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A Yankee Princess

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A Yankee Princess
Magazine advertisement
Directed byDavid Smith
Written byBessie Love (scenario)
Based on"The Yankee Princess" (story)
by Bernard McConville[1]
StarringBessie Love
CinematographyClyde De Vinna[2]
Production
company
Distributed byVitagraph Company of America
Release date
  • April 21, 1919 (1919-04-21) (U.S.)
Running time
5 reels; 4,646 feet[3]
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

A Yankee Princess is a 1919 American silent comedy-drama film produced and distributed by the Vitagraph Company of America. It was directed by David Smith and stars Bessie Love, who also wrote the screenplay. It is a lost film.[4][5]

Plot

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Poor inventor Michael O'Reilly (Pearce) is an immigrant from Ireland living in the United States. When he suddenly comes into money, he sends his daughter Patsy (Love) is sent to an exclusive boarding school. The snobby students shun her until she claims to be an Irish princess, and they then demand to see her coat of arms. To meet this need, her father buys the family heirlooms of the destitute Irish Windbourne estate.

Lord Windbourne (Wetherby) himself appears and becomes engaged to Patsy, with the intention of reclaiming his treasures and her fortune. When she learns his true character, she breaks the engagement, but Windbourne threatens to reveal the O'Reillys' deception.

Handsome young Irishman Larry Burke (Gordon) appears with proof that he is the real Lord Windbourne. He proposes to Patsy, who accepts.[3][6][7][8]

Cast

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Magazine advertisement

Reception

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The film received generally positive reviews, although the story was deemed predictable.[6][8][9][10][11][12] It was commercially successful.[9][12] The photography was highly praised,[6] as was the acting,[3] in particular that of Bessie Love.[13][14][15]

References

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  1. ^ "Edna Schley: Representing the foremost authors of America and England". Wid's Yearbook. 1919.
  2. ^ Love, Bessie (1977). From Hollywood with Love: An Autobiography of Bessie Love. London: Elm Tree Books. p. 150. OCLC 734075937.
  3. ^ a b c "Nothing Big But Makes Congenial Material for Vitagraph Star". The Film Daily. April 13, 1919. p. 7.
  4. ^ The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: A Yankee Princess
  5. ^ Hanson, Patricia King, ed. (1988). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States: Feature Films 1911–1920. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-06301-3.
  6. ^ a b c "Reviews: A Yankee Princess". Exhibitors Herald and Motography. Vol. 8, no. 18. New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company. April 26, 1919. p. 40.
  7. ^ "Comedy a Big Element in 'A Yankee Princess'". The Moving Picture World. May 10, 1919. p. 929.
  8. ^ a b Reid, Laurence (April 19, 1919). "'A Yankee Princess'—Vitagraph". Motion Picture News. pp. 2523, 2528.
  9. ^ a b Davis, Mack J. (August 30, 1919). "What the Picture Did for Me". Exhibitors Herald and Motography. Vol. 9, no. 10. p. 75. This is a winner. Book it. It will please all, especially the Irish. Good business.
  10. ^ Blythe, Chester A. (June 1919). "The Flitting Shadows". The Photo-Play World. p. 36.
  11. ^ "Digest Pictures of the Week". Exhibitors Herald and Motography. Vol. 8, no. 18. April 26, 1919. p. 36. contains much that is pleasing to the eye but little of substance.
  12. ^ a b Sanders, Eugene (June 28, 1919). "What the Picture Did for Me". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 9, no. 27. p. 85. A dandy picture that pleased all my people
  13. ^ "Action Abounds in Bessie Love Productions". Motion Picture News. March 22, 1919. p. 1803.
  14. ^ "Star Demonstrates Her Versatility". The Moving Picture World. April 5, 1919. p. 112.
  15. ^ Essex, Bert D. (April 1919). "The Silent Trend". The Photo-Play Journal. p. 36.
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