Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages (1916)

Director:

D.W. Griffith

Writers:

D.W. Griffith (scenario)
Anita Loos (titles)
(more)

Release Date:

5 September 1916 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Romance

Tagline:

The Cruel Hand of Intolerance

Plot:

The story of a poor young woman, separated by prejudice from her husband and baby, is interwoven with tales of intolerance from throughout history.

Plot Keywords:

Intolerance | Jesus Christ | Marriage | Massacre | Judea

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Mae Marsh	...	The Dear One (Modern Story)
Robert Harron	...	The Boy (Modern Story)
F.A. Turner	...	The Girl's Father (Modern Story) (as Fred Turner)
Sam De Grasse	...	Arthur Jenkins (Modern Story)
Vera Lewis	...	Mary T. Jenkins (Modern Story)
Mary Alden	...	Self-Styled Uplifter (Modern Story)
Eleanor Washington	...	Self-Styled Uplifter (Modern Story)
Pearl Elmore	...	Self-Styled Uplifter (Modern Story)
Lucille Browne	...	Self-Styled Uplifter (Modern Story)
Julia Mackley	...	Self-Styled Uplifter (Modern Story) (as Mrs. Arthur Mackley)
Miriam Cooper	...	The Friendless One (Modern Story)
Walter Long	...	The Musketeer of the Slums (Modern Story) / Uncredited Babylonian Warrior (Babylonian Story)
Tom Wilson	...	The Kindly Policeman (Modern Story)
Ralph Lewis	...	Governor (Modern Story)
Lloyd Ingraham	...	Judge of the Court (Modern Story)
A.W. McClure	...	Father Fathley (Modern Story)
John P. McCarthy	...	Prison Guard (Modern Story) (as J.P. McCarthy)
Dore Davidson	...	Friendly Neighbor (Modern Story)
Monte Blue	...	Strike Leader (Modern Story)
Marguerite Marsh	...	Debutante (Modern Story)
Edward Dillon	...	Another crook (Modern Story)
Billy Quirk	...	Bartender Modern Story)
Howard Gaye	...	Christ (Judean Story) / Cardinal Lorraine (Medieval Story)
Lillian Langdon	...	Mary, the Mother (Judean Story)
Olga Grey	...	Mary Magdalene (Judean Story)
Erich von Ritzau	...	First Pharisee (Judean Story) (as Gunther von Ritzau)
Bessie Love	...	The Bride of Cana (Judean Story)
William H. Brown	...	Father of Bride of Cana (Judean Story) / Warden (Modern Story) (as William Brown)
George Walsh	...	Bridegroom of Cana (Judean Story)
W.S. Van Dyke	...	Wedding Guest (Judean Story)
Margery Wilson	...	Brown Eyes (French Story)
Eugene Pallette	...	Prosper Latour (French Story)
Spottiswoode Aitken	...	Brown Eyes' Father (French Story) (as Spottiswoode Aitkin)
Ruth Handforth	...	Brown Eyes' Mother (French Story)
Allan Sears	...	The Mercenary (French Story) (as A.D. Sears)
Frank Bennett	...	Charles IX, King of France (French Story)
Maxfield Stanley	...	Duc d'Anjou (Monsieur La France) (Medieval Story)
Josephine Crowell	...	Catherine de Medici (French Story)
Constance Talmadge	...	Marguerite de Valois (French Story) / The Mountain Girl (Babylonian Story) (as Georgia Pearce)
W.E. Lawrence	...	Henry of Navarre (French Story)
Joseph Henabery	...	Admiral Coligny (French Story) / Deffendent (Babylonian Story)
Chandler House	...	Page (French Story)
Elmer Clifton	...	The Rhapsode (Babylonian Story)
Alfred Paget	...	Prince Belshazzar (Babylonian Story)
Seena Owen	...	Princess Beloved (Attarea) (Babylonian Story)
Carl Stockdale	...	King Nabonidus (Babylonian Story)
Tully Marshall	...	The High Priest of Bel (Babylonian Story) / Uncredited Friend of the Musketeer (Modern Story)
Lillian Gish	...	The Woman Who Rocks the Cradle / The Eternal Mother
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Morris Levy	...	Duc de Guise (French Story) (scenes deleted)
Mazie Radford	...	Dancing girl in Babylon feast scene
Sylvia Ashton	...	Woman at Worker's Dance (uncredited)
George Beranger	...	Second Priest of Bel (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Barney Bernard	...	Attorney for the Boy (Modern Story) (uncredited)
Frank Borzage	...	Extra (uncredited)
Kitty Bradbury	...	Jenkins Party Guest (Modern Story) (uncredited)
John Bragdon	...	Counselor of the King (uncredited)
Tod Browning	...	A Crook (Modern Story) (uncredited)
Karl Brown	...	Extra (uncredited)
Frank Brownlee	...	The Girl's Brother (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Kate Bruce	...	Old Babylonian Mother (Babylonian Story) / The City Mother (Modern Story) (uncredited)
Edward Burns	...	Charioteer of the Priest of Bel (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
James Burns	...	Charioteer of the Second Priest of Bel (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
David Butler	...	Babylonian soldier (uncredited)
Ernest Butterworth	...	Extra (uncredited)
Frank Campeau	...	Extra (uncredited)
Jewel Carmen	...	Favorite of the Harem (Babylonian Story) / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
Francis Carpenter	...	Child (Epilogue) (uncredited)
Peggy Cartwright	...	Little Girl (uncredited)
William E. Cassidy	...	Extra (uncredited)
Hazel Childers	...	Jenkins Party Guest (Modern Story) (uncredited)
