''Heedless Moths'' is a 1921 American silent

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...

film written and directed by

Robert Z. Leonard Robert Zigler Leonard (October 7, 1889 – August 27, 1968) was an American film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter. Biography He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to silent star Mae Murray with the two formin ...

. The film stars Jane Thomas as real life nude model

Audrey Munson Audrey Marie Munson (June 8, 1891 – February 20, 1996) was an American model (person), artist's model and film actress, considered to be "America's first supermodel." In her time, she was variously known as "Miss Manhattan", the "Panama–Paci ...

. Munson appeared as herself in the

nude scenes In film, nudity may be either graphic or suggestive, such as when a person appears to be naked but is covered by a sheet. Since the birth of film, depictions of any form of sexuality have been controversial, and in the case of most nude scen ...

, which were posed similar to

tableau vivant A (; often shortened to ; plural: ), French language, French for "living picture", is a static scene containing one or more actors or models. They are stationary and silent, usually in costume, carefully posed, with props and/or scenery, and ...

s, and the film was based on a series of autobiographical stories she wrote. ''Heedless Moths'' also stars

Holmes Herbert Holmes Herbert (born Horace Edward Jenner; 30 July 1882 – 26 December 1956) was an English character actor who appeared in Hollywood films from 1915 to 1952, often as a British gentleman. Early life Born Horace Edward Jenner, (some sou ...

and

Hedda Hopper Hedda Hopper (born Elda Furry; May 2, 1885February 1, 1966) was an American gossip columnist and actress. At the height of her influence in the 1940s, her readership was 35 million. A strong supporter of the House Un-American Activities Committ ...

Plot

As described in a film publication, idealistic sculptor (Herbert), who has a "butterfly" wife (Hopper), is working on a nude group from life. He and his model (Munson/Thomas) fall in love, but it is not a love to be realized. In the meantime the butterfly wife has become enmeshed in the nets of a dilettante artist (Crane). One night he pulls in the nets and she finds herself in his apartment. When the model realizes the sculptor is searching for his wife, she breaks into the dilettante's apartment, hides the wife, and plays the role of the reveler, saving the marriage of the man she loves.

Cast

* Jane Thomas as Audrey Munson *

as The Sculptor *

as His Wife *

Ward Crane Ward Crane (May 18, 1890 – July 21, 1928) was an American silent film actor popular in comedies and dramas. Out of dozens of films, he is remembered as the handsome heavy to Buster Keaton's hero in ''Sherlock Jr.'' (1924). Crane died aged ...

as The Dilettante * Tom Burrough as The Sage *

as herself * Henry Duggan as The Spirit of the Arch * Irma Harrison as The Prey

Production

The working title of the film was ''The Soul Within''.

Reception

Upon its release, ''Heedless Moths'' was generally panned by critics. The film magazine ''

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 ...

'' in an editorial note recommended that the film not be seen as it would add to calls for

film censorship Film censorship is carried out by various countries to differing degrees, sometimes as a result of powerful or relentless lobbying by organizations or individuals. Films that are banned in a particular country change over time. Rating systems A ...

. Munson later sued the film's production company, Perry Plays, and producer Alan Rock for $15,000 in damages after they chose to send Jane Thomas on a tour to promote the film instead of Munson.

Preservation

With no copies of ''Heedless Moths'' listed as being in any film archives,Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Database: ''Heedless Moths''
/ref> it is 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 ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heedless Moths 1921 films 1921 drama films 1921 lost films Silent American drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Films directed by Robert Z. Leonard American independent films Lost American films Lost drama films Melodrama films 1920s independent films 1920s American films