Photo courtesy of Allison Shealy

DISCORD AND HARMONY

Released 3/17/14 by Universal/Gold Seal; Director: Allan Dwan; Screenplay: Arthur H. Rosson, based on an incident in the life of Beethoven; 3 reels

CAST: Pauline Bush (The Girl), Murdock MacQuarrie (Felix), Allan Forrest (The Artist), Lon Chaney (The Sculptor), James Neill (The Conductor), John Burton

SYNOPSIS: A colony of struggling artists are thrilled when Old Felix, a composer, has at last sold one of his symphonies. After the premiere of the symphony, his friends hold a party for him, but at the other end of the hall, a young girl watches as her ailing mother dies. After the party, the girl comes to Felix for help and he is so touched by her story that the next day he adopts the girl as his ward. Lon, a sculptor, is impressed by her simplicity and beauty and falls in love with her. Forrest, an artist, wants the girl to himself, but she rebukes his advances. Felix raises enough money to send Lon to Europe to study, and before Lon leaves, he marries the girl, with only Felix knowing their secret. Forrest overhears Lon and the girl discussing their future together and, not knowing of their marriage, gossips to the entire colony about her dishonor. The colony members confront Felix with the news of the kind of woman he is harboring, but he drives them from his studio. He labors with haste to finish his new symphony, but the strain of losing his friends is too much for him and he dies. The girl tells his old friends of the tragedy and they gather to play his unfinished symphony in the hopes that they will be forgiven. Lon, now a famous sculptor, returns from Europe as the friends gather around Felix' death-bed and they learn of the girl's marriage to Lon.

"There is very little story here for a three-reel production; but while it fails to convince a critical spectator, it will pass very well indeed with the majority and will decidedly interest them. It has quality and plenty of it due to the players, to the atmosphere around artistic and musical people and perhaps most of all the beauty of its scenes." ---Moving Picture World


© 1996,2013 Jon C. Mirsalis


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