A Timely Interception (1913) Biograph



A Timely Interception - Lillian Gish Biograph
A Timely Interception – Lillian Gish Biograph

A Timely Interception (1913)

Directed by  D.W. Griffith
Release date: June 7, 1913 /Re-released July 9, 1915
Writing Credits (in alphabetical order)  
Christy Cabanne(writer)
Cast (in credits order)  
The FarmerW. Chrystie MillerThe Farmer
The Farmer’s DaughterLillian GishThe Farmer’s Daughter
The Farmer’s Adopted SonRobert HarronThe Farmer’s Adopted Son
Uncle James – The Farmer’s BrotherLionel BarrymoreUncle James – The Farmer’s Brother
May – Uncle James’s DaughterLucille HuttonMay – Uncle James’s Daughter
The Oil Syndicate ProspectorJoseph McDermottThe Oil Syndicate Prospector
The Oil Syndicate OfficerWilliam J. ButlerThe Oil Syndicate Officer
The Oil Syndicate OfficerAlfred PagetThe Oil Syndicate Officer
First Oil Rig ForemanFrank EvansFirst Oil Rig Foreman
Second Oil Rig ForemanFrank OppermanSecond Oil Rig Foreman
Uncle James’s FriendAdolph LestinaUncle James’s Friend
The PolicemanCharles GormanThe Policeman
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)Christy CabanneUndetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)Mae MarshUndetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
Cinematography by G.W.Bitzer

A Timely Interception - Lillian Gish - Biograph
A Timely Interception – Lillian Gish – Biograph

Summaries
After a hard struggle the old man has just saved enough money to justify the marriage of his daughter and adopted son, when word comes from the oil fields nearby that his brother has lost his job, the little girl is very ill, and there is no money in the house. The sacrifice is a big one, but it has to be made. The wedding is postponed. One day his brother rides over on a bicycle to pay a visit to his benefactors, but does not bring the money. The little family is at a desperate pass; the house has been put up for sale. An oil prospector discovers oil on the premises and takes an option on the property, then hastens away to form a syndicate. The old man’s brother and the boy go out in a field to dig postholes, and strike oil. The importance of the discovery is appreciated by the former oil man, and the pair rush off to the house. On the way they fall into a disused well, from which the boy contrives to escape. The oil syndicate is on the way in a fast motor car when they are intercepted by a traffic policeman who has seen a little girl clinging to the back of the car. She is the old man’s niece, who has risen from her sick bed, put on her roller skates, and gone on a lark. The oil men bundle the half-fainting girl into the car, rush to the house, and are forcing the old man to sign the papers when the boy enters and stops the transaction. The syndicate is foiled, and the great event takes place after all, some days later.

Technical Specifications:

Runtime17 min (16 fps)
Sound MixSilent
ColorBlack and White
Aspect Ratio1.33 : 1
Film Length305 m (1 reel) (USA)
Negative Format35 mm
Cinematographic ProcessSpherical
Printed Film Format35 mm
Produced by Biograph, distributed by General Film Company 1913
Filmed in Nogales – Arizona and California USA
Aside from its dramatic qualities, “A Timely Interception”, the fifth Biograph re-issue of subjects directed by D.W. Griffith, offers the many followers of W. Chrystie Miller an opportunity to see “the grand old man,” as he is called, in one of the deepest bits of acting he has ever done before the camera.

A Timely Interception - 2 Biograph
A Timely Interception – Biograph

The story tells of an old man who has saved enough money to justify the marriage of his daughter and adopted son when word comes from the old man’s brother that he had lost his job, his little girl is very ill and there is no money in the house. The sacrifice is a big one, but it has to be made. This postpones the wedding and eventually leads to the home being placed on sale. Later, the adopted son and the old man’s brother are digging post-holes on the farm when they discover oil, and in their haste to tell the old man of the lucky strike, they fall into an old abandoned oil well. In the meantime, a prospector for an oil syndicate was busy with the old man in a effort to force him to sell the farm, and had fairly well succeeded when the boy rushes into the house and stops the transaction. A short while after, the great event takes place with far more pomp than it would have otherwise.
The situations of the story are well constructed, there is plenty of action, and the acting of W. Chrystie Miller, Lillian Gish, Robert Harron, Lionel Barrymore, Jos McDermott and Wm. J. Butler is up to the usual high standard to be expected of these players. (Biograph Program)

A Timely Interception - Biograph
A Timely Interception – Biograph

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