Jane Eyre (1914)
Drama | November 1914
Jane Eyre was the second film feature from the Whitman Features Co. According to an item in the 16 May 1914 Motography, the company was incorporated in Hempstead, NY, by F. Weeks, S. N. Kreischer, and T. F. Gilbert, Jr., with capital of $50,000. Lena Rivers and The Toll of Love (both 1914, see entries) appear to have been the company’s only other feature releases. Jane Eyre and Whitman’s first feature, The Toll of Love, shared the same leading cast and were probably filmed at roughly the same time.
The 4 Jul 1914 Moving Picture World reported that a fire broke out at Whitman's Cliffside, NJ, studio during a Jane Eyre scene in which Alberta Roy, portraying the insane “Mrs. Rochester,” set a garret on fire. A smoking bed accidentally burst into flames, requiring “grenades, chemical tanks and the factory hose,” according to the item. The fire was confined to the garret set, and only $300 worth of property was lost.
Whitman Features was originally contracted with Garrison Film Co. for distribution, and a list of its films in the 4 Jul 1914 Moving Picture World projected a 27 Jun 1914 release date for Jane Eyre. However, it is doubtful that the film was released at that time. Blinkhorn Photoplay Corp. took over the firm's distribution probably in Oct 1914 and released Jane Eyre sometime in Nov.
This was the second American feature film (four reels or more) version of Jane Eyre, following the 1910 Thanhouser film (see entry); it also followed Imp's two-reel ...
Jane Eyre was the second film feature from the Whitman Features Co. According to an item in the 16 May 1914 Motography, the company was incorporated in Hempstead, NY, by F. Weeks, S. N. Kreischer, and T. F. Gilbert, Jr., with capital of $50,000. Lena Rivers and The Toll of Love (both 1914, see entries) appear to have been the company’s only other feature releases. Jane Eyre and Whitman’s first feature, The Toll of Love, shared the same leading cast and were probably filmed at roughly the same time.
The 4 Jul 1914 Moving Picture World reported that a fire broke out at Whitman's Cliffside, NJ, studio during a Jane Eyre scene in which Alberta Roy, portraying the insane “Mrs. Rochester,” set a garret on fire. A smoking bed accidentally burst into flames, requiring “grenades, chemical tanks and the factory hose,” according to the item. The fire was confined to the garret set, and only $300 worth of property was lost.
Whitman Features was originally contracted with Garrison Film Co. for distribution, and a list of its films in the 4 Jul 1914 Moving Picture World projected a 27 Jun 1914 release date for Jane Eyre. However, it is doubtful that the film was released at that time. Blinkhorn Photoplay Corp. took over the firm's distribution probably in Oct 1914 and released Jane Eyre sometime in Nov.
This was the second American feature film (four reels or more) version of Jane Eyre, following the 1910 Thanhouser film (see entry); it also followed Imp's two-reel Jane Eyre and Biograph's three-reel version (starring Louise Vale) that were released earlier in 1914. Among the other motion picture and television adaptations of Jane Eyre were the 1918 Select Pictures film Woman and Wife; the 1921 Hugo Ballin production, directed by Ballin; the 1934 Monogram film, starring Virginia Bruce and directed by Christy Cabanne; the 1944 Fox film, starring Joan Fontaine and directed by Robert Stevenson (see entries); and the 1971 British version, starring Susannah York and directed by Delbert Mann.
After a year of marriage, Mrs. Edward Fairfax Rochester of Thornfield Hall becomes violently insane, after which her husband imprisons her on the third floor of their house. Years later, Rochester, purportedly a widower, engages young Jane Eyre as governess for his daughter Adele. While visiting Thornfield Hall, John Mason, Mrs. Rochester’s brother, sees that his sister is extremely agitated and learns that Rochester intends to marry Jane. As Jane and Rochester exchange vows, however, Mason, accompanied by a barrister, stops the ceremony. Shocked to find that Mrs. Rochester is alive, Jane leaves Thornfield Hall and is befriended by the Rev. St. John Rivers, who later proposes to her. Meanwhile, having learned of Rochester’s betrayal, his wife sets fire to their house. She perishes in the fire and Rochester is blinded while attempting to save her. Jane finds him stumbling toward a precipice. She then becomes his ...
After a year of marriage, Mrs. Edward Fairfax Rochester of Thornfield Hall becomes violently insane, after which her husband imprisons her on the third floor of their house. Years later, Rochester, purportedly a widower, engages young Jane Eyre as governess for his daughter Adele. While visiting Thornfield Hall, John Mason, Mrs. Rochester’s brother, sees that his sister is extremely agitated and learns that Rochester intends to marry Jane. As Jane and Rochester exchange vows, however, Mason, accompanied by a barrister, stops the ceremony. Shocked to find that Mrs. Rochester is alive, Jane leaves Thornfield Hall and is befriended by the Rev. St. John Rivers, who later proposes to her. Meanwhile, having learned of Rochester’s betrayal, his wife sets fire to their house. She perishes in the fire and Rochester is blinded while attempting to save her. Jane finds him stumbling toward a precipice. She then becomes his wife.
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