Ruth of the Range (lost adventure film serial; 1923): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 02:06, 15 October 2018

This article has been tagged as Needing work due to its lack of concrete references.

Lobby cards, each with different scenes from the film.

Status: Lost

Ruth of the Range is a 1923 film serial known for being the last film work of both Gilson Willets, the production manager of Pathe Film Company,who suddenly passed during the production of the series^[1], and Ernest C. Warde^[2]. The film starred Ruth Roland, who was also the star of an earlier series made by Pathe Film Company by the name of Ruth of the Rockies in 1920^[3].

Plot Synopsis

The film stars Ruth Roland as herself; the daughter of an inventor. Ruth's father develops a formula for a new substance by the name of Fuelite, which proves to be more energy efficient than coal. He hides the recipe away in a secret compartment in his home before being kidnapped by the henchmen of Black Harper, who wants the secret formula for himself^[4]. In order to prevent Black Harper from obtaining the Fuelite recipe, Ruth must embark on an adventure to save her father, and manage and protect the Fuelite plant^[5].

Obstacles

On top of Willet's passing, production of the film faced many other challenges. The serial went through three different directors: Ernest C. Warde, W.S. Van Dyke, and Frank Leon Smith. Warde was fired for focusing too much on close-ups of Roland rather than the action that it came to be known for, and the job of director was then taken by Van Dyke before he left to find other work, transferring the role of director to Smith. There were also issues involving Roland herself, as she was known to be argumentative during filming, especially with Van Dyke. On top of this, Roland decided to leave for vacation with two chapters left for filming, leaving her stuntman, Bob Rose, to film the rest of the serial wearing a wig^[6].

References

↑ A Sacramento newspaper article mentioning Willet's passing and his profession Retrieved 14 Oct '18
↑ A biography page listing Ernest C. Warde's date of death. Retrieved 14 Oct '18
↑ A guide of silent films, which lists both Ruth of the Range and Ruth of the Rockies as being produced by Pathe Film Company and details the plot for both. Retrieved 14 Oct '18
↑ A series of Lobby Cards for the show, with one naming the main antagonist. Retrieved 14 Oct '18
↑ Lobby cards for the series that mention Ruth's managing of the Fuelite plant. Retrieved 14 Oct '18
↑ A listing explaining both the transfers between directors, and Roland's bad temperament and vaction Retrieved 14 Oct '18

[1] A Sacramento newspaper article mentioning Willet's passing and his profession Retrieved 14 Oct '18

[2] A biography page listing Ernest C. Warde's date of death. Retrieved 14 Oct '18

[3] A guide of silent films, which lists both Ruth of the Range and Ruth of the Rockies as being produced by Pathe Film Company and details the plot for both. Retrieved 14 Oct '18

[4] A series of Lobby Cards for the show, with one naming the main antagonist. Retrieved 14 Oct '18

[5] Lobby cards for the series that mention Ruth's managing of the Fuelite plant. Retrieved 14 Oct '18

[6] A listing explaining both the transfers between directors, and Roland's bad temperament and vaction Retrieved 14 Oct '18

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[2]

[3]

