''The Courtship of Miles Standish'', also known as ''The Courtship of Myles Standish'', is a 1923 American silent epic historical romantic drama film about Myles Standish produced by and starring Charles Ray,

Enid Bennett Enid Eulalie Bennett (15 July 1893 – 14 May 1969) was an Australian silent film actress, mostly active in American film. Early life Bennett was born on 15 July 1893 in York, Western Australia, the daughter of Nellie Mary Louise (''née'' Wa ...

, and E. Alyn Warren. Directed by Frederic Sullivan, nephew of the famous composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, and scripted by

Albert Ray Albert Ray (August 28, 1897 – February 5, 1944) was an American film director, actor, and screenwriter. He directed more than 70 films between 1920 and 1939. He also appeared in 18 films between 1915 and 1922. He was born in New Roche ...

, the film is based on

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely tran ...

's 1858 poem ''

The Courtship of Miles Standish ''The Courtship of Miles Standish'' is an 1858 narrative poem by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow about the early days of Plymouth Colony, the colonial settlement established in America by the ''Mayflower'' Pilgrims. Overview ''Th ...

''. No prints of the film are known to exist and it is now presumed

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 ...

Background and production

Actor Charles Ray had risen to fame in the mid to late 1910s playing young, wholesome fun country bumpkins in silent comedy films directed by

Thomas H. Ince Thomas Harper Ince (November 16, 1880 – November 19, 1924) was an American silent film - era filmmaker and media proprietor. Ince was known as the "Father of the Western" and was responsible for making over 800 films. He revolutionized the mo ...

for Paramount Pictures. By 1920, Ray was earning $11,000 a week (approximately $ today). He left Paramount in 1920 after Adolph Zukor reportedly refused to give him a substantial raise, and formed his own production company, Charles Ray Productions. The company produced several fairly successful comedy films from 1920 to 1922, several of which were written by (and featured assistant direction from)

, Charles Ray's first cousin. By 1922, Ray had grown tired of playing country bumpkin roles and decided to reinvent himself as a dramatic actor in romantic leading man roles. Against the advice of producers and friends, Ray chose to make a historical epic costume drama based on

's 1858 narrative poem ''

''. After failing to secure financial backing from a major studio, Ray put up $500,000 of his own money to fund the project. The scenario for the film, taken from Longfellow's poem, was written by Albert Ray, with direction by Frederic Sullivan (although all creative decisions on the film rested entirely with Charles Ray himself). The film was shot in part at the Charles Ray Studio located on

Sunset Boulevard Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in ...

(now known as the KCET Studios) in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

which Ray purchased shortly after leaving Paramount in 1920. On one of the studio's sound stages, Ray had a 180-ton rocking replica of the ''

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After a grueling 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, r ...

'' built that cost a reported $65,000 (approximately $ today). Other sequences were shot in

Lake Arrowhead, California Lake Arrowhead is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place (CDP) in the San Bernardino Mountains of San Bernardino County, California, surrounded by the San Bernardino National Forest, and surrounding the eponymous Lake Arrowhe ...

where Ray had three full sized log cabins built solely for exterior shots. By the end of filming, Ray had spent over $1 million of his own money and the film's budget reportedly rose to a reported $3 million (approximately $ today).

Cast

Reception

Upon its release, ''The Courtship of Miles Standish'' received some favorable reviews from critics, but was not well received by audiences. Frederick James Smith described the film as "merely dull" and that "the acting is not much." Smith wrote, "Ray seems oppressed by the historical significance of John, and he allots himself entirely too much film. Enid Bennett makes Priscilla a simpering and almost insufferable ingenue." The film was a box office failure, losing $1 million and effectively ruining Charles Ray's career. Ray's production company went bankrupt and he was forced to declare personal bankruptcy. For his part, Frederic Sullivan never directed another film. Ray's career would never rebound from the failure of ''The Courtship of Miles Standish''. He continued acting, but appeared in smaller budget productions, in supporting roles. During the sound era, Ray appeared in bit parts and filed for bankruptcy a second time in 1934. He died of a

systemic infection A systemic disease is one that affects a number of organs and tissues, or affects the body as a whole. Examples * Mastocytosis, including mast cell activation syndrome and eosinophilic esophagitis * Chronic fatigue syndrome * Systemic vascul ...

in November 1943.

References

External links

* *
Token or movie medallion issued for film
at coinpeople.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Courtship Of Miles Standish, The 1923 films 1923 romantic drama films 1920s historical romance films American romantic drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films American epic films Cultural depictions of British men Films based on poems Films based on works by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Films set in the 1620s Films set in Massachusetts Films set in the Thirteen Colonies Films shot in California Films shot in Los Angeles American independent films Lost American films Associated Exhibitors films American historical romance films 1920s independent films 1923 lost films Lost romantic drama films 1920s American films Silent romantic drama films Silent adventure films Silent American drama films 1920s English-language films