Valley of the Moon (1914 film)
The Valley of the Moon is a 1914 silent film directed by Hobart Bosworth and starring Jack Conway and Myrtle Stedman. Produced by Bosworth/London,[2] it was an adaptation of the 1913 novel The Valley of the Moon by Jack London[3] and based upon a scenario by Hettie Gray Baker.[4]
| The Valley of the Moon | |
|---|---|
 Contemporary advertisement | |
| Directed by | Hobart Bosworth |
| Based on | The Valley of the Moon by Jack London |
| Starring | Jack Conway Myrtle Stedman |
| Edited by | Hettie Gray Baker |
Release date |
|
Running time | Six reels[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent |
Plot
When boxer Billy Roberts (Conway) marries laundress Saxon (Stedman),[1] he tries to please his spouse by leaving his former profession behind and becoming a teamster driving trucks. However, when their wages are cut, the union calls for a strike.[3] The film is sympathetic toward the strikers, with scenes showing police attacking the teamsters with clubs and patrol wagons being driven over fallen men.[2] The former boxer is attacked and beaten by company scabs, lands in jail following a brawl, and starts drinking. The desperate couple decide to move to the country and start a new life on a farm. With money being tight, he enters a fight for a $300 prize. In the end he wins, and the couple depart to live at their "Valley of the Moon".[3]
References
- Erickson, Hal (2010), "Valley of the Moon (1914)", The New York Times.
- Merritt, Greg (2000), Celluloid Mavericks: The History of American Independent Film, Basic Books, p. 11, ISBN 1560252324.
- Langman, Larry (1998), American Film Cycles: the Silent Era, Bibliographies and Indexes in the Performing Arts, 22, Greenwood Publishing Group, p. 103, ISBN 0313306575.
- Bennett, Carl (2010), "The Valley of the Moon", The Progressive Silent Film List, Silent Era Company, retrieved 2014-04-05.