The Silent Command
The Silent Command | |
---|---|
Fox Film Corporation | |
Release date |
|
Running time | 8 reels |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
The Silent Command is a 1923 American
The film depicts the story of Benedict Hisston (Lugosi), who is part of a plot to destroy the Panama Canal. Initially unable to obtain necessarily intelligence from Richard Decatur (Lowe), a captain in the United States Navy, he enlists the aid of femme fatale Peg Williams (Mansfield). Decatur pretends to be seduced into the conspiracy, costing him his career and estranging him from his wife (Tell), but he ultimately betrays the saboteurs in Panama and stops their plan. He returns home to the Navy and his wife, and to popular acclaim for his heroics.
The film was produced in cooperation with the Navy and was intended as a propaganda film to encourage support for a larger navy. The Silent Command was shown at the opening of several Fox Theatres locations and was sometimes marketed in conjunction with naval recruitment efforts. It received generally positive reviews from contemporary film critics, although modern appraisals consider the film mediocre.
Unlike most Fox Film productions of the silent era, several copies of The Silent Command have survived. It has been released in multiple home video formats, and is now in the public domain and available online.
Plot
Benedict Hisston is a
Decatur is not fooled and obeys the "silent command" of the Chief of Naval Intelligence to play along with the spies without revealing his purpose to friends or family. He is court-martialed, stripped of rank, and dismissed from the Navy after he strikes an admiral. His association with Williams estranges him from his wife but earns him the trust of Hisston and the other spies. When the conspirators are ready to enact their plan, he travels to Panama with them. He thwarts their attempt at sabotage, saving the canal and the fleet. He is then reinstated into the Navy, reunited with his wife, and honored by the nation for his heroism.[1][2]
Cast
- Edmund Lowe as Captain Richard Decatur
- Alma Tell as Mrs. Richard Decatur
- Martha Mansfield as Peg Williams
- Betty Jewel as Dolores
- Florence Martin as Williams's maid
- Bela Lugosi as Benedict Hisston (miscredited as Belo Lugosi)[3]
- Carl Harbaugh as Menchen
- Martin Faust as Cordoba
- Gordon McEdward as Gridley
- Byron Douglas as Admiral Nevins
- Theodore Babcock as Admiral Meade
- George Lessey as Mr. Collins
- Warren Cook as Ambassador Mendizabal
- Henry Armetta as Pedro
- Rogers Keene as Jack Decatur
- J.W. Jenkins as the Decatur's butler
- Kate Blancke as Mrs. Nevins
- Elizabeth Mary Foley as Jill Decatur[3][4]
Production
Rufus King, later known for his detective novels,[5] wrote the original story for The Silent Command, which was adapted into a screenplay by Anthony Paul Kelly.[4] It was intended as a propaganda film to encourage popular support for expansion of the United States Navy[6][7] and was made with the Navy's cooperation and support.[6][4] Fox Film's publicity promoter, Wells Hawks, may have been responsible for this arrangement, as he had previously worked in a publicity role for the Navy.[6] Quotes praising the film were provided by several prominent members of the military for use in advertising, including General John J. Pershing and Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the Assistant Secretary of the Navy.[6] Years later, in a publicity interview for The Return of Chandu, Bela Lugosi commented on the irony of being a propagandist for naval expansion when his native country, landlocked Hungary, "has no navy nor needs any!"[7]
In December 1922, Lugosi had starred in a
The Silent Command was released in at least two editions. As shown at its New York premiere, it was an eight-reel film with a 91-minute run time. However, the version screened earlier in Chicago had been 18 minutes shorter, which reduced the film to seven reels;[13] this cut was used for most subsequent releases.[3][4] H.T. Hodge claimed to have shown a nine-reel version at the Palace Theatre in Abilene, Texas.[14] Additionally, some prints were released as part-color films with tinted scenes.[6][15]
The Silent Command was also released internationally, including Australia and Cuba in 1924,[16][17] and was retitled His Country for distribution in France.[6]
Release and reception
In 1923,
Despite the earlier showings in Oakland and Chicago, Fox advertised the film's world premiere at New York's Central Theatre on September 2.[27][28] As part of the Navy's support for the film, the audience included Rear Admiral Charles Peshall Plunkett and other officers.[29] The film played at the Central for four weeks before being replaced with Monna Vanna.[30]
The Silent Command was generally praised by contemporary reviewers. Laurence Reid and C. S. Sewell, writing for
Legacy
The Silent Command was Lugosi's first American film, and influenced the direction of his career in cinema.
Unlike most of Edwards's films,
See also
Notes
- ^ This theater, later renamed the Orpheum, is distinct from the Fox Oakland Theatre opened in 1928.[18]
- ^ This theater, later renamed the Sun,[23] is distinct from the Fox Theatre opened in 1929.[24]
References
- ^ Rhodes 1997, pp. 74–75.
- ^ a b Lennig 2003, pp. 42–43.
- ^ a b c Rhodes 1997, p. 74.
- ^ a b c d "The Silent Command". AFI Catalogue of Feature Films: The First 100 Years 1893–1993. American Film Institute. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
- ^ Kabatchnik 2010, p. 353.
- ^ a b c d e f Rhodes 1997, p. 75.
