The Ways of Fate
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''The Ways of Fate'' is a 1913 American silent
short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...
romance film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...
produced by the
American Film Manufacturing Company The American Film Manufacturing Company, also known as Flying “A” Studios, was an American motion picture production company. In 1915, the formal name was changed to the American Film Company. History The American Film Manufacturing Comp ...
. The film's directorial and producer roles have been both attributed to
Allan Dwan Allan Dwan (born Joseph Aloysius Dwan; April 3, 1885 – December 28, 1981) was a pioneering Canadian-born American motion picture director, producer, and screenwriter. Early life Born Joseph Aloysius Dwan in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Dwan, was ...
, but other sources point to
Wallace Reid William Wallace Halleck Reid (April 15, 1891 – January 18, 1923) was an American actor in silent film, referred to as "the screen's most perfect lover". He also had a brief career as a racing driver. Early life Reid was born in St. Louis, M ...
as director. The film's fictional plot is centered on Jim Conway, who grew up wanting to avenge his father's death and headed
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
to seek his father's killer. Lost in the mountains, he is saved by a young woman and the two fall in love. After a few weeks with her, Conway reveals the reason he came west and the young woman's father overhears it. The old man confesses to killing Conway's father, over a game of cards, and bares his chest. Conway refuses to take revenge, because love had diminished such feelings. The film was released on April 19, 1913 and it had a widespread national release. It is not known whether the film currently survives, but it is presumed
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.


Plot

A surviving description of this lost film was published in ''
The Moving Picture World The ''Moving Picture World'' was an influential early trade journal for the American film industry, from 1907 to 1927. An industry powerhouse at its height, ''Moving Picture World'' frequently reiterated its independence from the film studios. I ...
''. It states: "Two men playing cards, the argument, flash of a revolver, and one lay dead. The murderer homeward fled, hurried his little girl baby into a west-bound train and was heard of no more. The years passed and boyish Jim Conway grew to manhood with the sole purpose of seeking out his father's murderer to deal justice to him. He went
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
and was one day lost in the mountains. He called for help and help came in the form of a sweet-faced woman who led him to her home. He spent the flying weeks with her and the aged father, learned to love the mountain nymph for her beauty of soul and fair face. One day she asked him his reasons for being in the hill country, and he, lover-like, confided his secret. Behind the door, sat the white-haired father. He rose, shook himself like a leaf as be invited the young man into the house. And there he confessed the deed, baring his chest for the expected blow. But none fell for love had sweetened the poison of his thought." This summary of the film was provided by the
American Film Manufacturing Company The American Film Manufacturing Company, also known as Flying “A” Studios, was an American motion picture production company. In 1915, the formal name was changed to the American Film Company. History The American Film Manufacturing Comp ...
.


Cast

*
Wallace Reid William Wallace Halleck Reid (April 15, 1891 – January 18, 1923) was an American actor in silent film, referred to as "the screen's most perfect lover". He also had a brief career as a racing driver. Early life Reid was born in St. Louis, M ...
as Jim Conway *
Vivian Rich Vivian Rich (May 26, 1893 – November 17, 1957) was an American silent film actress. Career Rich was born in Philadelphia and spent her early years there. Later the family moved to Boston and she completed her education at the Boston Latin H ...
*
Murdock MacQuarrie Murdock MacQuarrie (August 25, 1878 – August 20, 1942) was an American silent film actor and director. His name was also seen as Murdock McQuarrie. MacQuarrie was born in San Francisco, California, and attended school there. He was the ...
A single line in ''
The Motion Picture Story Magazine ''Motion Picture'' was an American monthly fan magazine about film, published from 1911 to 1977.Fuller, Kathryn H. “Motion Picture Story Magazine and the Gendered Construction of the Movie Fan.” ''At the Picture Show: Small-Town Audiences a ...
'' notes that "Vivian Rich played opposite Wallace Reid in "The Ways of Fate." According to E. J. Fleming, author of ''Wallace Reid: The Life and Death of a Hollywood Idol'', the cast marks the debut of
Lon Chaney Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...
, but this is unsupported and disputed. Fleming also credits Pauline Bush in a role, but this is also disputed.


