Warring Between States Circa 1912

The Confederate Ironclad Goes a Single Reel Round With Yanks

I'll be covering more of these ancients, that more a threat than promise for some, but what compels like civil war subjects done by folk among whom remembered Blue-Gray conflict first hand? The Confederate Ironclad was made in Jacksonville, Florida by the soon-enough-to-fold Kalem Company, another of single reel grocers that sold film by pounds rather than merit. Often they'd ring the bell, as here, with pace and excitement to approach Griffith at Biograph, plus inherent appeal to yarns revolved around ironclad v. gunboat action. There's girl spying afoot, this belle's crinoline a disguise for Yankee probing into whereabouts of Reb fortification. Program notes in a booklet for Treasures From American Film Archives (Volume One) speculate that the ironclad used was built to commemorate the anniversary of actual battle twixt Monitor and Merrimack, those names tripping off tongues of Civil War buffs for 150 years since the two clashed for real. Replicas supplied grandeur rare to nickelodeons of the day, and what whoops battle scenes here must have provoked! The survivor print looks great, and there's music from original score sheets to further authenticity. Silent drama shorts like this can be fun and even memorable, and the DVD Treasure sets are just that for gathering so many and presenting them so well.