''The Nightingale'',

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 and written by

Augustus Thomas Augustus Thomas (January 8, 1857 – August 12, 1934) was an American playwright. Biography Born in St. Louis, Missouri and son of a doctor, Thomas worked a number of jobs including as a United States House of Representatives Page, page in the 4 ...

in 1914, is a silent

, which

Alco Film Corporation Alco Films, established as Alco Film Corporation, was a short-lived American film distributor established in New York City during the silent film era in 1914. It was co-founded by Al Lichtman. The company worked to establish exclusive distribution d ...

released.

Ethel Barrymore Ethel Barrymore (born Ethel Mae Blythe; August 15, 1879 – June 18, 1959) was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors. Barrymore was a stage, screen and radio actress whose career spanned six decades, and was regarde ...

makes her acting debut in this feature film, which Thomas wrote specifically for her. Thomas, famed as a Broadway playwright, was the best friend of Barrymore's father

Maurice Maurice may refer to: People * Saint Maurice (died 287), Roman legionary and Christian martyr * Maurice (emperor) or Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (539–602), Byzantine emperor *Maurice (bishop of London) (died 1107), Lord Chancellor and ...

and had known the actress since she was a child. As with many of Barrymore's films to come, the advertising for this film says the film is told in '

acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...

' as with a stage play, an effort to remind the audience of the star's status and preference for the legitimate stage. This film was long thought to be

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

.The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog:''The Nightingale''
/ref>

Cast

as Isola Franti, 'The Nightingale' *

William Courtleigh William Louis Courtleigh (1867 or 1869 – 1930) was an American stage and film actor who appeared in Broadway productions, vaudeville theatre, and silent films Courtleigh was born June 28, either 1867 or 1969 in Guelph, Ontario, Canada to Step ...

as Tony Franti *Frank Andrews as Andrea Franti *

Conway Tearle Conway Tearle (born Frederick Conway Levy, May 17, 1878 – October 1, 1938) was an American stage actor who went on to perform in silent and early sound films. Early life Tearle was born on May 17, 1878, in New York City, the son of the ...

as Charles Marden *Charles A. Stevenson as Nathan Narden *Irving Brooks as 'Red' Galvin *

Mario Majeroni Mario Majeroni (1870–1931) was an Italian-born American playwright and stage and film actor. Biography Majeroni came to the United States in 1906 and started acting on Broadway that year. Prior to coming to the United States he had lived and w ...

as David Mantz *Philip Hahn as Jean de Resni *

Ida Darling Ida Darling (February 23, 1880 – June 5, 1936) was an American actress of the stage and in silent motion pictures. Biography Darling was born in New York City. She performed on the New York stage for 40 years. During the 10 years she re ...

as Mrs. Belmore *Bobby Stewart as Nathan Marden II *Henri Antiznat as Prefect of Police *Frank Dudley as Frank *M. Monet as Gazzi Catassi *Caroline French as Maid *Mrs. Cooper Cliffe as Nola * Claude Cooper as Madonni *Ed West as Police Sergeant

Production

The story of this film is similar to

Clyde Fitch Clyde Fitch (May 2, 1865 – September 4, 1909) was an American dramatist, the most popular writer for the Broadway stage of his time (c. 1890–1909). Biography Born in Elmira, New York, and educated at Holderness School and Amherst College (c ...

's 1901 play ''Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines'', in which Barrymore became a star playing an Italian opera singer. Fitch had died in 1909, and

Charles Frohman Charles Frohman (July 15, 1856 – May 7, 1915) was an American theater manager and producer, who discovered and promoted many stars of the American stage. Notably, he produced ''Peter Pan'', both in London and the US, the latter production ...

, Barrymore's theatrical employer, owned the rights to ''Captain Jinks.''

, a Barrymore family friend and author, fashioned a similar story for Barrymore, enticing her to make a film with material she was familiar with. This was common practice in the silent era to make a write-around story for popular works for which screen rights could not be obtained. A screen version of Fitch's ''Captain Jinks'' was later made with Ann Murdock.

References

External links

The Nightingale at IMDb.comallmovie/synopsis
*note this film was not based on a play as AMG states, it was written especially for the star) *Moving Picture Worl
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1914 films 1914 drama films Silent American drama films American silent feature films Lost American drama films American black-and-white films 1914 lost films 1910s American films {{1910s-drama-film-stub