''Treasure Island'' is a 1918 American silent adventure film based on the 1883 novel of the same name by

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

. This is one of many silent versions of the story and is noteworthy because it is almost entirely acted by child or teenage actors. The film was co-directed by brothers Sidney and

Chester Franklin Chester Mortimer Franklin (September 1, 1889 – March 12, 1954) was an American film director and actor active mainly in the silent era. Born in San Francisco, he was the brother of Sidney A. Franklin. In the late 1910s, he co-directed w ...

. The film is one of Fox's ''Sunset Kiddies'' productions following in the wake of previous Kiddie productions like ''Aladdin and his Wonderful Lamp''. This 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 ...

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 ...

, Jim Hawkins (Carpenter) and his mother operate the Admiral Ben Bow Inn, and when they are threatened by an attack by pirates they go to the home of their friend, the squire, for the night. Mrs. Hawkins (Washington) hands the squire a package she found in a chest that was owned by Billy Bones, one of her boarders who had died. The squire discovers a map showing the location of treasure buried by someone named Flint. Jim, overhearing the squire's plans to recover the treasure, goes to sleep and dreams that he, Louise (Corbin), and a ship's crew have set out to find the gold. Long John Silver (Radcliffe), their first mate, is a crook and with some of the men plan to rob Jim and Louise of the treasure. After a fight on the island and the killing off of Long John Silver's men, Long John Silver joins Jim and his gang and through Ben Gunn (Sargent) they find the treasure. Just as Jim is about to distribute it, he wakes up.

Cast

* Francis Carpenter as Jim Hawkins *

Virginia Lee Corbin Virginia Lee Corbin (December 5, 1910 – June 4, 1942) was an American silent film actress. Early years Corbin was born Laverne Virginia Corbin in Prescott, Arizona to Leon Ernest Corbin and Virginia Frances (Cox) Corbin, and she had a siste ...

as Louise Trelawney *

Violet Radcliffe Violet Radcliffe (20 August 1904, Niagara Falls - 4 May 1965, Los Angeles) was a child actress active during Hollywood's silent era. She appeared in several dozen films for Fine Arts, Fox, and Pathe, and was frequently cast as a villain or as a l ...

Long John Silver Long John Silver is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the novel ''Treasure Island'' (1883) by Robert Louis Stevenson. The most colourful and complex character in the book, he continues to appear in popular culture. His missing l ...

* Lloyd Perl as Black Dog * Lew Sargent as Ben Gunn *

Buddy Messinger Buddy Messinger (born Melvin Joseph Messinger; 26 October 1907 – 25 October 1965) was an American actor who was cast in substantial roles in dozens of films during the silent film era. He began his career as a jovial chubby child actor. With t ...

as Captain Smollett *

Gertrude Messinger Gertrude Dolores Messinger (April 28, 1911 – November 8, 1995) was an American film actress known for her B-movie roles from the 1930s through the 1950s. She began as a child actor in silent films, but found her greatest fame in talkies of ...

* Eleanor Washington as Jim's mother * Herschell Mayal as Captain Bill Bones (prologue) *

Elmo Lincoln Elmo Lincoln (born Otto Elmo Linkenhelt; February 6, 1889June 27, 1952) was an American stage and film actor whose career in motion pictures spanned the silent and sound eras. He performed in over 100 screen productions between 1913 and 1952 an ...

as Long John Silver (prologue) * Charles Gorman as Black Dog (prologue) * Ed Harley (

Edwin Harley Edwin Harley (born July 17, 1849) was an actor in minstrel shows and later in silent films. He worked for the Reliance Majestic Company, Lasky Film Company, Albuquerque Film Company, Crown City Film Company, and Fine Arts Film Company. Filmogra ...

) as Blind Pew (prologue)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Treasure Island 1918 films American silent feature films Fox Film films Lost American films Treasure Island films Films directed by Sidney Franklin 1918 adventure films American adventure films Films directed by Chester Franklin American black-and-white films 1918 lost films Lost adventure films 1910s American films Silent adventure films