A VERMONT ROMANCE is a melodramatic story about a young farm girl who goes to Burlington to start a new life and find work in a sewing factory. She meets a rich man and also an old beau who has also left his farm for life and work in the city. She is then faced with choosing between the two men.
Produced by the Vermont Progressive party to showcase Vermont's burgeoning industry in 1916, the film includes an extended tour of an industrial bakery as well as glimpses of Burlington, Lake Champlain, and the Vermont countryside.
A contest was held to cast the film with locals, and Dorothy Whipple, Jerry Hunt, E.H. Crosby, and Madeline Randall won the starring roles. Randall has a funny bit doing her "modern dance" routine in homage to Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis.
The film was thought lost for many decades but was discovered in a barn in the early 1970s. The film was recently restored, scored, and is available online through several sources.
It's a terrific example of amateur filmmaking of the era and has a surprise ending.
Produced by the Vermont Progressive party to showcase Vermont's burgeoning industry in 1916, the film includes an extended tour of an industrial bakery as well as glimpses of Burlington, Lake Champlain, and the Vermont countryside.
A contest was held to cast the film with locals, and Dorothy Whipple, Jerry Hunt, E.H. Crosby, and Madeline Randall won the starring roles. Randall has a funny bit doing her "modern dance" routine in homage to Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis.
The film was thought lost for many decades but was discovered in a barn in the early 1970s. The film was recently restored, scored, and is available online through several sources.
It's a terrific example of amateur filmmaking of the era and has a surprise ending.
