''The Half-Way Girl'' is a 1925 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 John Francis Dillon that was filmed around the

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore (known by locals simply as the Shore) is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Po ...

Plot

As described in a film magazine reviews, Poppy La Rue is given a job in the hotel as “private hostess”(generally a silent film era euphemism for

prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

) as an alternative to jail when her theatrical troupe from the United States is stranded and cannot pay the hotel bill in Singapore. She becomes interested in Phil Douglas, a nerve shattered war veteran disgusted with life. Douglas kills “The Crab” in an attempted theft of Douglas’ wallet. He is put on board the ship ''Mandalay'' by Poppy despite that the highest police official in India has threatened to send her to Malay Street if she continues to interest herself in Douglas. She is rescued from Malay Street, the

red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are particu ...

, and put on the ''Mandalay'' by Jardine, a plantation owner, who is determined to have Poppy. The vessel catches fire and Poppy rescues Douglas from the ship's hold, and he rescues Poppy from Jardine's advances. They manage to get in a lifeboat just before the ship explodes, and they are picked up by another ship. It is learned that the police official, mentioned, is the father of Douglas, who wants the couple to separate, but finally he accepts Poppy as a daughter-in-law. Poppy and Douglas are married.

Cast

Doris Kenyon Doris Margaret Kenyon (September 5, 1897 – September 1, 1979) was an American actress of motion pictures and television. Early life She grew up in Syracuse, New York, where her family had a home at 1805 Harrison Street. Her father, Dr. Ja ...

as Poppy La Rue * Lloyd Hughes as Phil Douglas *

Hobart Bosworth Hobart Van Zandt Bosworth (August 11, 1867 – December 30, 1943) was an American film actor, director, writer, and producer. Early life Bosworth was born on August 11, 1867, in Marietta, Ohio. His father was a sea captain in the Civil Wa ...

as John Guthrie *

Tully Marshall Tully Marshall (born William Phillips; April 10, 1864 – March 10, 1943) was an American character actor. He had nearly a quarter century of theatrical experience before his debut film appearance in 1914 which led to a film career spanning alm ...

as The Crab * Sam Hardy as Jardine *

Charles Wellesley Charles Wellesley (November 17, 1873 – July 24, 1946) was an Irish-born American actor of the silent era. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1913 and 1928. He was born in Dublin and died in Amityville, New York. Partial filmograph ...

as Gibson *Martha O'Dwyer as Miss Brown (credited as Martha Madison) *

Sally Crute Sally Crute (born Sally C. Kirby, June 27, 1886 – August 12, 1971) was an American actress of the silent film era. Biography Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, before entering motion pictures Crute performed on stage. Crute was generally ca ...

as Effie

Crew

*Directed by: John Francis Dillon *Cinematography by: George J. Folsey *Film Editing by: Marion Fairfax *Art Direction by: Milton Menasco *Story by: E. Lloyd Sheldon, Joseph F. Poland and Earle Snell

Production

The spectacular fire aboard an ocean liner was shot in color, and to make it even more exciting, a leopard also breaks free on the ship. The ''Corvallis'', a 270-foot wooden-

hulled Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective ...

cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

that was surplus from

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, was purchased from the

United States Government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...

First National Pictures First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the count ...

for a fraction of her original cost. First National Pictures bought her for the sole purpose of blowing her up in ''The Half-Way Girl''. In June 1925, under the supervision of the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

, the ''Corvallis'', now renamed for the film as the ''Mandalay'', was towed offshore, loaded with

dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germa ...

, and blown up while the cameras rolled. After the explosion, the

stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Ori ...

remained afloat and had to be sunk by the

. It was claimed that blowing up an actual ship saved $25,000 over the cost of creating the scene using miniatures.

Preservation

With no prints of ''The Half-Way Girl'' located in any archives, 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 ...

.''The Half-Way Girl'' at Lost Film Files: ''Lost First National Films - 1925''
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References

External links

* *
Still of Doris Kenyon
an
other women in the cast toasting Kenyon
at gettyimages.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Half-Way Girl, The 1925 films 1925 drama films 1925 lost films American black-and-white films American silent feature films Films about actors Films directed by John Francis Dillon Films set in Singapore Films shot in New Jersey First National Pictures films Lost American films Silent American drama films Films with screenplays by Joseph F. Poland 1920s American films