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The Midlanders

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The Midlanders
Magazine advertisement
Directed byJoseph De Grasse
Ida May Park[1]
Written byIda May Park (scenario)[1]
Based onThe Midlanders (novel)
by Charles Tenney Jackson
Produced byAndrew J. Callaghan
StarringBessie Love
CinematographyKing D. Gray
Production
company
Andrew J. Callaghan Productions
Distributed byFederated Film Exchanges of America, Inc.
Release date
  • December 1920 (1920-12)
Running time
5 reels[2][3]
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)
Budget$75,000[4]

The Midlanders is a 1920 American silent drama film starring Bessie Love and directed by husband and wife duo Joseph De Grasse and Ida May Park.[5] It was produced by Andrew J. Callaghan Productions and distributed by Federated Film Exchanges of America. It is based on the 1912 novel of the same name by Charles Tenney Jackson, published by Bobbs-Merrill Company.[6]

Only a small fragment of this film is known to survive.[7][8]

Plot

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Aurelie (Bessie Love), an orphan from New Orleans, escapes her convent and gets adopted by Mississippi riverboat captain Lindstrom (Curt Rehfeld). Hoping to give her a steadier life, he sends her to live with his brother, John Lindstrom (C. Norman Hammand), a squatter in a quiet river valley town. As Aurelie grows into a striking young woman, she wins a beauty contest and accepts an offer from a theatrical producer. Her rise to fame is swift. When she returns home, she faces rejection from the townspeople. Two men remain drawn to her: Wiley Curran (Lloyd Bacon), the local newspaper editor, and Harlan Van Hart (Truman Van Dyke), the judge's college-educated son.[5]

Cast

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Bessie Love in a scene from The Midlanders

Production

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Bessie Love reads a book in a scene from The Midlanders

Interiors were filmed in a studio in Los Angeles, and exteriors were filmed in Rio Vista.[9][10] To prepare for her performance, Bessie Love took dance classes at Theodore Kosloff's ballet school.[11]

After its release, producer Andrew J. Callaghan sued Federated Film Exchanges, saying that the distributor had not paid the full amount to distribute this film, Bonnie May, and Penny of Top Hill Trail.[4]

Reception

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The film received mixed reviews,[12] but Love's performance was highly praised.[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Who's Where on Los Angeles Screens". Camera!. Vol. 3, no. 46. February 26, 1921. p. 15.
  2. ^ "Guide to Current Pictures". Exhibitors Herald. October 1, 1921. p. 97.
  3. ^ "Guide to Current Pictures". Exhibitors Herald. November 27, 1920. p. 102.
  4. ^ a b "Callaghan Asks Injunction Restraining Federated from Exhibiting Productions". Moving Picture World. August 6, 1921. p. 592.
  5. ^ a b "The Midlanders (1920)". The AFI Catalog of Feature Films.
  6. ^ "Federated Preparing Special Book on Bessie Love Pictures". The Moving Picture World. September 25, 1920. p. 515.
  7. ^ The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: The Midlanders
  8. ^ Lost 35 mm Nitrate Film FOUND!; Nitrateville.com Retrieved September 5, 2014
  9. ^ "Capable Cast Assures Strong Support to Bessie Love in 'The Midlanders'". The Moving Picture World. April 17, 1920. p. 436.
  10. ^ "Bessie Love Returns from Taking Rio Vista Exteriors". The Moving Picture World. May 8, 1920. p. 854.
  11. ^ Love, Bessie (1977). From Hollywood with Love: An Autobiography of Bessie Love. London: Elm Tree Books. p. 105. OCLC 734075937.
  12. ^ "What the Big Houses Say With First Run Theatres". Motion Picture News. June 4, 1921. p. 3418.
  13. ^ Howe, Herbert (August 1920). "Some Pre-Release Impressions". Picture-Play Magazine. Vol. 12, no. 6. p. 68.
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