''The Whip'' is a 1917 American silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Maurice Tourneur Maurice Félix Thomas (; 2 February 1876 – 4 August 1961), known as Maurice Tourneur (), was a French film director and screenwriter. Life Born Maurice Félix Thomas in the Épinettes district (17th arrondissement of Paris), his father was a w ...

that is based on the play of the same name by Henry Hamilton and

Cecil Raleigh Cecil Raleigh was the pseudonym of Abraham Cecil Francis Fothergill Rowlands (27 January 1856 – 10 November 1914), an English actor and playwright. Personal life Abraham Cecil Francis Fothergill Rowlands was born on 27 January 1856 in Monmo ...

. The film stars Alma Hanlon,

June Elvidge June Elvidge (June 30, 1893 – May 1, 1965) was an early 20th-century silent film actress. Biography Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Elvidge, of English and Irish descent, attended Pennsylvania College and was a concert singer before she bega ...

, and

Irving Cummings Irving Cummings (October 9, 1888 – April 18, 1959) was an American movie actor and director. Career Born in New York City, Cummings started his acting career at age 16 in ''Diplomacy (play), Diplomacy''. His Broadway theatre, Broadway, p ...

. It also features

Bobby Vernon Bobby Vernon (born Sylvion de Jardin) (March 9, 1897 – June 28, 1939) was an American comedic actor in silent films. He later became a writer and comedy supervisor at Paramount for W. C. Fields and Bing Crosby, when the sound era arrived. Blu ...

Wallace Beery Wallace Fitzgerald Beery (April 1, 1885 – April 15, 1949) was an American film and stage actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill in '' Min and Bill'' (1930) opposite Marie Dressler, as General Director Preysing in '' Grand Hotel'' (1 ...

, as well as

Gloria Swanson Gloria Mae Josephine Swanson (March 27, 1899April 4, 1983) was an American actress. She first achieved fame acting in dozens of silent films in the 1920s and was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, most famously for h ...

in one of her early film roles. The film survives and has been released on DVD.

Plot

The movie tells the story of the training of a racehorse, the Whip, of the amnesiac nobleman who loves the horse, and of the villains who attempt to keep it from racing.

Cast

* Alma Hanlon as Diana Beverley *

as Mrs. D'Aquilia *

as Herbert Brancaster *

Warren Cook Warren Cook (May 23, 1878 – May 2, 1939) was an American film actor of the silent era. Cook was born in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1901, he appeared in ''The Shaughraun'' at the Castle Square Theatre in Boston. He was part of the stock co ...

as Judge Beverley *

Paul McAllister Paul McAllister (June 30, 1875 – July 8, 1955), was an American film actor. He appeared in 37 films between 1913 and 1940. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and died in Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spa ...

as Baron Sartoris *Alfred Hemming as Joe Kelly *

Dion Titheradge Dion Titheradge (30 March 1889 – 16 November 1934) was an Australian-born actor and writer of revues, plays and screenplays. Early life Dion Titheradge was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1889, son of the actor George Sutton Titheradge. He was ...

as Harry Anson *Jean Dumas as Myrtle Anson

Reception

Like many American films of the time, ''The Whip'' was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. The Chicago Board of Censors required the flashing of three gambling scenes and cuts of the scene of a man disconnecting a brake and the

intertitle In films and videos, an intertitle, also known as a title card, is a piece of filmed, printed text edited into the midst of (hence, ''inter-'') the photographed action at various points. Intertitles used to convey character dialogue are referred ...

"Our affair started on the boat. I was weak and yielded."

References

External sources

*
''The Whip''
at www.nuraypictures.com 1917 films Silent American drama films 1917 drama films American black-and-white films American silent feature films Films directed by Maurice Tourneur 1910s American films {{1910s-drama-film-stub