THE GUN FIGHTER (1917) William S. Hart & Margery Wilson Triangle Western Drama

Description

Vintage original 11x14 in. US lobby card
from the teens silent film western drama,
THE GUN FIGHTER
, released in 1917 by the Triangle Distributing Corp. and
directed by William S. Hart
, in which he stars as the leader of a group of Arizona outlaws.
The image depicts a medium shot of Norma Wright (
Margery Wilson
), the local seamstress, handling a letter to Cliff "The Killer" Hudspeth (
William S. Hart
). It is unrestored in fine+ condition with two 1 in. diagonal creases on the top left corner; a small stain in the top border near the right corner with a larger stain in the bottom border near the left corner; and light signs of wear on the bottom right corner. There are no pinholes, tears, or other flaws.
This is a scarce William S. Hart title to find lobby cards on.
It's the cinematography that really puts this one over. Venerable cinematographer Joseph H. August creates moody shadows, gloomy rainstorms, and flashfloods and the climax features a gunfight in the dark that is punctuated by flashing bullets. Long considered a lost film, 9.5mm condensations have been circulating among collectors for years, but the bulk of the footage and all the original title cards had been gone for almost 100 years. Film historian Kevin Brownlow discovered that a reel and a half of tinted nitrate survived in the holdings of the Cinémathèque suisse and, with that new material, would it be possible to reconstruct the original continuity? In addition to the Swiss material, the film’s original scenario survived and assorted 9.5mm cuts were held by Brownlow, editor and director Christopher Bird, and archivist Dino Everett. Two Pathex, or American 9.5mm releases, and two Pathescope, or UK 9.5mm releases.