Production and release

''The Illustrated Guide to Film Directors'' credits
Allan Dwan Allan Dwan (born Joseph Aloysius Dwan; April 3, 1885 – December 28, 1981) was a pioneering Canadian-born American motion picture director, producer, and screenwriter. Early life Born Joseph Aloysius Dwan in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Dwan, was ...
for directing the film and ''Sweethearts of the Sage'' attribute Wallace Reid. ''Wallace Reid: The Life and Death of a Hollywood Idol'' credits Dwan as the producer and Reid as the director, but gives an incorrect release date. Fleming states that the film was made on December 26–27, 1912, that Reid was injured the next day when his horse fell and that he could not work until mid-January. On April 13, 1913, an announcement was made that Allan Dwan has been fired from the American Film Manufacturing Company. The dismissal came as a shock to Dwan and stemmed from a personal dispute with
J. Warren Kerrigan George Jack Warren Kerrigan (July 25, 1879 – June 9, 1947) was an American silent film actor and film director. Controversy In May 1917, Kerrigan was nearing the end of a four-month-long personal appearance publicity tour that had taken ...
. Frederic Lombardi, author of ''Allan Dwan and the Rise and Decline of the Hollywood Studios'', suggests that Dwan learned of his firing on April 12, 1913, based on a telegram Dwan sent to the
Selig Polyscope Company The Selig Polyscope Company was an American motion picture company that was founded in 1896 by William Selig in Chicago. The company produced hundreds of early, widely distributed commercial moving pictures, including the first films starring Tom ...
on April 12 inquiring about employment opportunities. A newspaper article tried to dispel rumors about Dwan's dismissal, termed "retirement," having resulted in much dissatisfaction within the company. On April 20, there was an announcement that Pauline Bush and
Jessalyn Van Trump Jessalyn Van Trump (January 16, 1887 – May 2, 1939) was an American silent film actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional ...
were also leaving the company. Lombardi says the two actresses may have had a personal reason to follow Dwan's departure. In May, there was an announcement that Dwan, Bush and Van Trump had joined
Universal Film Manufacturing Company Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...
. The film was released on April 19, 1913, by the American Film Manufacturing Company, also known as "The Flying A" or "American." The company described the film as a "half-social, half-western" film.


Release and legacy

The film saw widespread release in the United States. Advertising theaters were included in
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,
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,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
,
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,
Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
,
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, and
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. The film was also released internationally with advertisements in
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and in
London, United Kingdom London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. Fleming's book credits ''The Ways of Fate'' as the debut of
Lon Chaney Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...
, but this has been disputed. The documentary ''Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces'' states that his film debut occurred after his wife's suicide attempt in April 1913 and "his earliest films were made at the first studio to open in Hollywood, Nestor." Jon C. Mirsalis notes in his website that the film "almost certainly id not featureChaney, although it was directed by Allan Dwan. Wouldn't it be interesting if Chaney worked at a studio other than
Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...
in 1913!" \Michael Blake, a Lon Chaney historian and author of several books on Lon Chaney's life and work, notes that the possibility exists that Chaney performed in a role during a period of unemployment in 1912. Blake notes that this would have occurred before Lon Chaney rejoined
Clarence Kolb Clarence William Kolb (July 31, 1874 – November 25, 1964) was an American vaudeville performer and actor known for his comedy routines that featured a Dutch dialect. Biography Kolb started out as one half of a vaudeville comedy team, Kol ...
and
Max Dill Max M. Dill (September 15, 1876 – November 21, 1949) was an American vaudeville comedian who starred briefly in film between 1916 and 1917. Dill was part of the vaudeville team Kolb and Dill, partnering with Clarence Kolb. Dill's short care ...
's company in
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in September 1912. Furthermore, the ''Encyclopedia of Early Cinema'' states that the American Film Manufacturing Company had moved to its
Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...
location in the summer of 1912 and that Dwan, who would later work with Chaney, left the company after a dispute with
J. Warren Kerrigan George Jack Warren Kerrigan (July 25, 1879 – June 9, 1947) was an American silent film actor and film director. Controversy In May 1917, Kerrigan was nearing the end of a four-month-long personal appearance publicity tour that had taken ...
in 1913. Chaney's appearance in the film is not cited by any Chaney historians. The film is 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 ...
.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ways of Fate, The 1913 films 1910s romance films 1913 short films American romance films American silent short films American black-and-white films Films directed by Wallace Reid 1910s American films