Moran of the Lady Letty (1922)

A milquetoast young man of society toughens up once he's shanghaied and falls for the captain's tomboy daughter.

Director:

George Melford

Writers:

Monte M. Katterjohn (adapted by), Frank Norris (from the novel by)

Stars:

Dorothy Dalton, Charles Brinley, Emilius Jorgensen

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Dorothy Dalton	...	Moran Letty Sternersen
Charles Brinley	...	Captain Eilert Sternersen
Emilius Jorgensen	...	Nels Larsen
Rudolph Valentino	...	Ramon Laredo
Maude Wayne	...	Josephine Herrick (as Maud Wayne)
Walter Long	...	Captain 'Slippery' Kitchell
George Kuwa	...	'Chopstick' Charlie
Cecil Holland	...	Pancho

Storyline

Wealthy young man Ramon Laredo is abducted and put into service aboard a ship commanded by a none-too-scrupulous smuggler. When the ship encounters the foundering "Lady Letty," some of the Letty's crew is brought aboard, including Letty 'Moran' Sternerson, feisty daughter of the Letty's captain. Moran and Ramon have little use for each other, but when trouble erupts and the smuggler Captain Kitchell turns his evil eye on Moran, it is Ramon who comes to her rescue.

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Plot Keywords:

ship | san francisco california | san diego california | yacht | trolley car | 

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Taglines:

The tale of a girl who sailed the seas like a man! And taught a pampered son of fortune how to fight for love and life! See THE SMUGGLER'S MUTINY THE BIG SHIP EXPLOSION THE GRAND SOCIETY BALL (Print Ad- Aurora Daily Star, ((Aurora Ills.)) 28 July 1922)

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Genres:

Adventure

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character played by Rudolph Valentino was called "Ross Wilbur" in the novel by Frank Norris on which the film was based, but the name was changed to "Ramon Laredo" for the film to accommodate Valentino's non-American appearance.

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Crazy Credits

Except for Dorothy Dalton, whose name appears on the title frame, actors were not credited in this movie at the start or at the end. Instead, 7 additional actors and their character names are credited in the intertitles right before they appear onscreen and are listed in the same order in the IMDb cast. All other actors are marked uncredited.

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Alternate Versions

In 2006, Flicker Valley copyrighted a 68-minute version with a musical score by 'Robert Israel (II)'. The source material was from the Daniel J. Bursik collection. New intertitles were used, which may have changed some of the actors' names. In the New York Times review of 6 February, 1922, for example, Valentino's given name is listed as "Rodolf."

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Connections

References Under Crimson Skies (1920)

User Reviews

Another chance to see Valentino

I welcome any opportunity to see Valentino, and "Moran of the Lady Letty" from 1922 is Valentino in action, aimed at getting the men interested in him as well as women.

Based on a play, the story concerns a wealthy young playboy, Ramon, with no purpose in life who is shanghaied and put into service on a ship of smugglers. Life on the sea and working turns out to be a good and enjoyable thing for Ramon. One day, the crew sees a boat that has suffered a coal fire and looks empty, so the men climb aboard to steal what they can. They find one crew member alive, who turns out to be a woman, Moran Letty (Dorothy Dalton), the daughter of the burned ship's captain. Ramon protects her from the evil captain (Charles Brinley) and falls in love with her.

Differences in class were the major topic of stories, plays, etc. in the '20s into the early '30s. This is no exception. Seen today, the facial expressions are big and obvious, and the dialogue cards are open to a different interpretation nowadays - Letty has no use for men, doesn't like them, and wished she had been born a man! Dorothy Dalton is exotic-looking and good as Letty, and Valentino is very handsome and effective as Ramon. The film is loaded with stereotypes, including the likable character Chopstick Charlie, played by Japanese actor George Kuwa.

This is all to be expected in an 88-year-old film. We only have a fraction of silent films available when you look at what has been made versus what has been lost. It's not the greatest Valentino film, but don't pass this up if you have a chance to see it.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

None

Release Date:

5 February 1922 (USA)

Also Known As:

Das Piratenschiff

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Famous Players-Lasky Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

68 min (2006 alternate)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1