''Down to the Sea in Ships'' is a 1922 American silent

romantic drama Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

film about a 19th-century

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industr ...

family. Directed by

Elmer Clifton Elmer Clifton (March 14, 1890 – October 15, 1949) was an American writer, director and actor from the early silent days. A collaborator of D.W. Griffith, he appeared in ''The Birth of a Nation'' (1915) and '' Intolerance'' (1916) before givi ...

, the film stars William Walcott, Marguerite Courtot, and

Clara Bow Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to "talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...

. The film's title comes from Psalm 107, verses 23–24.

Plot

Captain Charles W. Morgan (William Walcott) is a well-respected businessman who owns a fleet of whaling ships in the Quaker town of New Bedford, Massachusetts. He is very close to his shy, obedient daughter, Patience ( Marguerite Courtot), and tells her that she must marry a man who is a whaler and a Quaker, like him. His son and daughter-in-law were lost ten years before while on a whaling expedition; eventually, their baby, his granddaughter Dot (

), was found floating near shore on a raft made of branches. He has raised her ever since. Dot is a mischievous, rebellious child, who wants to be a whaler when she grows up, an ambition that is not acceptable for a female among her people. One day, a childhood friend of Patience's, Allan Dexter (

Raymond McKee Eldon Raymond McKee (December 7, 1892 – October 3, 1984), also credited as Roy McKee, was an American stage and screen actor. His film debut was in the 1912 production ''The Lovers' Signal''. Over the next 23 years, he performed in no less ...

) arrives in town, recently back from college. He and Patience renew their acquaintance and fall in love. He goes to ask Captain Morgan for permission to marry Patience, but Captain Morgan turns him out of the house, informing him that he is not a suitable husband for her because he is neither a Quaker nor a whaler. Meanwhile, Samuel Siggs (J. Thornton Baston), an effeminate Chinese man masquerading as a white man, connives to steal Captain Morgan's ships to transport African gold. He dresses up as a Quaker and acquires a position of authority in Morgan's business by pretending to be an experienced whaler. After spying Morgan's pretty daughter Patience, he also plans to finagle his way into marrying her. Learning of Dexter's love for her, he has his fellow con artist Jake Finner ( Patrick Hartigan), "fearless, lawless and godless", drug the young man's drink and has him kidnapped, tied up, and placed on the next outgoing whaling vessel, hoping never to see him again. Also on the ship is Dot, who has dressed as a boy and stowed away below deck. Because of their disappearance, it is rumored that Dexter and Dot joined the Oregon Wagon Train and have gone west together. Miles out to sea, Dexter is untied and immediately put to work. Wanting to prove himself to Morgan, he decides to put all his effort into working long hard hours to win his chance to harpoon a whale, which would make him an accomplished whalesman. Meanwhile, Jake Finner, who has killed the captain and taken over the ship, finds Dot, discovers she is a girl, and attacks her. Because he has been treating the men on board like slaves, they mutiny against Finner, appointing Dexter as captain, while Dot's friend Jimmie, the cabin boy, rescues her from Finner's clutches. After harpooning a whale and learning why he was abducted, Dexter arranges to have the vessel return to port. Meanwhile, Captain Morgan has fallen ill, fears that he is dying, and commands Patience to marry Siggs as his last wish. She reluctantly agrees. Dexter arrives just in time to save Patience, and the lovers are reunited at the end.

Cast

Production

The film contains semi-documentary footage of whalers at work, and was shot on historic locations in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

, most notably in

New Bedford New Bedford (Massachusett: ) is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast region. Up through the 17th century, the area was the territory of the Wampanoag Native American pe ...

, and at the

Apponegansett Meeting House The Apponegansett Meeting House or "Apponagansett Meeting House" is a historic Quaker (Friends) meeting house on Russells Mills Road east of Fresh River Valley Road in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. Built in 1791, it is the oldest Quaker meeting hou ...

in Dartmouth. The film's title cards are notable for having quotes from

Herman Melville Herman Melville ( born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are ''Moby-Dick'' (1851); ''Typee'' (1846), a rom ...

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship ''Pequod'', for revenge against Moby Dick, the giant whi ...

and Alexander Starbuck's ''History of the American Whale Fishery''. The authenticity of the whaling scenes are noted in the opening screen credits, which praise the bravery of both A.G. Penrod and Paul H. Allen, the cameramen, "who, in small boats, stood by their cameras at the risk of their lives to photograph the fighting whales." The '' Charles W. Morgan'' was one of the whaling ships used in the film.

Reception

The film's premiere was September 25, 1922 at the Olympia Theater in New Bedford, Massachusetts and was in general distribution from March 4, 1923. It was very popular with audiences, playing for 22 weeks straight in New York City. Critics gave it low marks, but several went out of their way to praise Bow's performance.

David Stenn David Stenn is an American television writer-producer, biographer, and film preservationist. His television credits range from ''Hill Street Blues'' to '' Boardwalk Empire''. He is known for his biographies of Hollywood stars Clara Bow and Jean ...

, ''Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild'' (New York: Penguin Books, 1988), p. 26

Remake

The film's title was used for, but was not related to, a film by

Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

in 1948 and released in 1949. The 1949 version was directed by

Henry Hathaway Henry Hathaway (March 13, 1898 – February 11, 1985) was an American film director and producer. He is best known as a director of Westerns, especially starring Randolph Scott and John Wayne. He directed Gary Cooper in seven films. Backgrou ...

, starring

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, ''Kiss of Death'' (1947) ...

, Lionel Barrymore and

Dean Stockwell Robert Dean Stockwell (March 5, 1936 – November 7, 2021) was an American actor with a career spanning seven decades. As a child actor under contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he first came to the public's attention in films including ''Anchors A ...

References

External links

* * Review, synopsis and link to watch the film:
Booklet for film's world premiere, Sep. 25, 1922
on the Internet Archive {{Elmer Clifton 1922 films 1922 romantic drama films American romantic drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Articles containing video clips Cross-dressing in American films Films about Quakers Films about whaling Films directed by Elmer Clifton Films set in the 19th century Films set in Massachusetts Films shot in Massachusetts American independent films Sea adventure films Films distributed by W. W. Hodkinson Corporation 1920s independent films 1920s American films Silent romantic drama films Silent adventure films Silent American drama films