Valley of the Giants

Einar the Lonely · Post by **Einar the Lonely** » Mon Jul 13, 2009 9:42 pm

Maybe someone can help me with this. A decade ago I attended a screening in Hamburg with film collector Jan Wahl showing some of his treasures. The last title at this evening was a surprise choice, and there were no papers with cast and crew information around. It turned out to be THE VALLEY OF THE GIANTS which I enjoyed a lot.

Now there are two silent titles listed on IMDB:

1919, directed by James Cruze, with Wallace Reid and Alice Terry.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0010835/

1927, directed by Charles Brabin:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0018531/

The Cruze version is indicated to be "lost", which somewhat irritated me when finding out, because back then I estimated the film to have been made rather around 1920 than 1927; but then I had not so much viewing experience.

So is it possible that I have seen the 1919 version?

DShepFilm · Post by **DShepFilm** » Tue Jul 14, 2009 6:48 pm

The 1919 film is indeed regarded as lost. It has a certain notoriety in that an accident during filming caused the production doctor to inject star Wallace Reid with morphine so that he could finish his part, and this is widely assumed to have led to the addiction which killed him.

However, some 16mm prints of the wonderful 1927 version with Milton Sills, Doris Kenyon and the indescribable Charles Sellon do circulate among collectors.

Einar the Lonely · Post by **Einar the Lonely** » Wed Jul 15, 2009 7:09 am

Thanks, so it must have been indeed the 1927 version. I hope this film will be released on DVD some day...

Derek B. · Post by **Derek B.** » Wed Jul 15, 2009 9:24 am

Einar the Lonely wrote:Thanks, so it must have been indeed the 1927 version. I hope this film will be released on DVD some day...

The 1927 version played at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival in 2007. You can see their description in their program archive (or the text only).

Einar the Lonely · Post by **Einar the Lonely** » Wed Jul 15, 2009 10:38 am

Thanks, finally some information about this film!

There seem to have been as many as four film versions of the book between 1919 and 1952. It is curious how much the author Peter Kyne is forgotten today, considering that

His stories were the basis for more than 100 movies from the teens to the thirties, but, following his last novel in 1942, his popularity declined.

Here is the link to his imdb filmography:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0477437/

He has also written the novel THE THREE GODFATHERS. (Interesting, I didnt know there had already been a film version under the same title in 1936:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028367/)

I remember the program of the screening I attended announced VALLEY as "one of those great out-door-pictures like they dont make them anymore". ^^

greta de groat · Post by **greta de groat** » Wed Jul 15, 2009 10:43 am

The 1952 version (The Big Trees) has practically nothing in common with the 1927 version except redwoods and a runaway railroad car.

greta

Richard P. May · Post by **Richard P. May** » Wed Jul 15, 2009 10:56 am

Don't overlook the 1938 Warner Bros. production. It was one of their first 3-strip Technicolor films.

LouieD · Post by **LouieD** » Wed Jul 15, 2009 11:04 am

Richard P. May wrote:Don't overlook the 1938 Warner Bros. production. It was one of their first 3-strip Technicolor films.

and El Brendel in its cast!