- ^ a b Lugosi, Bela (1934). "Bela Lugosi welcomes romantic role of "Chandu" after being 'typed' as 'heavy'". The Return of Chandu (pressbook). Publicity. Principal Distributing Corporation: 1.
- ^ Bordman 1995, p. 196.
- ^ a b Rhodes 1997, p. 10.
- ^ a b c d Rhodes 2001, p. 30.
- ^ Mank 2009, p. 626.
- ^ "Charlotte Walker next at Suburban". The St. Louis Star. 27 (9447): 9. June 15, 1910.
- ^ a b Fred [pseud.] (September 6, 1923). "The Silent Command". Variety. 72 (3): 23.
- ^ Hodge, H.T. (January 26, 1924). "The Silent Command". Exhibitors Herald. 18 (5): 66.
- ^ "The return of Lugosi". Famous Monsters of Filmland (100): 52–60. 1973.
- ^ "Fox films abroad". Exhibitors Herald. 18 (10): 40. March 1, 1924.
- ^ "Elaborate list of specials scheduled by Fox for Brazil". Exhibitors Herald. 18 (12): 61. March 15, 1924.
- ^ a b Tillmany & Dowling 2006, p. 47.
- ^ a b "Fox opens coast house in Oakland". Motion Picture News. 28 (10): 1182. September 8, 1923.
- ^ "Fox opening Oakland Theatre acquires continental chain". Moving Picture World. 64 (2): 130. September 8, 1923.
- ^ Mason, L. H. (September 1, 1923). "Chicago and the Mid-West". Motion Picture News. 28 (9): 1043.
- ^ "Recruiting tie-up boosts 'The Silent Command'". Motion Picture News. 28 (11): 1325. September 15, 1923.
- ^ Bryant, Time (June 7, 2013). "Lawrence Group will give Sun Theater an $11 million makeover". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
- ^ Tebbe, Jen (January 31, 2017). "Origin story: The Fabulous Fox". Missouri Historical Society. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
- ^ Smith, Sumner, ed. (September 8, 1923). "Exhibitors' news and views". Moving Picture World. 64 (2): 136.
- ^ "New season opens with bang at St. Louis film theatres". Moving Picture World. 64 (3): 240. September 15, 1923.
- ^ "Five specials on Fox September list". Motion Picture News. 28 (9): 1034. September 1, 1923.
- ^ "Two Fox premieres due in New York". Motion Picture News. 28 (9): 1098. September 1, 1923.
- ^ "A great array on Broadway". Motion Picture News. 28 (11): 1304. September 15, 1923.
- ^ "'Mona Vana' at Central". Variety. 72 (5): 20. September 20, 1923.
- ^ Sewell, C. S. (September 15, 1923). "The Silent Command". Moving Picture World. 64 (3): 264–265.
- ^ Reid, Laurence (September 15, 1923). "The Silent Command". Motion Picture News. 28 (11): 1335.
- ^ "Fox makes 1923 debut on Broadway with opening of big productions". Moving Picture World. 64 (3): 273. September 15, 1923.
- ^ a b "'The Silent Command'–Fox Central". The Film Daily. 25 (57): 4. September 7, 1923.
- ^ Lennig 2003, p. 45.
- ^ "The Silent Command". AllMovie. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
- ^ Bojarski 1980, p. 22.
- ^ Rhodes 2001, p. 132.
- ^ a b Rhodes 2001, pp. 131–132.
- ^ Weiss, Ron (1975). "Lugosi: the man and the vampire". Quasimodo's Monster Magazine (3): 34–45.
- ^ Solomon 2011, p. 1.
- ^ Brownlow 1976, p. 35.
- ^ "The Silent Command / Edmund Lowe [motion picture]". American Silent Feature Film Database. Library of Congress. October 8, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
- OCLC 52544481– via WorldCat.
- ^ "The Silent Command". Silent Era. Silent Era Films on Home Video. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
- ^ Evans, Rachel (January 8, 2019). "23 from '23: Celebrating the growth of the public domain with digital exhibits & silent film screenings". A Library with a View. Alexander Campbell King Law Library. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
Bibliography
- Bojarski, Richard (1980). Films of Bela Lugosi. Citadel Press. ISBN 978-0-8065-0716-3.
- ISBN 978-0-19-509078-9.
- ISBN 978-0-520-03068-8.
- Kabatchnik, Amnon (2010). Blood on the Stage 1925–1950: Milestone Plays of Crime, Mystery, and Detection. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-6963-9.
- Lennig, Arthur (2003). The Immortal Count: The Life and Films of Bela Lugosi. The University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0-8131-2273-1.
- Mank, Gregory William (2009) [1990]. Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff: The Expanded Story of a Haunting Collaboration (Revised ed.). McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-7864-3480-0.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-2765-9.
- Rhodes, Gary D. (2001). White Zombie: Anatomy of a Horror Film. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-7864-2762-8.
- Solomon, Aubrey (2011). The Fox Film Corporation, 1915–1935: A History and Filmography. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-7864-6286-5.
- Tillmany, Jack; Dowling, Jennifer (2006). Theatres of Oakland. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-4681-0.
External links
- The Silent Command at AllMovie
- The Silent Command at IMDb
- The Silent Command is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive (79 min)