''The Squaw Man'' (known as ''The White Man'' in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

) is a 1914 American silent Western film directed by

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cinem ...

and Oscar C. Apfel, and starring Dustin Farnum. It was DeMille's directorial debut and one of the first feature films to be shot in what is now

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

Plot

James Wynnegate ( Dustin Farnum) and his cousin, Henry (

Monroe Salisbury Monroe Salisbury (May 8, 1876 – August 7, 1935) was an American actor. He appeared on the stage for several years and then became an early film star. Salisbury was a matinee idol. He began his acting career on the stage in 1898, appearin ...

), are upper class Englishmen and trustees for an orphans’ fund. Henry loses money in a bet at a derby and embezzles money from “the fund” to pay off his debts. When war office officials are informed of the money missing they pursue James, but he successfully escapes to Wyoming. There, James rescues Nat-U-Ritch (

Lillian St. Cyr Red Wing (born Lilian Margaret St. Cyr; February 13, 1873 or 1884March 13, 1974) was an American actress of the silent film, silent era. She and her husband James Young Deer have been dubbed by some as one of the first Native Americans in the ...

), daughter to the chief of the Utes tribe, from local outlaw Cash Hawkins ( William Elmer). Hawkins plans to exact his revenge on James, but has his plans thwarted by Nat-U-Ritch, who shoots him dead. Later, James has an accident in the mountains and needs to be rescued. Nat-U-Ritch discovers him and carries him back to safety. As she nurses him back to health, they fall in love and later have a child. Meanwhile, during an exploration of the Alps, Henry falls off a cliff. Before he succumbs to his injuries, Henry signs a letter of confession proclaiming James’s innocence in the embezzlement. Before Henry's widow, Lady Diana (

Winifred Kingston Winifred Kingston (11 November 1894 – 3 February 1967) was a British-born American silent film actress. Kingston was educated in Scotland and Belgium. She acted on stage in England before she began acting in the United States. On Broadway, K ...

) and others arrive in Wyoming to tell James about the news, the Sheriff recovers the murder weapon that was used against Cash Hawkins in James and Nat-U-Ritch's home. Realizing that their son is not safe, the couple sends him away, leaving them both distraught. Facing the possibilities of losing both her son and her freedom, Nat-U-Ritch decides to take her own life instead. The movie ends with both the chief of the Utes tribe and James embracing her body. Fritzi Kramer, ''The Squaw Man''(1914) A Silent Film Review, February 16, 2014.

Cast

* Dustin Farnum as Capt. James Wynnegate aka Jim Carston *

as Sir Henry, Earl of Kerhill *

as Nat-u-Ritch *

as Lady Diana, Countess of Kerhill * 'Baby'

Carmen De Rue Carmen De Rue (often billed as "Baby" Carmen De Rue, and occasionally as Freddy DeRue) was an American child actress and dancer who appeared in an estimated 200 Hollywood films in the 1910s. Biography Carmen was born in Pueblo, Colorado, to Eug ...

as Hal * Joseph Singleton as Tab-y-wana * William Elmer as Cash Hawkins * Mrs. A.W. Filson as The Dowager Lady Elizabeth Kerhill * Haidee Fuller as Lady Mabel Wynnegate * Foster Knox as Sir John * Dick La Reno as Big Bill * Richard L'Estrange as Grouchy *

Fred Montague Fred Montague (1864 – 3 July 1919) was an English film actor of the silent era. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1912 and 1919. He was born in London and died in Los Angeles, California California is a U.S. state, state ...

as Mr. Petrie *

as Faro Dealer * Cecilia de Mille as Child *

Hal Roach Harry Eugene "Hal" Roach Sr.Randy Skretvedt, Skretvedt, Randy (2016), ''Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies'', Bonaventure Press. p.608. (January 14, 1892 – November 2, 1992) was an American film and television producer, director, a ...

as Townsman * Art Acord as Townsman * Raymond Hatton as Bit part

Production background

The only onscreen filmmaking credit is "Picturized by

and Oscar C. Apfel." The film was adapted by DeMille and Apfel from the 1905 stage play of the same name by Edwin Milton Royle, and produced by DeMille, Apfel, and

Jesse L. Lasky Jesse Louis Lasky (September 13, 1880 – January 13, 1958) was an American pioneer motion picture producer who was a key founder of what was to become Paramount Pictures, and father of screenwriter Jesse L. Lasky Jr. Early life Born in to ...

for the Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company, its first film. This first screen version of the story was the legendary DeMille's first movie assignment. It was also the first feature-length film shot in California, partly in what became

. Film historians agree that shorts had previously been filmed in Hollywood, with

D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the na ...

