and Frank Campeau. The film was based on the 1922 short story by George Owen Baxter, and was produced and distributed through Fox Film.
Night Life in Hollywood, called The Shriek of Hollywood in Europe, is a 1922 American silent comedy film directed by Fred Caldwell. It starred J. Frank Glendon, Josephine Hill, and Gale Henry, and featured a number of cameo appearances of celebrities with their families.
Mary of the Movies is a 1923 American silent semi-autobiographical comedy film based on the career of Marion Mack. It was written by Mack and her husband Louis Lewyn, and stars Mack and Creighton Hale. Hale and director John McDermott play fictionalized versions of themselves in the film, which was also directed by McDermott.
Pearl Doles Bell was an American novelist, film scenarist, radio script writer, and editor. During her career, she published eight novels and had numerous stories adapted into silent films. She was especially known for writing film stories for silent film star Shirley Mason.
A sweet, charming little story. Entertainment of the wholesome kind. A play that is refreshing. Acting that is delightful. A production of the best.
Miss Love, in this production, sets for herself a mark which it will not be easy for her to surpass.
rare charm and talent …wonderfully interesting