Womanhood, the Glory of the Nation
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
J. Stuart Blackton
Alice Joyce
Harry T. Morey
Naomi Childers
Joseph Kilgour
Walter Mcgrail
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
While traveling in Europe, American Mary Ward enchants Count Dario of Ruritania, who asks her to marry him. Promising to give him her answer later, Mary returns to the United States by way of Manila, where she learns that during Ruritania's surprise invasion of New York, her mother and sister were killed. Paul Strong, who has been appointed the U.S. Minister of Energies, accompanies Mary back to New York and then launches a campaign to raise an American army. Paul's sister Jane, who arouses the public by impersonating Joan of Arc at preparedness rallies, is shot, while Mary uses her influence with Count Dario, whose father heads the Ruritanian forces, to obtain enemy secrets. Later, Mary's brother Philip, blinded in battle, is reunited with his long-lost fiancée, Alice Renfrow, only to discover that her face has been disfigured. In the end, Paul leads an American army to victory, after which he and Mary, their arms around each other, gaze happily on a New York that is once again peaceful and prosperous.
Cast
Alice Joyce
Harry T. Morey
Naomi Childers
Joseph Kilgour
Walter Mcgrail
Mary Maurice
James Morrison
Peggy Hyland
Templar Saxe
Bobby Connelly
Edward Elkas
Bernard Siegel
John Costello
Theodore Roosevelt
Crew
Helmer W. Bergman
J. Stuart Blackton
J. Stuart Blackton
J. Stuart Blackton
Cyrus Townsend Brady
Ferdinand Earle
Captain George W. Johnston
Clark R. Nickerson
Albert J. Ohlson
Herman Rottger
Albert E. Smith
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The film was released as a sequel to Vitagraph's 1915 production The Battle Cry of Peace; it was originally entitled The Battle Cry of War and was copyrighted under the title Womanhood. According to a news item, the film was "the brain child of ex-President [Theodore] Roosevelt," who offered many suggestions during its production. According to another news item, Wally Van, another Vitagraph director, took aerial shots with his cameraman from a balloon, of exploding shells at Pittsfield, Massachusetts, while battle scenes were being filmed below. It is unclear whether Van's footage was included in the film. A third news item reported that during battle scenes shot in the Fox Hills near Grasmere, Staten Island, director Earle was severly injured by a premature mine explosion. The Thirteenth Coast Artillery, New York police from Fort Wadsworth, New York preparedness camp, and the Second Battery of Brooklyn participated in the battle scenes. An eight reel version of the film began a pre-release showing in Philadelphia on March 19, 1917. The film had its premiere in New York on April 1, 1917. Later versions were reviewed as five reels long. According to a modern source, J. Stuart Blackton's eldest son, James Stuart Blackton, Jr., was the assistant director, and Woodrow Wilson appeared in the film.
