''Danger Lights'' is a 1930 American
Pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
, directed by
George B. Seitz
George Brackett Seitz (January 3, 1888 – July 8, 1944) was an American playwright, screenwriter, film actor and director. He was known for his screenplays for action serials, such as '' The Perils of Pauline'' (1914) and ''The Exploits o ...
, from a screenplay by
James Ashmore Creelman
James Ashmore Creelman (September 21, 1894 – September 9, 1941) was a film writer in Hollywood.
Biography
He was born on September 21, 1894, in Marietta, Ohio. He was the second son of James Creelman, the journalist and Alice Leffingwell Buel ...
. It stars
Louis Wolheim
Louis Robert Wolheim (March 28, 1880 – February 18, 1931) was an American actor, of both stage and screen, whose rough physical appearance relegated him to roles mostly of thugs or villains in the movies, but whose talent allowed him to fl ...
,
Robert Armstrong, and
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s.
Arthur had feature roles in three F ...
.
The plot concerns
railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
ing on the
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986.
The company experience ...
(Milwaukee Road), and the movie was largely filmed along that railroad's lines in
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
. The railway yard in
Miles City, Montana
Miles City ( chy, Ma'xemâhoévé'ho'eno) is a city in and the county seat of Custer County, Montana, United States. The population was 8,354 at the 2020 census.
History
After the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876, the U.S. Army created fo ...
, was a primary setting, while rural scenes were shot along the railway line through Sixteen Mile Canyon, Montana. Additional footage was shot in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, subdivision_name ...
(where the Milwaukee Road was headquartered until 1986, when it went out of business). The film was the first ever shot in the new
Spoor-Berggren Natural Vision Process.
In 1958, the film entered the
public domain in the United States
Works are in the public domain if they are not covered by intellectual property rights (such as copyright) at all, or if the intellectual property rights to the works have expired.
All works first published or released in the United States b ...
because the claimants did not renew its
copyright registration
The purpose of copyright registration is to place on record a verifiable account of the date and content of the work in question, so that in the event of a legal claim, or case of infringement or plagiarism, the copyright owner can produce a cop ...
in the 28th year after publication.
Plot
![Dangerlights1931](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Dangerlights1931.jpg)
Dan Thorn (
Louis Wolheim
Louis Robert Wolheim (March 28, 1880 – February 18, 1931) was an American actor, of both stage and screen, whose rough physical appearance relegated him to roles mostly of thugs or villains in the movies, but whose talent allowed him to fl ...
) is a divisional boss on the
Milwaukee Railroad
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986.
The company experienced ...
, based in
Miles City, Montana
Miles City ( chy, Ma'xemâhoévé'ho'eno) is a city in and the county seat of Custer County, Montana, United States. The population was 8,354 at the 2020 census.
History
After the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876, the U.S. Army created fo ...
. The film opens with a landslide across the track and Thorn dispatching, then accompanying, a repair crew to clear it. Several
hobo
A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; and a bum neither travels nor works.
E ...
s are lounging nearby and are put to work helping the crew. Thorn discovers that one of the hobos, Larry Doyle (
Robert Armstrong), is a former
railroad engineer
A train driver, engine driver, engineman or locomotive driver, commonly known as an engineer or railroad engineer in the United States and Canada, and also as a locomotive handler, locomotive operator, train operator, or motorman, is a pers ...
who lost his job over insubordination. Thorn finds he likes the man and demands that he better his life by returning to work for the railroad. Doyle repeatedly refuses even as he starts the work, but Thorn is a hard man to say no to, and Doyle is hired.
Thorn is engaged to Mary Ryan (
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s.
Arthur had feature roles in three F ...
), but his job leaves him unable to give her much time or attention. When an engineer's wife dies, Thorn spends time with the man to keep him from getting drunk and endangering his railroad job. This leaves Thorn unable to attend a social event, so he asks Doyle to go with Mary instead. Afterwards, the two are using a railway bridge to walk home when a fast train approaches. Doyle whisks Mary into a trackside refuge and kisses her as the train rushes by.
Mary still cares for Thorn, but she falls in love with Doyle. Finally he persuades her to run away to
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
with him and get married. But as they walk along the tracks toward the station, Doyle's foot becomes trapped in a
railroad switch
A railroad switch (), turnout, or ''set ofpoints () is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another, such as at a railway junction or where a spur or siding branches off.
The most common ty ...
as it is remotely reset for the train. At this point Thorn approaches and threatens Doyle over Mary, but when he realizes the man is trapped, he manages to pull Doyle clear of the switch at the last moment. Doyle is safe but Thorn is hit by the train and seriously injured.
The local doctor says Thorn will die unless he can be taken to Chicago for brain surgery within 5 hours, which would require a new speed record for the trip. Doyle volunteers to drive a special train and is able to accomplish the feat. Thorn is saved.
Two weeks later, Thorn is taken back to Miles City by train, conscious but depressed. At the station, Mary is the first to board, and promises to return to him. But Thorn says that during his enforced rest he has come to realize that he is already married—to the railroad. He frees her to marry Doyle with his blessing. Then, overhearing railwaymen outside speaking as if he is done for, he shouts at them to get back to work. They do, and his depression lifts.
Cast
*
Louis Wolheim
Louis Robert Wolheim (March 28, 1880 – February 18, 1931) was an American actor, of both stage and screen, whose rough physical appearance relegated him to roles mostly of thugs or villains in the movies, but whose talent allowed him to fl ...
as Dan Thorn
*
Robert Armstrong as Larry Doyle
*
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s.
