The Son of the Sheik
The Son of the Sheik | |
---|---|
Edith Hull | |
Produced by | George Fitzmaurice John W. Considine Jr. (uncredited) |
Starring | Rudolph Valentino Vilma Bánky Montagu Love Karl Dane George Fawcett |
Cinematography | George Barnes |
Music by | Artur Guttmann (1937) Jack Ward (1969) Alloy Orchestra (2014) |
Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date |
|
Running time | 80 min. |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
Box office | over $2 million[1] |
The Son of the Sheik is a 1926 American
In 2003, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[3][4][5] On January 1, 2022, the film went into the public domain after years of being in copyright due to the Copyright Term Extension Act.[6]
Plot
In his final film performance before dying in 1926, Rudolph Valentino tackles two roles, as a father and his son. Ahmed (Rudolph Valentino), the son of an Arab sheik and a kidnapped English gentlewoman (Agnes Ayres), loves local dancing girl Yasmin (Vilma Banky). When he slips out of his father's heavily guarded compound to woo her, he is kidnapped and held for ransom by a group of bandits led by Yasmin's father (George Fawcett) and Ghabah (Montagu Love), the Moor to whom she is betrothed.
Cast
- Rudolph Valentino as Ahmed (The Son) / The Sheik (Ahmed's Father)
- Vilma Bánky as Yasmin
- George Fawcett as Andre
- Montagu Love as Ghabah
- Karl Dane as Ramadan
- Bull Montana as Ali the Mountebank
- Bynunsky Hyman as Pincher the Mountebank
- Agnes Ayres as Diana, The Sheik's Wife (Ahmed's Mother)
Production
At the time of the film's release, Rudolph Valentino was attempting to make a comeback in films.
In an effort to capitalize on the success that Valentino had achieved with The Sheik, United Artists' president
Valentino was paid $100,000. The director was paid $75,000 and Frances Marion $25,000.[10]
The novel was adapted for the screen by Frances Marion and Fred de Gresac.[2] The film was shot on location in California and in the Yuma Desert in Arizona.[11]
Reception
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Box office
The Son of the Sheik opened at the Million Dollar Theater in Los Angeles on July 9, 1926[12] and played for four weeks.[13]
Valentino then embarked on a nationwide tour to promote the film as it rolled out around the first run theatres in the country's cities. On August 15, he collapsed in his New York City hotel room and was rushed to the hospital. Doctors discovered he had a perforated ulcer which required emergency surgery. After the surgery, Valentino developed peritonitis and died on August 23, 1926.[14]
The Son of the Sheik was put into general release nationwide on September 5, 1926, nearly two weeks after Valentino's death. The film grossed $1,000,000 within the first year of its release. Eventually it more than doubled that.[15]
Critical
Some critics consider Valentino's performance in the film as one of the best of his career.[16]
Home media
See also
References
- ISBN 978-0-299-23004-3. p56
- ^ ISBN 0-313-30345-2.
- ^ Progressive Silent Film List: The Son of the Sheik at silentera.com
- ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "Librarian of Congress Adds 25 Films to National Film Registry". Library of Congress. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "Public Domain Day 2022". Duke University School of Law. January 1, 2022. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-598-84296-8.
- ISBN 1-893-12105-4.
- ISBN 978-0-061-96345-2.
- ^ "Pre-crank $221,000". Variety. February 10, 1926. p. 31.
- ISBN 0-571-21114-3.
- ^ Leider 2004 p.370
- ^ "'Padlocked,' $32,000, Met's Best'; 'Ben-Hur,' 20 Weeks in L.A." Variety. August 11, 1926. p. 4. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
- ISBN 978-0-826-42977-3.
- ISBN 978-0-299-23003-6.
- ISBN 0-313-33145-6.
- ^ "2002 Image Entertainment DVD edition". silentera.com. Retrieved May 16, 2013.
External links
- The Son of the Sheik essay by Donna Hill at National Film Registry
- The Son of the Sheik at IMDb
- Synopsis at AllMovie
- The Son of the Sheik essay by Daniel Eagan in America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 ISBN 0826429777, pages 115-117