''Jenny Be Good'' is a 1920 American silent romance drama film directed by

William Desmond Taylor William Desmond Taylor (born William Cunningham Deane-Tanner; 26 April 1872 – 1 February 1922) was an Anglo-Irish-American film director and actor. A popular figure in the growing Cinema of the United States, Hollywood motion picture colony o ...

and starring

Mary Miles Minter Mary Miles Minter (born Juliet Reilly; April 25, 1902Louisiana Birth Certificate, Caddo Parish, No. 119, Book A, Page 97, Birth Date: April 25, 1902, Name: Mary M. Reilly ic – Original Caddo birth record was recorded as "J.H. Riley's Child" ...

, based on a novel by Wilbur Finley Fauley and adapted for the screen by

Julia Crawford Ivers Julia Crawford Ivers (October 3, 1869 – May 8, 1930) was an American motion picture pioneer. Biography Born in Boonville, Missouri in 1869, her family arrived a year later in Los Angeles. Her father was a dentist. Her mother died in 1876, when ...

. It is the last of Minter's films to also feature her older sister

Margaret Shelby Alma Margaret Reilly (June 16, 1900 – December 21, 1939), known professionally as Margaret Shelby, was an American stage and motion picture actress, daughter of actress Charlotte Shelby, older sister of silent film star Mary Miles Minter, a ...

in a supporting role. As with many of Minter's features, it is believed to be a

lost film A lost film is a feature film, feature or short film in which the original negative or copies are not known to exist in any studio archive, private collection, or public archive. Films can be wholly or partially lost for a number of reasons. ...

.The Library of Congress/FIAF American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: ''Jenny Be Good''
/ref>

Plot

As described in

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 ...

reviews, Jenny Riano (Minter), is an orphaned girl and a talented violinist, who is raised by her grandmother Nancy Beedle (Fisher). She falls in love with Royal Renshaw (Belasco), who is the son of the wealthy social climber Sophia Shuttles (Ashton) by her first husband. Mrs. Shuttles hopes to find a socially advantageous match for her son, and so does not approve of his relationship with Jenny. She would much prefer to see Royal wed to Jolanda Van Mater (Shelby), whose mother has the status that Mrs. Shuttles desires. Despite his mother's wishes, Royal weds Jenny in secret. When his mother finds out, she forces him to take a yachting holiday and, telling Jenny that he has abandoned her, convinces her to annul the marriage. Jenny's grandmother dies, and she travels to the city to become a concert violinist. When Royal returns, he is unable to find Jenny, and his parents marry him to Jolanda. Jolanda, however, has become a drug fiend, after initially being given dope by local tea room owner Polly Primrose (Wallace) as a cure for a headache. Royal, who cannot forget Jenny, decides to commit Jolanda to a sanatorium. However, when she realises where he is driving her, Jolanda seizes the wheel of Royal's automobile and steers the car over a cliff. Jolanda is killed in the crash, and Royal's life hangs in the balance. In hospital, he calls out constantly for Jenny, and his parents eventually relent and search for her. Jenny abandons her musical career to rush to Royal's side. With Jenny's care, Royal recovers, and the two are once again wed, openly this time. The May 15, 1920 edition of

Motion Picture News The ''Motion Picture News'' was an American film industry trade paper published from 1913 to 1930. History The publication was created through the 1913 merger of the ''Moving Picture News'' founded in 1908 and ''The Exhibitors' Times'', founde ...

lists a musical cue sheet for the film.

Cast

as Jenny Riano *

Jay Belasco Jay Belasco (January 11, 1888 May 1, 1949), born Reginald James Belasco, was an American film actor whose career mostly involved silent film. Belasco was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was a cousin of actors Walter Belasco and David Belasco. He ...

as Royal Renshaw *

as Jolanda Van Mater * Fred R. Stanton as Aaron Shuttles *

Sylvia Ashton Sylvia Ashton (January 26, 1880 – November 18, 1940) was an American film actress of the silent film era. Ashton was born in Denver, Colorado. She bore a heavyset resemblance to Jane Darwell and like Darwell was playing mother and grand ...

as Sophia Shuttles *J. Edwin Brown as Professor Gene Jiggs *Lillian Rambeau as Mrs. Van Mater *Catherine Wallace as Polly Primrose *Fanny Cossar as Clementina Jiggs *Maggie Fisher as Nancy Beedle *Grace Pike as Mrs. Rossiter-Jones

References

External links

* 1920 films 1920 lost films 1920 romantic drama films 1920s American films 1920s English-language films American black-and-white films American silent feature films English-language romantic drama films Films based on American novels Films directed by William Desmond Taylor Lost American romantic drama films Lost silent American films Silent American romantic drama films {{1920s-drama-film-stub