''Riders of the Night'' is a 1918

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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 John H. Collins and starred his wife

Viola Dana Viola Dana (born Virginia Flugrath; June 26, 1897 – July 3, 1987) was an American film actress who was successful during the era of silent films. She appeared in over 100 films, but was unable to make the transition to sound films. Early lif ...

. It was produced and distributed by the

Metro Pictures Metro Pictures Corporation was a Film, motion picture production company founded in early 1915 in Jacksonville, Florida. It was a forerunner of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The company produced its films in New York, Los Angeles, and sometimes at leas ...

company. A print is held at EYE Institute, Amsterdam aka

Filmmuseum Eye Filmmuseum is a film archive, museum, and cinema in Amsterdam that preserves and presents both Dutch and foreign films screened in the Netherlands. Location and history Eye Filmmuseum is located in the Overhoeks neighborhood of Amsterdam in t ...

Amsterdam.

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 ...

, Sally Castleton (Dana) is loved by Milt Derr (Chesebro), but Jed (Blue), a cousin of Milt, is desirous of possessing Sally. He makes several attempts to win Sally, but is repulsed each time. The night riders assemble against the gate keeper, who charges the villagers an excess toll. Two persons are killed, and Jed tells Sally that Milt is held and that the only way to free him is for Sally to marry Jed. Before he can extract a promise, he is killed. Sally, found departing from the Derr home by the chimney, is held for the murder. A few moments before she is to be hanged, Milt finds the true murderer. There is a happy ending for their romance.

Cast

as Sally Castleton *

George Chesebro George Newell Chesebro (July 29, 1888 – May 28, 1959) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 400 films between 1915 and 1954. He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and died in Los Angeles, California. Partial filmography * ''Mi ...

as Milt Derr *

Clifford Bruce Clifford Bruce (1885–1919) was a Canadian film actor of the silent era.Solomon p. 229 Selected filmography * ''When Rome Ruled'' (1914) * ''A Fool There Was (1915 film), A Fool There Was'' (1915) * ''Lady Audley's Secret (1915 film), Lady Audle ...

as John Derr * Russell Simpson as Sally's Grandfather *

Mabel Van Buren Mabel Van Buren (born Mabel Brown Southard; July 17, 1878 – November 4, 1947) was an American stage and screen actress. Biography As a theatrical performer she played the leading lady in both ''The Virginian'' and ''The Squaw Man'' (190 ...

as Sally's Aunt *

Monte Blue Gerard Montgomery Blue (January 11, 1887 – February 18, 1963) was an American film actor who began his career as a romantic lead in the silent era; and for decades after the advent of sound, he continued to perform as a supporting player ...

as Jed, 'The Killer'

Reception

Like many American films of the time, ''Riders of the Night'' was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. For example, the

Chicago Board of Censors The Chicago Board of Censors was a film censorship committee based in Chicago that was founded in 1907 as the Police Censor Board, and operated until 1984. It was the first film censorship board in the United States. The board had great influence o ...

required cuts, in Reel 3, of a closeup of a $50 bill, Reel 5, five scenes of testing of scaffold rope, vision of man shooting in silhouette, all but the first scene of officer pulling Sally away from bars to include closeup of hands, forcing her up scaffold stairs, three scenes of her on scaffold with hood over head to where lover appears.

References

External links

* * 1918 films American silent feature films 1918 drama films American black-and-white films Silent American drama films Films directed by John H. Collins 1910s American films 1910s English-language films {{1910s-drama-film-stub