The Silence of Dean Maitland
Encyclopedia
Synopsis
The plot concerns a clergyman, Cyril Maitland (John LongdenJohn Longden
John Longden was a West Indian-born English film actor. He appeared in 84 films between 1926 and 1964, including five films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.-Biography:...
), living in a small seaside town, who impregnates the beautiful Alma Lee (Charlotte Francis) despite being engaged to another woman. When Alma's father Ben (Les Warton) finds out about the pregnancy, he attacks Maitland and is killed in a fall. Mailtand's best friend, Doctor Henry Everard (John Warwick) gets the blame, and spends twenty years in jail while Maitland's career thrives.
Production
The script was based on a play adapted from a popular novel by Maxwell GrayMaxwell Gray
Mary Gleed Tuttiett , better known by the pen name Maxwell Gray, was an English novelist and poet best known for her 1886 novel The Silence of Dean Maitland.-Life:...
which had previously been filmed in 1914
The Silence of Dean Maitland (1914 film)
The Silence of Dean Maitland is a 1914 Australian silent film directed by Raymond Longford. It is an adaptation of the novel by Maxwell Gray which was later filmed by Ken G. Hall in 1934....
. The rights to the play were owned by a friend of Stuart Doyle's, Joe Lippmann. Hall and Doyle went to see a production of the play at the Rockdale Amateur Society and "ended up in a fit of controllable laughter." However Hall recognised that the basic structure of the piece was solid. The play was adapted by ABC radio writer Edmund Barclay
Edmund Barclay
Edmund Barclay was an English-Australian writer best known for his work in radio drama. Radio historian Richard Lane called him "Australian radio's first great writer and, many would say, Australian radio's greatest playwright ever." He also wrote stage plays and film scripts including The Silence...
and an old friend of Hall's Gayne Dexter
Gayne Dexter
Gayne Robert Dexter , better known as Gayne Dexter, was an Australian journalist, publicist and screenwriter. He was head of publicity at Union Theatres and Australasian Films in the 1910s, where his assistant was a young Ken G. Hall...
John Longden
John Longden
John Longden was a West Indian-born English film actor. He appeared in 84 films between 1926 and 1964, including five films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.-Biography:...
and Charlotte Francis were English actors touring the country in a play when cast.
The movie was shot on location in Camden
Camden
- Australia :* Camden, New South Wales** Camden Council ** Electoral district of Camden- England :* London Borough of Camden** Camden Town, an area in the borough* Camden School for Girls- United States :* Camden, Alabama* Camden, Arkansas...
.
Ken G. Hall
Ken G. Hall
Kenneth George Hall, AO OBE , better known as Ken G. Hall, was an Australian film director, considered one of the most important figures in the history of the Australian film industry.-Early years:...
ran into trouble with the censor over scenes where Charlotte Francis swims on the beach and later seduces the clergyman. However, these scenes ended up staying in the final film.
Reception
Released on a double bill with the variety short Cinesound VarietiesCinesound Varieties
Cinesound Varieties is a 1934 Australian variety short film from director Ken G. Hall made to go out on a double-bill with the full-length feature, The Silence of Dean Maitland .-Synopsis:There were two main components of the film:...
, the film was highly popular at the local box office and achieved release in England. Hall says box office receipts were higher in England than in Australia.
The intention was for Cinesound to follow this movie with an adaptation of Robbery Under Arms
Robbery Under Arms
Robbery Under Arms is a classic Australian novel by Rolf Boldrewood . It was first published in serialised form by The Sydney Mail between July 1882 and August 1883, then in three volumes in London in 1888...
but uncertainty over whether films about bushrangers were still banned led the company to make Strike Me Lucky
Strike Me Lucky
Strike Me Lucky is a 1934 comedy starring popular stage comic Roy Rene in his first and only film.-Synopsis:‘Mo’ McIsaac and his sidekick Donald try to find work to support a young orphan girl he finds dancing for pennies in the street, Miriam , unaware she is really the missing daughter of rich...
(1934) instead.
Cast
- John LongdenJohn LongdenJohn Longden was a West Indian-born English film actor. He appeared in 84 films between 1926 and 1964, including five films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.-Biography:...
as Dean Maitland - Charlotte FrancisCharlotte FrancisCharlotte Rose Francis is an English actress/singer. She is best known for her part as Lucy Barker in the CITV children's comedy drama My Parents are Aliens in series one to seven....
as Alma Lee - Jocelyn HowarthConstance WorthConstance Worth was an Australian actress who became a Hollywood star in the late 1930s.-Early life and career:...
as Alma Gray - John WarwickJohn WarwickJohn Warwick was an Australian film and television actor.-Selected filmography:* On Our Selection * In the Wake of the Bounty * The Squatter's Daughter * Riding High...
as Dr Henry Everard - John Pickard as Tommy Everard
- Bill KerrBill KerrWilliam 'Bill' Kerr is an Australian film and television actor. He was born into a performing arts family in Cape Town, South Africa, but grew up in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia....
as Cyril Maitland Jnr - Fred MacDonaldFred MacDonaldFred MacDonald , was an Australian actor best known for playing Dave Rudd opposite Bert Bailey on stage and screen, starting with the original 1912 production of On Our Selection...
as Granfer
External links
- The Silence of Dean Maitland in the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- The Silence of Dean Maitland at Australian Screen OnlineAustralian Screen OnlineAustralian Screen Online is an on-line database operated by the Australian National Film and Sound Archive. It provides information about and excerpts from a wide selection of Australian feature films, documentaries, television programs, newsreels, short films, animations, and home-movies. It also...
- The Silence of Dean Maitland at National Film and Sound ArchiveNational Film and Sound ArchiveThe National Film and Sound Archive is Australia’s audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national collection of audiovisual materials and related items...
- The Silence of Dean Maitland original text of Maxwell GrayMaxwell GrayMary Gleed Tuttiett , better known by the pen name Maxwell Gray, was an English novelist and poet best known for her 1886 novel The Silence of Dean Maitland.-Life:...
novel at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...