Lotta Clifton	...	Second Dancer of Tammuz (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Dark Cloud	...	Ethiopian Chieftan (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Constance Collier	...	Extra (uncredited)
Virginia Lee Corbin	...	Child (Epilogue) (uncredited)
Gino Corrado	...	The Runner (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Jack Cosgrave	...	Chief Eunuch (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
William Courtright	...	Second Pharisee (Judean Story) (uncredited)
Donald Crisp	...	Extra (uncredited)
James Curley	...	The Charioteer of Cyrus (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Ruth Darling	...	Girl of the Marriage Market (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Max Davidson	...	Kindly Neighbor (Modern Story) (uncredited)
Nigel De Brulier	...	Extra (uncredited)
Carol Dempster	...	Favorite of the Harem (Babylonian Story) / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
The Denishawn Dancers	...	Dancers (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Ted Duncan	...	Captain of the Gate (Babylonian Story) / Bodyguard to the Princess (uncredited)
Charles Eagle Eye	...	Barbarian Chieftain (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Douglas Fairbanks	...	Man on White Horse (French Story) (uncredited)
George Fawcett	...	Judge (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Clarence Geldart	...	Extra (uncredited)
Mildred Harris	...	Favorite of the Harem (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Dell Henderson	...	Extra (uncredited)
Russell Hicks	...	Extra (uncredited)
Clyde E. Hopkins	...	Jenkins' Secretary (Modern Story) (uncredited)
DeWolf Hopper Sr.	...	Extra (uncredited)
Luray Huntley	...	Self-Styled Uplifter (uncredited)
George James	...	Councellor of the King (French Story) (uncredited)
Daisy Jefferson	...	Favorite of the Harem / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
Noble Johnson	...	Babylonian soldier (uncredited)
Martin Landry	...	Auctioneer (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Robert Lawler	...	Judge (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Alberta Lee	...	Wife of the Kindly Neighbor (Modern Story) (uncredited)
Jennie Lee	...	Woman at Jenkins' Employees Dance (uncredited)
Elmo Lincoln	...	Belshazzar's Bodyguard, 'The Mighty Man of Valor' (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Wilfred Lucas	...	Extra (uncredited)
Francis McDonald	...	Extra (uncredited)
Arthur Meyer	...	Brother of the Girl (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Felix Modjeska	...	Bodyguard to the Princess (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Margaret Mooney	...	Girl of the Marriage Market (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Owen Moore	...	Extra (uncredited)
Carmel Myers	...	Favorite of the Harem (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Loyola O'Connor	...	Attarea's Slave (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Vester Pegg	...	Extra (uncredited)
Wallace Reid	...	Boy Killed in the Fighting (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Louis Ritz	...	Counselor of the King (uncredited)
Louis Romaine	...	A Catholic Priest (French Story) (uncredited)
Alma Rubens	...	Girl of the Marriage Market (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Howard Scott	...	A Babylonian Dandy (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Ted Shawn	...	Dancer (co-founder of Denishawn Dancers with Ruth St. Denis) (uncredited)
George Siegmann	...	Cyrus (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Ah Singh	...	First Priest of Nergel (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Ranji Singh	...	Second Priest of Nergel (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Eve Southern	...	Favorite of the Harem / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
Pauline Starke	...	Favorite of the Harem (uncredited)
Ruth St. Denis	...	Solo Dancer (co-founder of Denishawn Dancers with Ted Shawn) (uncredited)
Madame Sul-Te-Wan	...	Girl at Marriage Market (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Herbert Sutch	...	Extra (uncredited)
Natalie Talmadge	...	Favorite of the Harem / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
Ethel Grey Terry	...	Favorite of the Harem / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree	...	Extra (uncredited)
Charles Van Courtlandt	...	Gobyras, Lieutenant of Cyrus (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
King Vidor	...	Extra (uncredited)
Erich von Stroheim	...	Second Pharisee (Judean Story) (uncredited)
Anna Mae Walthall	...	Favorite of the Harem / Dancer / Handmaiden (uncredited)
Raymond Wells	...	Counselor of the King (uncredited)
Winifred Westover	...	The Favorite of Egibi (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Grace Wilson	...	First Dancer of Tammuz (Babylonian Story) (uncredited)
Hal Wilson	...	Extra (uncredited)
Tammany Young	...	Extra (uncredited)

