''All Night'' is a 1918 American silent

comedy-drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

directed by Paul Powell and starring

Carmel Myers Carmel Myers (April 9, 1899 – November 9, 1980) was an American actress who achieved her greatest successes in silent film. Early life Myers was born in San Francisco, the daughter of Isidore Myers, a Russian-Jewish rabbi who was born in ...

and

Rudolph Valentino Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaello Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguolla (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926), known professionally as Rudolph Valentino and nicknamed The Latin Lover, was an Italian actor based in the United States who starred ...

(credited as Rudolpho di Valentina). It was released by

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

under the name Bluebird Photoplays. A print of the film still survives and was released to

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

by Grapevine Video in 2005.

Plot

Richard Thayer, a shy, unassuming man (Valentino), is in love with a sheltered young woman, Elizabeth ("Beth") Lane (Myers). While the feelings are mutual and Richard wishes to propose, he can never find a moment to speak to Beth alone—she is constantly surrounded by admirers and her overprotective father (

Wadsworth Harris Wadsworth Harris (October 9, 1864 – November 1, 1942) was an American actor of the silent era. He appeared in more than 40 films between 1911 and 1936. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and died in Los Angeles, California from pneumon ...

). Richard explains his predicament to his friends, young married couple William and Maude Harcourt (

Charles Dorian Charles Dorian (June 27, 1891 – October 21, 1942) was an American assistant director and film actor. He appeared in 26 films between 1915 and 1920. He won an Academy Award in 1933 for Best Assistant Director. He was born in Santa Monica, C ...

and Mary Warren). They agree to help by hosting Richard and Beth at a private dinner at their home. Beth's father agrees to let her dine with the Harcourts, but insists that she keep to an 11:00 curfew. The evening of the dinner William Harcourt receives a telegram from a prospective business associate, Bradford ( William Dyer), informing him that he is arriving that night for a surprise visit. The announcement throws the Harcourts into a panic. William has recently mortgaged his home and life savings to buy a copper mine; he is counting on a $1-million investment from Bradford to save his business and house. He does not have any servants to welcome the millionaire, having fired them earlier in the day in a fit of rage. Working together, the four friends devise a plan: Richard and Beth will pose as the Harcourts; the real Harcourts will play the servants because they are familiar with the layout of their house. The scheme initially works, but things quickly deteriorate when Bradford, an eccentric, overbearing man, starts flirting with Maude Harcourt and insisting that Richard and Beth turn in for the night. The situation worsens when Beth misses her curfew and her father shows up at the Harcourt home to look for her. Eventually, everything is solved, but not before Col. Lane is locked in the pantry, Richard falls out a window and William is tossed out of his own house.

Cast

as Elizabeth Lane * Rudolpho di Valentina as Richard Thayer *

as William Harcourt * Mary Warren as Maude Harcourt * William Dyer as Bradford *

as Col. Lane *Jack Hull as the butler

Reception

''All Night'' was reviewed by ''

Motion Picture News The ''Motion Picture News'' was an American film industry trade paper published from 1913 to 1930. History The publication was created through the 1913 merger of the ''Moving Picture News'' founded in 1908 and ''The Exhibitors' Times'', founded ...

'' on October 28, 1918 while it was under its working title, ''One Bright Idea.'' The reviewer, P. S. Harrison, was beaming: "This is about the craziest thing I have ever seen. It is so funny you will die laughing when you see it. It seems strange producers don't make more pictures along these lines." He went on to summarize its plot and concluded with, "The picture contains no offensive scenes. It is a wholesome comedy all the way through and fit to show any audience."

Production

''All Night'' is one of Valentino's earliest films, and one of the few in which he plays a comedic role. In contrast to the screen persona of "The Great Lover", his character of Richard Thayer is shy and insecure. For this film, Valentino performed several scenes of

physical comedy Physical comedy is a form of comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any ...

and

pratfall Physical comedy is a form of comedy focused on manipulation of the body for a humorous effect. It can include slapstick, Clown, clowning, Mime artist, mime, physical stunts, or making funny faces. Physical comedy originated as part of the Commed ...

s, including falling from a window into a barrel of water. Valentino and Myers starred together previously in '' A Society Sensation,'' also directed by Paul Powell. Powell praised Valentino's work. Valentino recalled to ''

Photoplay ''Photoplay'' was one of the first American film (another name for ''photoplay'') fan magazines. It was founded in 1911 in Chicago, the same year that J. Stuart Blackton founded '' Motion Picture Story,'' a magazine also directed at fans. For mo ...

,'' "He was the first to say, 'Stick to it and you'll make a name for yourself.'"

Re-release

Unlike the re-releases of early Valentino films ''A Society Sensation'' and '' Stolen Moments,'' the original length of ''All Night'' was kept intact. Re-release advertisements described Valentino's role as that of an "ideal lover" and the story as "a throbbing romance of love, beauty, and daring". These descriptions can't be farther from the truth and were only meant to capitalize on Valentino's new image as the "Great Lover".

References

External links

* * * {{Internet Archive film, id=LhereuDeCanPrunaDe, name=All Night 1918 films 1918 comedy-drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Paul Powell Universal Pictures films 1910s English-language films 1910s American films Silent American comedy-drama films