Screening: Tess of the Storm Country (1914)

December 12th, 2015 at 2 pm

Presented by The Silent Treatment at the Cinefamily

Silent Movie Theater, 611 N. Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles

The earliest surviving Mary Pickford feature, Tess of the Storm Country (1914) catapulted Pickford from popular performer to motion picture megastar, inspired exhibitors to crown Pickford “America’s Sweetheart,” and spurred studio head Adolph Zukor to raise her salary, making her the world’s highest paid actress.

In the film, Pickford stars as Tessibel Skinner, a poor but feisty squatter on the blustery shores of New York’s Cayuga Lake who rises to heroism when her father (David Hartford) is falsely imprisoned for murder. When Tess agrees to care for the illegitimate baby of a wealthy friend (Olive Golden), she risks losing the love of Frederick (Harold Lockwood) and is condemned by his father, the unforgiving minister Elias Graves (W.R. Walters).

This groundbreaking melodrama was recently preserved by the Paramount Archives in cooperation with the Mary Pickford Foundation. Directed by Edwin S. Porter, written by B.P. Schulberg and based on the 1909 novel by Grace Miller White. 80 min.

Live accompaniment from Cliff Retallick

$12/free for members of Cinefamily

See more here.