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The Diamond from the Sky
The Diamond from the Sky
	Movie poster
Directed by	Jacques Jaccard; William Desmond Taylor
Written by	Roy L. McCardell
Starring	Lottie Pickford; Irving Cummings; William Russell
Production; company	American Film Manufacturing Company - Flying "A" Studios
Distributed by	American Film Manufacturing Company
Release date	May 3, 1915 (episode one);
Running time	900 minutes; (30 episodes)
Country	United States
Language	Silent (English intertitles)
Budget	$800,000

The Diamond from the Sky is a 1915 American silent adventure-film serial directed by Jacques Jaccard and William Desmond Taylor and starring Lottie Pickford, Irving Cummings, and William Russell.

No copies of this serial's "chapters" have been found, so the overall production is currently classified as a lost film.^[2]

Plot

The prologue in the serial's first episode, "A Heritage of Hate", depicts the discovery of a spectacular diamond inside a meteorite, a gem that later becomes the property of the Stanley family, who call their heirloom "The Diamond From the Sky". The remainder of the first chapter portrays the intense rivalry between Colonel Arthur Stanley and Judge Lamar Stanley, Virginia aristocrats and descendants of Lord Arthur Stanley, 200 years later.

When a girl is born to the young wife of Colonel Arthur Stanley, the latter, to retain an earldom and "The Diamond From the Sky," buys a new born Gypsy baby boy and substitutes it for his own babe. Judge Lamar Stanley visits Colonel Arthur Stanley's home to see the child just as Hagar, the gypsy woman, bursts into the room to demand her boy, and the colonel falls unconscious across the library table.

Cast

Lottie Pickford as Esther Stanley, the Gypsy Heroine. The role was originally offered to her sister Mary Pickford.^[3]
Irving Cummings as Arthur Stanley II
William Russell as Blair Stanley
Charlotte Burton as Vivian Marston
Eugenie Forde as Hagar Harding
George Periolat as Luke Lovell
Orral Humphrey as Marmaduke Smythe
William Tedmarsh as Quabba, the Hunchback
Hart Hoxie as Matt Hardigan
George Field
Rhea Mitchell
Nell Franzen
Roy Stewart
Charles Watt

Chapter titles

Lottie Pickford (*left*), Irving Cummings, and Charlotte Burton in one "chapter" from *The Diamond from the Sky*

A Heritage of Hate
An Eye For An Eye
The Silent Witness
The Prodigal's Progress
For The Sake of A False Friend
Shadows at Sunrise
The Fox and The Pig
A Mind In The Past
A Runaway Match
Old Foes With New Faces
The Web of Destiny
To The Highest Bidder
The Man In The Mask
For Love And Money
Desperate Chances
The Path of Peril
The King of Diamonds and the Queen of Hearts
The Charm Against Harm
Fire, Fury And Confusion
The Soul Stranglers
The Lion's Bride
The Rose In The Dust
The Double Cross
The Mad Millionaire
A House of Cards
The Garden of The Gods
Mine Own People
On the Wings of the Morning
A Deal With Destiny
The American Earl

Production notes

The serial's overall storyline was purposely left unfinished in the same manner as The Million Dollar Mystery. A prize of $5,000 was offered for its completion, which was won by Terry Ramsaye.^[4]
While on location during the production of the "continued photoplay", director William Desmond Taylor was nearly electrocuted by an exposed power line. The trade magazine Motion Picture News reported the near tragedy in its August 7, 1915, issue:
W. D. Taylor, director of "The Diamond from the Sky," the North American Film Corporation's $800,000 continued photoplay, had a narrow escape from death a few days ago, when he accidentally stepped on a heavy charged electric wire. The members of the company were at work in a tunnel, in which one of the scenes takes place, when Taylor, walking in advance of the players, stepped on the wire, which was uncovered. Luckily, a physician employed in the mining camp nearby had come over to watch the taking of the scene. He offered immediate assistance.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b "Director Taylor Has Narrow Escape In 'Diamond' Episode", Motion Picture News (New York, N.Y.), August 7, 1915, p. 60, col. 1. Internet Archive, San Francisco, California. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
^ "Progressive Silent Film List: The Diamond from the Sky". silentera.com. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
^ Stedman, Raymond William (1971). "2. The Perils of Success". Serials: Suspense and Drama By Installment. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 35. ISBN 978-0-8061-0927-5.
^ Lahue, Kalten C. "1. A Bolt From The Blue". Continued Next Week. p. 66.