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 |status=<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>
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-'''''Ruth of the Range''''' is a 1923 film serial, which was the last one to ever be produced by Gilson Willets before his tragic death during the filming of the serial.
+'''''Ruth of the Range''''' is a 1923 film serial known for being the last film work of both Gilson Willets, the production manager of Pathe Film Company,who suddenly passed during the production of the series<ref>[https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SU19220526.2.71&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 A Sacramento newspaper article mentioning Willet's passing and his profession] Retrieved 14 Oct '18</ref>, and Ernest C. Warde<ref>[https://www.thanhouser.org/tcocd/Biography_Files/hhht2y.htm A biography page listing Ernest C. Warde's date of death.] Retrieved 14 Oct '18</ref>. The film starred Ruth Roland, who was also the star of an earlier series made by Pathe Film Company by the name of ''Ruth of the Rockies'' in 1920<ref>[https://books.google.ca/books?id=-40mFfGB4VMC&pg=PA531&lpg=PA531&dq=%22ruth+of+the+range%22+%221923%22&source=bl&ots=RPLpbhaYs9&sig=tUVel5rLO2ZuQVX9jUq0RCj1PW8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_qfSMk4feAhWN7Z8KHWgTAJI4ChDoATABegQIBxAB#v=onepage&q=%22ruth%20of%20the%20range%22%20&f=false A guide of silent films, which lists both ''Ruth of the Range'' and ''Ruth of the Rockies'' as being produced by Pathe Film Company and details the plot for both.] Retrieved 14 Oct '18</ref>.
 ==Plot Synopsis==
-Ruth's father is an inventor who has developed a formula for a new synthetic fuel called Fuelite, which is far more efficient than traditional gasoline.  He hides it away in a secret compartment at his home before being murdered by the henchmen of a villain who wants the secret formula for himself.  Ruth and her fiancee now have to locate the Fuelite formula and prevent the criminal from getting his filthy hands on it, providing the start for a 15 chapter serial filled with action and suspense.
+The film stars Ruth Roland as herself; the daughter of an inventor. Ruth's father develops a formula for a new substance by the name of Fuelite, which proves to be more energy efficient than coal.  He hides the recipe away in a secret compartment in his home before being kidnapped by the henchmen of Black Harper, who wants the secret formula for himself<ref>[https://movieposters.ha.com/itm/movie-posters/action/ruth-of-the-range-pathe-1923-title-lobby-card-and-lobby-cards-6-11-x-14-episode-1-the-last-shot-episode-6-total-7-items-/a/161227-54300.s A series of Lobby Cards for the show, with one naming the main antagonist.] Retrieved 14 Oct '18</ref>. In order to prevent Black Harper from obtaining the Fuelite recipe, Ruth must embark on an adventure to save her father, and manage and protect the Fuelite plant<ref>[https://movieposters.ha.com/itm/movie-posters/action/ruth-of-the-range-pathe-1923-title-lobby-card-and-lobby-cards-5-11-x-14-chapter-9-the-lava-crusher-serial-total-6-items-/a/161217-54421.s Lobby cards for the series that mention Ruth's managing of the Fuelite plant.] Retrieved 14 Oct '18</ref>.
-==Notes==
+==Obstacles==
-Both the original writer, Gilson Willets, and one of the actors, Ernest K. Warde, passed away during the production of this serial. It's not known with certainty which role Earnest was playing, but most likely, he was portraying the chief villain of the serial.  Noble Johnson, an African American actor who was a childhood friend of Lon Chaney senior, also was in the film and portrayed one of the chief villain's henchmen.
+On top of Willet's passing, production of the film faced many other challenges. The serial went through three different directors: Ernest C. Warde, W.S. Van Dyke, and Frank Leon Smith. Warde was fired for focusing too much on close-ups of Roland rather than the action that it came to be known for, and the job of director was then taken by Van Dyke before he left to find other work, transferring the role of director to Smith. There were also issues involving Roland herself, as she was known to be argumentative during filming, especially with Van Dyke. On top of this, Roland decided to leave for vacation with two chapters left for filming, leaving her stuntman, Bob Rose, to film the rest of the serial wearing a wig<ref>[https://books.google.ca/books?id=i7veCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA207&lpg=PA207&dq=%22Ruth+of+the+range%22+%22ruth+roland%22+%22vacation%22&source=bl&ots=x3x-cDI0Qe&sig=yHQPFwQ3fgQ_XnEmiNTftbpIthY&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjH2Zztq4feAhWBLHwKHZeMBaYQ6AEwC3oECAQQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22Ruth%20of%20the%20range%22%20%22ruth%20roland%22%20%22vacation%22&f=false A listing explaining both the transfers between directors, and Roland's bad temperament and vaction ] Retrieved 14 Oct '18</ref>.
-==Resources==
-*Ruth of the Range (1923) at Wikipedia.org
-*Ruth of the Range (1923) at IMDB.com
-*CONTINUED NEXT WEEK (book by Kalton C. Lahue)
-*BOUND AND GAGGED (book by Kalton C. Lahue)
+===References===
+{{reflist}}
 [[Category:Lost films]]