Directed by
D.W. Griffith

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Hettie Grey Baker		titles (uncredited)
Tod Browning		uncredited
D.W. Griffith		scenario
D.W. Griffith		titles (uncredited)
Anita Loos		titles
Mary H. O'Connor		titles (uncredited)
Walt Whitman		poem "Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking" (uncredited)
Frank E. Woods		titles (uncredited)

Produced by
D.W. Griffith	....	producer

Original Music by
Carl Davis		(1989)

Cinematography by
G.W. Bitzer

Film Editing by
D.W. Griffith		(uncredited)
James Smith		(uncredited)
Rose Smith		(uncredited)

Production Design by
D.W. Griffith		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
Walter L. Hall		(uncredited)

Costume Design by
D.W. Griffith		(uncredited)
Clare West		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Robert Anderson	....	assistant makeup artist (uncredited)
D.W. Griffith	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Frank E. Woods	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Herbert Sutch	....	assistant director (as Bert Sutch)
Arthur Berthelet	....	second assistant director: French story (uncredited)
Monte Blue	....	second assistant director: Modern story (uncredited)
Tod Browning	....	second assistant director: Modern story (uncredited)
Christy Cabanne	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Elmer Clifton	....	first assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Jack Conway	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Edward Dillon	....	second assistant director: Modern Story (uncredited)
Allan Dwan	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Victor Fleming	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Sidney Franklin	....	second unit director: Babylon sequence (uncredited)
Joseph Henabery	....	first assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Joseph Henabery	....	second unit director: New York (uncredited)
George W. Hill	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Lloyd Ingraham	....	second assistant director: Modern story (uncredited)
George Nichols Jr.	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
Mike Siebert	....	second assistant director: Babylon story (uncredited)
George Siegmann	....	first assistant director: Los Angeles (uncredited)
W.S. Van Dyke	....	second assistant director: Judean story (uncredited)

Art Department
Frank Wortman	....	set builder (as Frank 'Huck' Wortman)
Martin Aguerre	....	construction supervisor: gallows (uncredited)
Ralph M. DeLacy	....	property master (uncredited)
Shorty English	....	carpenter (uncredited)
Walter L. Hall	....	set designer (uncredited)
Jim Newman	....	assistant carpenter (uncredited)
Joseph Stringer	....	set builder (uncredited)
Hal Sullivan	....	assistant property master (uncredited)
R. Ellis Wales	....	set designer (uncredited)
Frank Wortman	....	set designer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Hal Sullivan	....	special effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Leo Nomis	....	stunts
Charles Eagle Eye	....	stunt double: Miriam Cooper (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Karl Brown	....	associate photographer
Louis Bitzer	....	first assistant camera (uncredited)
Allan Dwan	....	camera elevator engineer (uncredited)
Allan Dwan	....	dolly grip (uncredited)
James G. Woodbury	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
R. Ellis Wales	....	costumer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Joe Aller	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Louis F. Gottschalk	....	conductor (1916)
Joseph Carl Breil	....	music arranger (uncredited)
D.W. Griffith	....	music arranger (uncredited)
Colin Matthews	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
David Matthews	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
D.W. Griffith	....	presenter
Martin Aguerre	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Robert Anderson	....	technical director (uncredited)
Gertrude Bambrick	....	choreographer (uncredited)
J.A. Barry	....	executive assistant: D.W. Griffith (uncredited)
Neal Dodd	....	religious advisor (uncredited)
Lillian Gish	....	research assistant (uncredited)
Joseph Henabery	....	research assistant (uncredited)
Wilbur Higby	....	crewman (uncredited)
Rabbi Myers	....	religious advisor (uncredited)
Abe Scholtz	....	laboratory technician (uncredited)
Ruth St. Denis	....	choreographer (uncredited)
Erich von Stroheim	....	production assistant: Babylon sequence (uncredited)
R. Ellis Wales	....	chief technologist (uncredited)
R. Ellis Wales	....	historical advisor (uncredited)
B.F. Zeidman	....	publicist (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Triangle Film Corporation
• Wark Producing

