''Adam and Eva'' is a 1923 American

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

directed by

Robert G. Vignola Robert G. Vignola (born Rocco Giuseppe Vignola, August 7, 1882 – October 25, 1953) was an Italian-American actor, screenwriter, and film director. A former stage actor, he appeared in many motion pictures produced by Kalem Company and later mov ...

and adapted by

Luther Reed Luther A. Reed (July 14, 1888 – November 16, 1961) was an American screenwriter and film director. Biography Reed was born in 1888 in Berlin, Wisconsin, and graduated from Columbia University. He worked as a journalist and the music and the ...

from the play by

Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical theatre, musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. B ...

and George Middleton. The film stars

Marion Davies Marion Davies (born Marion Cecilia Douras; January 3, 1897 – September 22, 1961) was an American actress, producer, screenwriter, and philanthropist. Educated in a religious convent, Davies left the school to pursue a career as a chorus girl ...

, T. Roy Barnes, Tom Lewis, William Norris, Percy Ames, Leon Gordon, and Luella Gear.

plays an extravagant girl who, when her father goes bust, reforms by learning the simple life and making a farm a thriving business venture. The film was released on February 11, 1923, by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

Plot

As described in a

film magazine Film periodicals combine discussion of individual films, genres and directors with in-depth considerations of the medium and the conditions of its production and reception. Their articles contrast with film reviewing in newspapers and magazines whi ...

, Eva (Davies), daughter of millionaire James King (Lewis), spends money wastefully and enjoys life wonderfully. Her elder sister Julie (Gear) and her husband Clinton Dewitt (Gordon) live in the King mansion, content to share the wealthy man's fortunes. Among Eva's admirers are Dr. Delamater (Davidson) and Lord Andrew Gordon (Ames), each financially weak and desiring a rich wife. Old James is nearly driven mad by his daughter's extravagances. His South American representative Adam Smith (Barnes) comes to New York City to see him. James suddenly announces that he will go to South America for a few months and leave Adam in charge of his family and the Gotham City business interests. While James is gone, Adam falls in love with Eva but is unable to curb her spendthrift ways until he comes up with the idea of declaring that her father is ruined, which brings matters to a climax. Confronted by poverty, Eva rises to the occasion and makes her sister go to work as well as her Uncle Horace (Norris), and goes to live on a farm belonging to her father. There, with her sister and aided by Adam, she proceeds to raise eggs and honey for the markets. The family works hard. One day James returns to be stunned with the news that his previously ne'er-do-wells have turned over a new leaf and are making good. When the family learns the truth about James, they do not regret the lesson they have learned.

Cast

as Eva King * T. Roy Barnes as Adam Smith, The Salesman-Hero *Tom Lewis as James King *William Norris as Uncle Horace *Percy Ames as Lord Andrew Gordon *Leon Gordon as Clinton Dewitt *

Luella Gear Luella Gear (September 5, 1897 – April 3, 1980) was an American actress. She appeared in numerous films, TV series and theatrical productions throughout the 1910s to the 1960s Early life Gear was born in New York in 1897. She attended the Spe ...

as Julie Dewitt * William B. Davidson as Dr. Delamater *Edward Douglas as Lord Andrew's *

Bradley Barker Bradley Barker (January 18, 1883 – September 29, 1951) was an American actor and director of the silent film era. He also created sound effects for film and radio. Biography Born in Long Island, New York, Barker was a vaudeville perfor ...

as Eve's Admirer *John Powers as Eve's Admirer *Horace James as Gardener

Production

In her 16th film,

stars as a spendthrift in a film that was mostly shot on location in

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, outside of New York City. It is the sixth-most populous city in New England. Stamford is also the largest city in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Weste ...

. One sequence was set in Venice, Italy, and one magazine article said, "A little bit of Venice with its winding canals and its picturesque gondolas was transported to the hills of Connecticut...." The Venetian sets were designed by

Joseph Urban Joseph Urban (May 26, 1872 – July 10, 1933) was an Austrian-American architect, illustrator, and scenic designer. Life and career Joseph Urban was born on May 26, 1872, in Vienna. He received his first architectural commission at age 19 wh ...

. The film was a hit at the box office.

Survival status

''Adam and Eva'' survives only as a fragment with only reel number 5 held by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

.Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Database: ''Adam and Eva''
/ref>

References

External links

* {{Robert G. Vignola 1923 films Films shot in Connecticut Silent American comedy films 1923 comedy films Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Robert G. Vignola American black-and-white films American silent feature films 1920s American films