Arthur had feature roles in three F ...
as Mary Ryan
*
Hugh Herbert
Hugh Herbert (August 10, 1885 – March 12, 1952) was an American motion picture comedian. He began his career in vaudeville and wrote more than 150 plays and sketches.
Career
Born in Binghamton, New York, Herbert attended Cornell Univers ...
as Professor
*
Frank Sheridan as Ed Ryan
*
Robert Edeson
Robert Edeson (June 3, 1868 – March 24, 1931) was an American film and stage actor of the silent era and a vaudeville performer.
Life and career
Edeson was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of manager and actor George R. Edeson. Afte ...
as Tom Johnson
*
Alan Roscoe
Alan Roscoe (born John Albert Rascoe; August 23, 1888 – March 8, 1933) was an American film actor of the silent and early talking film eras. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1915 and 1933.
Roscoe was born John Albert Rascoe ...
as Jim
* William P. Burt as Chief Dispatcher
*
James Farley
James Aloysius Farley (May 30, 1888 – June 9, 1976) was an American politician and Knight of Malta who simultaneously served as chairman of the New York State Democratic Committee, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and Postmaste ...
as Joe Geraghty
(Cast list as per AFI database)
[
]
Notes
''Danger Lights'' was filmed during a period when some movie studios were experimenting with various widescreen
Widescreen images are displayed within a set of aspect ratios (relationship of image width to height) used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ratio greater than t ...
film formats. As part of this trend, two versions of the film were created. One used standard 35mm film and Academy ratio
The Academy ratio of 1.375:1 (abbreviated as 1.37:1) is an aspect ratio of a frame of 35 mm film when used with 4-perf pulldown.Monaco, James. ''How to Read a Film: The Art, Technology, Language, History and Theory of Film and Media''. Rev. ...
, and the other used an experimental 65mm widescreen format at a 2:1 aspect ratio. This latter process was called "Natural Vision" and was invented by film pioneers George Kirke Spoor
George Kirke Spoor (December 18, 1871 – 24 November 1953) was an early film pioneer who, with Gilbert M. "Broncho Billy" Anderson, founded Essanay Studios in Chicago in 1907. He was a founding partner of V-L-S-E, Incorporated, a film distri ...
and P. John Berggren. The Natural Vision print of the film was reportedly screened at only two theaters (the only two with the equipment necessary to show the film), the State Lake Theater in Chicago and the Mayfair Theater in New York, and no copies of it are known to exist today. ''Danger Lights'' is the only film created using this process, and the entire effort to move to wide-screen was shelved for several decades because of the increased costs of both production and presentation. The film was taken two years after the Milwaukee Road exited bankruptcy and five years before it re-entered bankruptcy and placed under trusteeship. Ten years after the second bankruptcy, the Milwaukee Road emerged from bankruptcy until it fell into bankruptcy the third time in 1977 and sold to the Soo Line Railroad
The Soo Line Railroad is the primary United States railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway , one of seven U.S. Class I railroads, controlled through the Soo Line Corporation. Although it is named for the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sa ...
in 1986.
Historically significant footage
''Danger Lights'' features rare footage of a tug of war
Tug of war (also known as tug o' war, tug war, rope war, rope pulling, or tugging war) is a sport that pits two teams against each other in a test of strength: teams pull on opposite ends of a rope, with the goal being to bring the rope a certa ...
between two steam locomotives, actual documentary footage of the activities in the Miles City yard, and what is believed to be the only motion picture footage of a dynamometer car
A dynamometer car is a railroad maintenance of way car used for measuring various aspects of a locomotive's performance. Measurements include tractive effort (pulling force), power, top speed, etc.
History
The first dynamometer car was probably ...
from the steam railroad era in the USA. Similar footage may have existed in MGM's ''Thunder
Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...
'' (1929), with Lon Chaney
Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...
, but that film now exists only in fragments, making it partly a lost film
A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress.
Conditions
During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy o ...
.
In 1958, the film entered the public domain in the United States
Works are in the public domain if they are not covered by intellectual property rights (such as copyright) at all, or if the intellectual property rights to the works have expired.
All works first published or released in the United States b ...
because the claimants did not renew its copyright registration
The purpose of copyright registration is to place on record a verifiable account of the date and content of the work in question, so that in the event of a legal claim, or case of infringement or plagiarism, the copyright owner can produce a cop ...
in the 28th year after publication.
''Danger Lights'' was edited down to 55 minutes for television broadcast; this version is freely available for download. In 2009 Alpha Video
Alpha Video (also known as Alpha Home Entertainment) is an entertainment company, based near Philadelphia, that specializes in the manufacturing and marketing of public domain movies and TV shows on DVD. Alpha Video releases approximately 30 ne ...
released the original 74-minute version[ on DVD.Alpha Video Announces Its April '09 Roster, Blogcritics]
/ref>
References
External links
*
*
TCM.com
*
David Coles, 2001
''Danger Lights''
(edited television version) at the Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
''Danger Lights''
edited television version) on YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
Colorized version also on YouTube
{{George B. Seitz
1930 films
Films set in Montana
Films shot in Montana
American black-and-white films
Films directed by George B. Seitz
RKO Pictures films
Rail transport films
Articles containing video clips
American drama films
1930 drama films
1930s English-language films
Miles City, Montana
1930s American films