''Love Letters'' is a 1917 American silent

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

Roy William Neill Roy William Neill (4 September 1887 – 14 December 1946) was an Irish-born American film director best known for directing the last eleven of the fourteen Sherlock Holmes films starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, made between 1943 and 19 ...

and written by Ella Stuart Carson and

Shannon Fife Manning Shannon Fife (February 16, 1888 – May 7, 1972) was an American journalist, humorist and film scenario writer. He worked on at least 86 motion pictures over the silent film era before returning to journalism to write for magazines and n ...

. The film stars

Dorothy Dalton Dorothy Dalton (September 22, 1893 – April 13, 1972) was an American silent film actress and stage personality who worked her way from a stock company to a movie career. Beginning in 1910, Dalton was a player in stock companies in Chicago; Te ...

William Conklin William Conklin (December 25, 1872 – March 21, 1935) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 80 silent films between 1913 and 1929. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and died in Hollywood, California. Partial filmography * ''Ariz ...

, Dorcas Matthews,

Thurston Hall Ernest Thurston Hall (May 10, 1882 – February 20, 1958) was an American film, stage and television actor.Aylesworth, Thomas G. and Bowman, John S. (1987). ''The World Almanac Who's Who of Film''. World Almanac. . Pp. 186-187. Career Stag ...

Hayward Mack Hayward Seaton Mack (March 20, 1882 – December 24, 1921) was an American actor of the silent era. Born in Albany, New York, in 1882, Mack appeared in more than 80 films between 1910 and 1921. Mack's motion picture career began in 1910; he ap ...

, and William Hoffman. The film was released on December 24, 1917, by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

. A print of ''Love Letters'' is held by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

Plot

As described in a

film magazine Film periodicals combine discussion of individual films, genres and directors with in-depth considerations of the medium and the conditions of its production and reception. Their articles contrast with film reviewing in newspapers and magazines whi ...

, Eileen Rodney (Dalton) is in love with Raymoond Moreland (Connklin), a lecturer who favors the mating of souls without the usual

ceremony A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''. Church and civil (secular) ...

. When she learns his true convictions she is disgusted and accepts the proposal of her guardian, John Harland (Hall). After she is married, Eileen meets Moreland and requests the return of her love letters, and he invites her to his home. When she gets there he forces his attentions on her. In self-defense she strikes him and, believing him dead, rushes from the home. The guilt of her action weighs on her life. Later, a half crazed gardener confesses to the crime and, with the knowledge that she is blameless, Eileen confesses everything to her husband.

Cast

as Eileen Rodney *

as Raymoond Moreland *

Dorcas Matthews Dorcas Neville Matthews (5 November 1890 – 24 January 1969) was an English actress in silent films in the U.S. She had numerous roles as a supporting actress and was well known. Biography Dorcas Neville Matthews was born in Lancashire, Englan ...

as Eleanor Dare *

as John Harland *

as Robert Maxwell *William Hoffman as Amos

Reception

Like many American films of the time, ''Love Letters'' was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. The Chicago Board of Censors required a cut in Reel 2 of the two intertitles "Remember he's mine and will always be mine" and "You aren't through with me yet", in Reel 4, two struggle scenes between man and young woman, in Reel 5, three intertitles "God be praised for letting me kill him — he wronged my little girl", "Don't for God's sake, don't, I intended to marry your daughter if she had waited", and "Had you nothing but letters to conceal —", and the vision scene of killing the man.

References

External links

* 1917 films 1910s English-language films Silent American drama films 1917 drama films Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Roy William Neill American black-and-white films American silent feature films 1910s American films {{1910s-drama-film-stub