Isabel Johnston
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Isabel Johnston (1898–1981) was an American screenwriter active during Hollywood's silent era. She also worked as a journalist and writer of short stories.


Biography

Johnston was born in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, the daughter of Isabel McElheny and John Parry Johnson. Her work is often confused with that of her mother's, as her mother—a journalist—also wrote a few scenarios and was credited under her married name, Isabel M. Johnston. Her older sister, Agnes Christine, was a screenwriter in Hollywood. As a teenager she began reading scripts for
Vitagraph Vitagraph Studios, also known as the Vitagraph Company of America, was a United States motion picture studio. It was founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York, as the American Vitagraph Company. By 1907, ...
, and after graduating from Vassar in 1919, she returned to the film industry to write a string of films between 1920 and 1923. In 1921, she was added to the scenario staff at Goldwyn. After working in Hollywood, she moved back to London for a few years to work with producers over there. She'd later follow in her mother's footsteps and become a journalist, working for papers in New York and Los Angeles, in addition to ''Liberty Magazine''. She'd also write short stories for several decades. Johnston, who never married, died in New York in 1981.


Selected filmography

* '' Swords and the Woman'' (1923) * ''
Heroes of the Street ''Heroes of the Street'' is a 1922 American silent crime drama film directed by William Beaudine. It stars child actor Wesley Barry, Marie Prevost, and Jack Mulhall. This film survives in George Eastman House. Plot When a smart aleck street ...
'' (1922) * '' Nineteen and Phyllis'' (1920) * '' Peaceful Valley'' (1920) * ''
45 Minutes from Broadway ''45 Minutes from Broadway'' is a 1920 American silent comedy film directed by Joseph De Grasse and starring Charles Ray, Dorothy Devore and Eugenie Besserer.Connelly p.351 It was based on the 1906 play of the same title by George M. Cohan. Cas ...
'' (1920) * '' Love's Harvest'' (1920) * ''
Molly and I ''Molly and I'' is a 1920 American silent film, silent drama film directed by Howard M. Mitchell and starring Shirley Mason (actress), Shirley Mason, Alan Roscoe and Harry Dunkinson.Solomon p.262 Cast * Shirley Mason (actress), Shirley Mason as M ...
'' (1920) * ''
A Woman Who Understood ''A Woman Who Understood'' is a 1920 American silent drama film, directed by William Parke, distributed by Robertson-Cole, and starring Bessie Barriscale. Plot As described in a film magazine, Madge Graham (Barriscale), a sculptress who pays fo ...
'' (1920) * ''
Her Elephant Man ''Her Elephant Man'' is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Scott R. Dunlap and starring Shirley Mason, Alan Roscoe, Henry Hebert, Ardita Mellinina, and Harry Todd. It is based on the 1919 novel ''Her Elephant Man: A Story of the Sawd ...
'' (1920)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnston, Isabel American women journalists American women screenwriters 1898 births 1981 deaths Screenwriters from Pennsylvania 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American screenwriters