Battling Jane

Battling Jane
Directed by Elmer Clifton
Written by Arnold Bernot
Starring Dorothy Gish
May Hall
Katherine MacDonald
Ernest Marion
Bertram Grassby
Adolph Lestina
Kate Toncray
George Nichols
Cinematography Karl Brown
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release dates
  • September 29, 1918
Running time
 5 reels, 4458 feet
Country United States
Language Silent

Battling Jane is an American silent melodrama film released in 1918. It was directed by Elmer Clifton as a vehicle for Dorothy Gish and included some patriotic overtones. According to the Progressive Silent Film List at SilentEra.com, its survival status is unknown.

Plot

Jane, a waitress at a small town Maine hotel, assumes guardianship of a baby whose mother has died. The baby's rakish father, Dr. Sheldon, conspires to steal prize money won by Jane after she enters the child in a baby show. Jane manages to hold the doctor and his accomplice at bay until help arrives, then uses the prize money to help the war effort by purchasing Liberty Bonds and donating the rest to the Red Cross.[1]

Release

The film was released in the United States in September, 1918, and in Canada shortly before the new year. In some venues it was accompanied by the comedy film The Goat with Fred Stone.[2] It would be one of the most financially successful films made by Gish for Paramount.[3]

Battling Jane received good reviews for its performances and its scenario: "(T)hough by turns pure comedy and pure melodrama, (it) is logically and consistently told."[4] A reviewer for the Toronto World thought Dorothy Gish "a marvel of cleverness... as charming as in any of her previous parts. Director Elmer Clifton leaves nothing to be desired, either in point of acting or investiture. The support is unusually capable." [5] The Evening Post of Wellington, New Zealand, found the lead role "quaint"; nonetheless it praised both the "cleverly depicted" story and the leading lady: "There are hundreds of Janes in the world, no doubt... Ms. Gish portrays the character realistically."[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Battling Jane Full Synopsis". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  2. ↑ Meriden Daily Journal: 5. November 19, 1918. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  3. ↑ Golden, Eve. Golden images: 41 essays on silent film stars. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 40.
  4. ↑ Lewistown Morning Tribune: 8. April 23, 1919. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  5. ↑ Toronto World: 10. December 28, 1918. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  6. ↑ Wellington Evening Post: 9. May 31, 1919. Missing or empty |title= (help);

External links