's '' In Old California'' (1910) considered the earliest. DeMille rented what is now known as the Lasky-DeMille Barn at the southeast corner of Selma and Vine Streets to serve as their studio and production office; today it is home to the Hollywood Heritage Museum. Shooting on ''The Squaw Man'' began December 29, 1913, and finished January 20, 1914. DeMille wanted to emphasize the outdoors and wanted to shoot the movie in exotic scenery and great vistas. Initially he traveled to

Flagstaff, Arizona Flagstaff ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Coconino County, Arizona, Coconino County in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In 2019, the city's estimated population was 75,038. Flagstaff's combined metropolitan area has ...

to film the movie. After seeing the vast amount of mountains near Flagstaff, the production was moved to Los Angeles. Harbor scenes were shot in

San Pedro, California San Pedro ( ; Spanish: " St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...

and the western saloon set was built beside railroad tracks in the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...

. Footage of cattle on the open range was shot at Keen Camp near Idyllwild, California, while snow scenes were shot at

Mount Palomar Palomar Mountain ( ; es, Monte Palomar ) is a mountain ridge in the Peninsular Ranges in northern San Diego County. It is famous as the location of the Palomar Observatory and Hale Telescope, and known for the Palomar Mountain State Park. Hist ...

. Cecil B. DeMille felt that lighting in a movie was extremely important and viewed it as the visual and emotional foundation to build his image. He believed that lighting was to a film as “music is to an opera”. ''The Squaw Man'' went on to become the only movie successfully filmed three times by the same director/producer, DeMille. He filmed a silent remake in 1918, and a talkie version in 1931. ''The Squaw Man'' was 74 minutes long and generated $244,700 in profit.

Characters

The main character James Wynnegate played by Dustin Farnum, was cast as the hero for the film. Farnum was a notable Broadway star and his wife in real life

was also a well-known actress. She played the English love interest. Red Wing (real name Lillian St. Cyr) was born into the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska on the

Winnebago Reservation The Winnebago Reservation of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska is located in Thurston County, Nebraska, United States. The tribal council offices are located in the town of Winnebago. The villages of Emerson, south of First Street, as well as Thu ...

, and she played the American Indian wife.

Controversies

Non-Native American actor Joseph Singleton played the role of Tabywana, Nat-U-Ritch's father. Lillian St. Cyr of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska was cast to play the role of Nat-U-Ritch, a member of the Ute tribe. She is also known as "Princess Redwing". St. Cyr along with her husband

James Young Deer James Young Deer (April 1, 1876 – April 6, 1946), also known as J. Younger Johnson or Jim Young Deer, was actually born James Young Johnson in Washington, D.C. Although he was identified in the early Hollywood trade paper Moving Picture World as ...

(of the Nanticoke people of Delaware) have been regarded one of the first "Native American power couple" in Hollywood along with

Mona Darkfeather Josephine M. Workman better known by her stage name, Princess Mona Darkfeather (January 13, 1882 – September 3, 1977) was an American actress who starred in Native American and Western dramas. During the silent era of motion pictures, from 1 ...

and her husband director Frank E. Montgomery. DeMille had selected Lillian St. Cyr but his first choice had been

who was not available. During the early silent film era, films based on Native Americans were popular. The central theme of this film was miscegenation. In the state of California, anti-miscegenation laws existed until 1948; however, while African Americans couldn't legally marry whites in California during filming, marriages between Native Americans and whites were permitted. Though there were Native American actors, whites were mostly cast as Indian characters. During the early teens, Young Deer and his wife Lillian St. Cyr helped to transform how Native American characters were represented. The characters they created were sympathetic in complex ways, although other studios like Kalem were also attempting to accurately portray Natives in film. However, other scholars argue that Native American-themed silent films did not alter in any way the dominant perception of Indians themselves. Apparently, many films displayed the Native American experience from many different perspectives and did involve Native American writers, filmmakers, and actors during this time period.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Squaw Man (1914 Film), The 1914 films 1914 Western (genre) films 1914 directorial debut films 1914 drama films American black-and-white films American films based on plays Articles containing video clips Famous Players-Lasky films Films directed by Cecil B. DeMille Films directed by Oscar Apfel Films set in England Silent American Western (genre) films Films set in Wyoming 1910s American films