Wildness of Youth
Encyclopedia
Wildness of Youth is a 1922
silent film
directed by Ivan Abramson
, starring Virginia Pearson
, Harry T. Morey
and Mary Anderson
.
) competes with James Surbrun (Harry T. Morey
) for the affections of wild child Julie Grayton (Mary Anderson
). Kane is convicted of murdering Surbrun, but later exonerated.The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films 1921-1930, p. 906 (1971)
, who was a regular film critic in the 1920s, reviewed the film critically, writing that "the silly, the trashy, the obvious, the slipshod, the shoddy, it is here. ... It is the type of picture that leads to the comment, 'Movies are made for morons.'" Other more non-specific reviews were positive (as was typical of the era) calling it a "wonderful production."(4 May 1923). Royal Theatre, Providence County Times Industry-paper Film Daily
found that the picture was better than some of Abramson's prior releases, and though "not high class entertainment", predicted it would probably do fairly well at the box office.
1922 in film
-Events:* June 11 - United States première of Robert J. Flaherty's Nanook of the North, the first commercially successful feature length documentary film....
silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
directed by Ivan Abramson
Ivan Abramson
Ivan Abramson was a director of American silent films active in the 1910s and 1920s.Abramson emigrated to the United States from Russia in the 1880s and soon became involved in Jewish newspaper field. In 1905 he founded an opera company. In 1914, he founded Ivan Film Productions to produce...
, starring Virginia Pearson
Virginia Pearson
Virginia Belle Pearson was an American stage and film actress. She made fifty-one films in a career which extended from 1910 until 1932.-Career:...
, Harry T. Morey
Harry T. Morey
Harry Temple Morey was an American stage and motion picture actor who appeared in nearly two hundred films during his career....
and Mary Anderson
Mary Anderson (silent film actress)
Mary Anderson was an American actress, who appeared in 77 silent films between 1914 and 1923.-Career:Anderson was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was educated at Erasmus Hall High School in the same city. Anderson also attended Holy Cross School and made her first appearance in public as a...
.
Plot
Spoiled son Andrew Kane (Joseph StrikerJoseph Striker
Joseph Striker , was an American actor. He appeared in 28 films between 1920 and 1929.He was born in New York City. A resident of Cranford, New Jersey, Striker died at St. Barnabas Hospital in Livingston, New Jersey on February 24, 1974.-External links:...
) competes with James Surbrun (Harry T. Morey
Harry T. Morey
Harry Temple Morey was an American stage and motion picture actor who appeared in nearly two hundred films during his career....
) for the affections of wild child Julie Grayton (Mary Anderson
Mary Anderson (silent film actress)
Mary Anderson was an American actress, who appeared in 77 silent films between 1914 and 1923.-Career:Anderson was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was educated at Erasmus Hall High School in the same city. Anderson also attended Holy Cross School and made her first appearance in public as a...
). Kane is convicted of murdering Surbrun, but later exonerated.The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films 1921-1930, p. 906 (1971)
Reception
Writer Carl SandburgCarl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
, who was a regular film critic in the 1920s, reviewed the film critically, writing that "the silly, the trashy, the obvious, the slipshod, the shoddy, it is here. ... It is the type of picture that leads to the comment, 'Movies are made for morons.'" Other more non-specific reviews were positive (as was typical of the era) calling it a "wonderful production."(4 May 1923). Royal Theatre, Providence County Times Industry-paper Film Daily
Film Daily
The Film Daily was a daily publication that existed from 1915 to 1970 in the United States.For 55 years, Film Daily was the main source of news on the film and television industries...
found that the picture was better than some of Abramson's prior releases, and though "not high class entertainment", predicted it would probably do fairly well at the box office.
Status
The film's preservation status is unknown.Silentera.com entry for Wildness of Youth, Retrieved October 14, 2011 ("Survival Status: (unknown)")Cast
- Virginia PearsonVirginia PearsonVirginia Belle Pearson was an American stage and film actress. She made fifty-one films in a career which extended from 1910 until 1932.-Career:...
as Louise Wesley - Harry T. MoreyHarry T. MoreyHarry Temple Morey was an American stage and motion picture actor who appeared in nearly two hundred films during his career....
as James Surbrun - Mary AndersonMary Anderson (silent film actress)Mary Anderson was an American actress, who appeared in 77 silent films between 1914 and 1923.-Career:Anderson was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was educated at Erasmus Hall High School in the same city. Anderson also attended Holy Cross School and made her first appearance in public as a...
as Julie Grayton - Joseph StrikerJoseph StrikerJoseph Striker , was an American actor. He appeared in 28 films between 1920 and 1929.He was born in New York City. A resident of Cranford, New Jersey, Striker died at St. Barnabas Hospital in Livingston, New Jersey on February 24, 1974.-External links:...
as Andrew Kane - Thurston HallThurston HallThurston Hall was an American film actor. He appeared in 250 films between 1915 and 1957 and is probably best remembered for his portrayal, during the later stages of his career, of often pompous or blustering authority figures.Hall's best-known television role was as Mr. Schuyler, the boss of...
as Edward Grayton - Julia Swayne GordonJulia Swayne GordonJulia Swayne Gordon , was an American actress. She appeared in 228 films between 1908 to 1933.Born in Columbus, Ohio, she starred in the first film version of the Lady Godiva legend in 1911...
as Mrs. Martha Kane - Bobby ConnellyBobby ConnellyRobert Joseph "Bobby" Connelly was an American child actor of silent films. He is one of the first male child stars of American motion pictures beginning his career in 1913 at the age of four.-Career:...
as Teddy Wesley - Harry Southard as Dr. Carlyle Preston
- Madeline La Varre as Señora Gonzalez
- George J. Williams as Roger Moore
External links
- Wildness of Youth at American Film InstituteAmerican Film InstituteThe American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...