Salomy Jane (1914 film)
Encyclopedia
Salomy Jane is a Western
feature film
based on Bret Harte
's 1898 novella of the same name. The film is the only known surviving complete work of Beatriz Michelena
and the California Motion Picture Corporation.
and revolves around a woman (Salomy Jane) who is saved from a ruffian (Red Pete) by a heroic stranger (Jack Dart). In turn, Salomy Jane saves Jack Dart from being wrongly lynched for a crime he didn't commit.
and released by Paramount Pictures
, and remade as Wild Girl in 1932 by Fox Film Corporation.
. George E. Middleton saw in his Latina
wife a possible competitor to Mary Pickford
as premier screen star. The couple began making films at Middleton's studio; each one intended to be a star vehicle for Michelena. Salomy Jane was a hit with viewers, but Alco Film, its national distributor, was unable to return a profit to the movie makers. Two concurrent and several subsequent film projects were not profitable as well, and Michelena had begun demanding star treatment perquisites which were too expensive for the production company to sustain. Middleton and Michelena split from California Motion Picture to form their own film company, Beatriz Michelena Features, making Just Squaw in 1919 and The Flame of Hellgate in 1920. Middleton and Michelena divorced in the 1920s.
Salomy Jane has been cited as Jack Holt
's first film appearance but he had been taking bit parts during the preceding year. In this movie he rides a horse to the edge of a very high, very steep embankment and jumps off of the horse to tumble more than a hundred feet into the Russian River
. Volunteering for the stunt netted him a bit part as a saloon patron.
caused by a child's firecracker prank that destroyed the vault containing all of California Motion Picture Corporation's and Beatrice Michelena Studio's films. A print was discovered in Australia in 1996, and was preserved by the Library of Congress
. New 35mm prints began limited circulation in 2008.
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
based on Bret Harte
Bret Harte
Francis Bret Harte was an American author and poet, best remembered for his accounts of pioneering life in California.- Life and career :...
's 1898 novella of the same name. The film is the only known surviving complete work of Beatriz Michelena
Beatriz Michelena
Beatriz Michelena was an American actress during the silent film era, known at the time for her operatic soprano voice and appearances in musical theatre. She was one of the few Latina stars visible on the silver screen in the United States in the 1910s...
and the California Motion Picture Corporation.
Plot
The story takes place in rough-and-tumble Gold Rush-era CaliforniaCalifornia Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
and revolves around a woman (Salomy Jane) who is saved from a ruffian (Red Pete) by a heroic stranger (Jack Dart). In turn, Salomy Jane saves Jack Dart from being wrongly lynched for a crime he didn't commit.
Remakes
The story was remade with the same title in 1923 by Famous Players-LaskyFamous Players-Lasky
Famous Players-Lasky Corporation was an American motion picture and distribution company created on July 19, 1916 from the merger of Adolph Zukor's Famous Players Film Company -- originally formed by Zukor as Famous Players in Famous Plays -- and Jesse L...
and released by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, and remade as Wild Girl in 1932 by Fox Film Corporation.
Firsts
Salomy Jane was the first feature by California Motion Picture Corporation and the first screen appearance by stage actress and singer Beatriz MichelenaBeatriz Michelena
Beatriz Michelena was an American actress during the silent film era, known at the time for her operatic soprano voice and appearances in musical theatre. She was one of the few Latina stars visible on the silver screen in the United States in the 1910s...
. George E. Middleton saw in his Latina
Latina
Latina is the feminine form of the term Latino.Latina may also refer to:*Province of Latina, a province in Latium , Italy**Latina, Lazio, the capital of the province of Latina**Latina Nuclear Power Plant*Latina , a district of Madrid...
wife a possible competitor to Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
as premier screen star. The couple began making films at Middleton's studio; each one intended to be a star vehicle for Michelena. Salomy Jane was a hit with viewers, but Alco Film, its national distributor, was unable to return a profit to the movie makers. Two concurrent and several subsequent film projects were not profitable as well, and Michelena had begun demanding star treatment perquisites which were too expensive for the production company to sustain. Middleton and Michelena split from California Motion Picture to form their own film company, Beatriz Michelena Features, making Just Squaw in 1919 and The Flame of Hellgate in 1920. Middleton and Michelena divorced in the 1920s.
Salomy Jane has been cited as Jack Holt
Jack Holt (actor)
Jack Holt was an American motion picture actor. He was a leading man of silent and sound films, and was known for his many roles in Westerns.-Early life:...
's first film appearance but he had been taking bit parts during the preceding year. In this movie he rides a horse to the edge of a very high, very steep embankment and jumps off of the horse to tumble more than a hundred feet into the Russian River
Russian River (California)
The Russian River, a southward-flowing river, drains of Sonoma and Mendocino counties in Northern California. With an annual average discharge of approximately , it is the second largest river flowing through the nine county Greater San Francisco Bay Area with a mainstem 110 miles ...
. Volunteering for the stunt netted him a bit part as a saloon patron.
Restoration
The film was thought lost in a 1931 studio fire in San Rafael, CaliforniaSan Rafael, California
San Rafael is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area...
caused by a child's firecracker prank that destroyed the vault containing all of California Motion Picture Corporation's and Beatrice Michelena Studio's films. A print was discovered in Australia in 1996, and was preserved by the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
. New 35mm prints began limited circulation in 2008.
Cast
- Beatriz MichelenaBeatriz MichelenaBeatriz Michelena was an American actress during the silent film era, known at the time for her operatic soprano voice and appearances in musical theatre. She was one of the few Latina stars visible on the silver screen in the United States in the 1910s...
– Salomy Jane - House Peters – Jack Dart, The Man
- William Pike – Red Pete
- Clara BeyersClara BeyersClara Beyers was an American silent film stock actressShe was signed in 1913 and starred in 32 films before her retirement from film in 1922.She starred with William Garwood in films such as His Picture.-Filmography:...
– Mrs. Heath (as Clara Byers) - Lorraine Levy – Anna May
- Loretta Ephran – Mary Ann
- Walter Williams – Willie Smith
- Demetrios Mitsoras – Gallagher
- Andrew Robson – Yuba Bill
- Matt Snyder – Madison Clay
- Harold B. Meade – Baldwin
- Clarence Arper – Colonel Starbottle
- Harold Entwistle – Larabee
- Fred Snook – Seth Low
- Ernest JoyErnest JoyErnest Joy was an American stage and film actor of the silent era. He appeared in 76 films between 1911 and 1920.He was born in Iowa and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:...
– Marbury - William NighWilliam NighWilliam Nigh was an American film director, writer, and actor. His film work sometimes lists him as either "Will Nigh" or "William Nye".He was born in Berlin, Wisconsin....
– Rufe Waters - Jack HoltJack Holt (actor)Jack Holt was an American motion picture actor. He was a leading man of silent and sound films, and was known for his many roles in Westerns.-Early life:...
– Cowboy in saloon playing solitaire, stuntman (uncredited)