Distributors

• Triangle Distributing Corporation (1916) (USA) (theatrical)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Delta Expedition (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2005) (worldwide) (TV)
• SBP (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• SBP (2006) (Argentina) (VHS) (re-release)
• Colossal Productions (1916) (UK) (theatrical)
• Killiam Shows (????) (USA) (theatrical)
• Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division, The (????) (USA) (theatrical)
• Sfinks (1922) (Poland) (theatrical)
• Fil à Film (????) (France) (VHS)
• Grapevine Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Image Entertainment (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Image Entertainment (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Kino Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Kino Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• LS Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Punto Zero (2007) (Italy) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Republic Pictures Home Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Republic Pictures Home Video (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• VTI Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Western Costume Company  costumes (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Intolerance (USA) (short title)
Intolerance: A Sun-Play of the Ages (USA) (copyright title)
The Mother and the Law (USA) (working title)
Intolerância (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
Intolérance (France) [fr]
Intolerància (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Intolerance (Germany) [de]
Intolerancia (Spain) [es]
Nietolerancja (Poland) [pl]
Suvaitsemattomuus (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

163 min | UK:178 min (2000 video release) | USA:197 min | Spain:197 min (DVD version) | Spain:123 min (TV version) | Argentina:175 min

Country:

USA

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | South Korea:12 (2003) | Australia:PG | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Baldwin Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Triangle Film Corporation

Trivia:

During filming of the battle sequences, many of the extras got so into their characters that they caused real injury to each other. At the end of one shooting day, a total of sixty injuries were treated at the production's hospital tent.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the Babylonian bacchanal, the same extra, dressed as a slave girl, is standing behind both Belshazzar and Beloved. She is looking in different directions and has her arms in different positions in each shot.

Quotes:

Catherine de Medici: Such a fine man, Admiral Coligny. If only he thought as we do.
Admiral Coligny: Such a wonderful king. If only he thought as we do.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Why Be Good? Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema (2007)

Excellent Historical Perspective

This silent film by director D.W. Griffith is well known to serious movie buffs and historians, but not to today's general public. I doubt that a lot of people these days would have the patience to sit through a film that contained three hours of silence. Nevertheless, the film's technical innovations inspired filmmakers in the 1920's and later, particularly in Russia and Japan. It also inspired filmmakers in the U.S., including Cecil B. DeMille and King Vidor. For this reason, and for other reasons, "Intolerance" is an important film.

The film's four interwoven stories, set in four different historical eras, are tied together thematically by the subject of "intolerance", a word which could be accurately interpreted today as "oppression", "injustice", "hate", "violence", and mankind's general inhumanity.

Griffith's narrative structure, though innovative, is uneven, because he gives more screen time to two of the four stories (the "modern" and the "Babylonian"). Equal time for three stories, thus deleting the fourth, might have worked better.

To me, the Babylonian story is the most interesting one because of its more complete coverage, and because of its elaborate costumes and spectacular sets. Even though there is no script, the viewer can easily discern the plot, which suggests that some of today's films might be just as effective, or more so, if screenwriters would downsize the dialogue.

What "Intolerance" offers most of all to contemporary viewers is a sense of perspective. Someone once said that despite the enormous advances in technology, society itself has advanced not at all. That may be true. In the eighty plus years since the film was released, technical advances in film-making have been obvious and impressive. But we are still plagued with the same old human demons of oppression, injustice, hate, violence, and ... intolerance.