Love Never Dies (1921 film)

Love Never Dies is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by King Vidor.[1] Prints of the film survive in several film archives.[2]

Love Never Dies
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Directed byKing Vidor
Written byKing Vidor (adaptation)
Based on"The Cottage of Delight"
by William Nathaniel Harben
Produced byCathrine Curtis
StarringLloyd Hughes
CinematographyMax Dupont
Distributed byAssociated Producers
Release date
  • November 14, 1921 (1921-11-14)
Running time
60 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)
The full film

Plot

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As described in a film magazine,[3] John Trott (Hughes) overcomes the bad influence of a wretched home, becomes successful as a contracting engineer, and marries the beautiful Tilly Whaley (Bellamy). They settle down to a happy existence in their own cottage. Then a specter of his past appears, a drunken mother, and during his absence his wife is rushed home by her sanctimonious father Ezekiel Whaley (Brownlee) and is granted a divorce. John, accompanied by his foster sister, goes to a distant city. En route, the train is wrecked and he reports himself and the child killed. His wife marries a former sweetheart. Years later, John returns to the town and old love is renewed. The jealous husband attempts to kill John but is whipped in the encounter. The husband then decides to kill himself and is successful, despite John's valiant attempt to stop him. The couple are then reunited in their "cottage of delight."

Cast

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Production

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Train wreck scene from Love Never Dies.

Vidor’s spectacular cattle stampede in his previous picture The Sky Pilot (1921) was admired by critics. Hoping to capitalize on that success, Vidor designed and built an elaborate model replica of a train and trestle and used it to stage a dramatic derailment. Impressed by this special effect demonstration, Thomas H. Ince agreed to finance the completion of Love Never Dies.[4][5]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ "Progressive Silent Film List: Love Never Dies". silentera.com. Retrieved February 26, 2008.
  2. ^ "Love Never Dies". American Silent Feature Film Survival Database. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  3. ^ "Reviews: Love Never Dies". Exhibitors Herald. 13 (19). New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company: 67. November 5, 1921.
  4. ^ Baxter, 1976 p. 13: The “spectacular” stampede scene was shot in Fresno, California.
  5. ^ Durgnat and Simmons, 1988 p. 27-28

References

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  • Baxter, John. 1976. King Vidor. Simon & Schuster, Inc. Monarch Film Studies. LOC Card Number 75-23544.
  • Durgnat, Raymond and Simmon, Scott. 1988. King Vidor, American. University of California Press, Berkeley. ISBN 0-520-05798-8
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