Celebrating Native American Heritage Month this November, the AFI Catalog shines a spotlight on THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN (1920), one of the earliest fictional feature films in history to headline a cast comprised entirely of Native American performers who actively participated in the production. Other firsts with Native casts include HIAWATHA (1913) and Edward S. Curtis’ IN THE LAND OF THE HEAD HUNTER (1914). Ensuring the authenticity of THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN, over 300 members of the Kiowa and Comanche tribes in Oklahoma supplied original artifacts for props and costumes, and informed the action of the story so it genuinely represented Native culture.[i] This presented a stark contrast to the standard cinematic depictions of Native American people and their customs at the time, which leaned on pernicious racial stereotypes and false mythologies–the kind of Western movie fare that pitted cowboys against “Indians” and was overwhelmingly popular with white spectators. Although THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN was written and directed by a white filmmaker (Norbert A. Myles), and was intended to be viewed by mainstream audiences, the picture’s depiction of ancient rituals, such as a buffalo hunt, ceremonial dances and the use of Plains Indian Sign Language, was in direct defiance of federal laws that prohibited displays of Native traditions, making the film “an embodied refusal of settler-colonial interference in Indigenous cultural continuance.”[ii] The “subversive performances” that were captured on film were met with “colonial resistance and government interference” during production, with a spy from the Bureau of Indian Affairs filing a complaint about the “dances and gatherings week after week [that] are ruining our Indian boys and girls.”[iii] Myles continued shooting in opposition to the law, and produced a time capsule documenting Native customs and acts of rebellion that are critical to the study of American history.
The backstory of THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN, however, has long been thought to be shrouded in mystery, as many believed there was very little published about the film at the time of production, and it appeared to have been screened only a few times upon its release in 1920. Research in the AFI Catalog contests this assumption of obscurity, demonstrating with sources dating back over 100 years that the film did indeed receive coverage in industry trades and local newspapers, as well as having exhibitions across the U.S. Despite the attention paid to the film in the early 1920s, the six-reel feature disappeared without a trace for nearly a century and was presumed lost until a private detective in North Carolina was compensated for his work with cans of silver nitrate prints. The investigator took his earnings to the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, where the film was identified and acquired with financial support from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, in 2005. THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN was restored, and in 2013, it was inducted by the Library of Congress into the National Film Registry for preservation as one of America’s greatest achievements in cultural, aesthetic and historical filmmaking.
THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN was originally mentioned in the trades on July 17, 1920; the magazine Camera! announced the recent incorporation of the Texas Film Company “with the purpose in view of preserving in film form for future generations the habits and legends of the American Indian.”[iv] Headquarters were established in Lawton, Oklahoma, as well as at a business office in Los Angeles’ Superba Theatre building. The company, run by Texas businessmen, aimed to distinguish its productions from the “’wild and woolly’ thrillers that have been thrown upon the silver sheet in the past,”[v] and its first installment in an anticipated series of films was THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN. (This film was ultimately the only picture produced by the Texas Film Company, whose holdings were destroyed in a warehouse fire in December 1921.)[vi] At the time of the article, the screenplay had already been prepared by Norbert A. Myles, who was “director general” of the company, and filming was set to take place in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, “twenty miles from Lawton, where the Comanche and Kiowa tribes are located.”[vii]
As suggested in several modern articles, Myles was known as an outspoken and temperamental actor with a penchant for alienating himself from studio moguls. Other sources contend that his reputation was tainted when he was charged with “conspiring to violate neutrality statutes by smuggling weapons and ammunition to Mexico during the Mexican Revolution.”[viii] Whatever his offense, Myles was reportedly “black-balled” by the industry and was looking for new, independent outlets when he was approached by one of the Texas Film Company’s founders and executives, Richard E. Banks.[ix] The two had reportedly met on a set in 1916, and Banks was eager to employ the “fiery director” for his new business.[x]
THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN marked Myles’ debut as a credited writer and director, though he may have participated behind the scenes in earlier productions without credit.[xi] He later became a makeup artist, famously working (uncredited) on Ray Bolger’s Scarecrow character in THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939). On the front page of Myles’ original copyrighted script for THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN (which included 303 scenes, and is preserved at the Library of Congress), he attributed the narrative to Banks, stating: “This story has been made possible by R. E. Banks, whose knowledge of the Indian, and of his traditions, was gained during the twenty-five years that he lived with them.”[xii] Banks, a native Texan, worked in his youth as a cowhand when he was first introduced to Comanche Chief Quanah Parker; the revered leader was negotiating “grazing rights” for local ranchers on Comanche land.[xiii] Wanting to discover more about Native American culture, Banks travelled to Oklahoma Territory and asked Parker for lodging. The request was granted, and Banks immersed himself in the traditions of the Comanche and Kiowa tribes, becoming acquainted with tribe members who would later appear in THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN, including two of Parker’s 25 children, White Parker and Wanada Parker. The film, notably regarded as a Romance instead of a traditional Western, closely resembled Chief Quanah Parker’s autobiographical story about his experiences with his first wife, Wec-Keah,[xiv] and may have been evidence of Banks’ desire to immortalize his close friend Parker, who died in 1911.[xv]
Newspapers published at the time of production touted that many of the film’s actors were educated at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, an institution notorious for its efforts to culturally assimilate Native American children by isolating them from their families, forcing them to shed their authentic clothing, speak only English and practice Christianity. Although this method of effectively decimating ancient traditions was inconsistent with the intension of the filmmakers – to represent Native American life authentically – assimilation was generally perceived in a positive light by white Americans, and the mention of Carlisle graduates was ironically likely meant to give the picture greater credibility. Camera! stated that the former Carlisle students “will materially aid in transferring the true history of the Indians in their peaceful pursuits”[xvi] but failed to acknowledge that the performance of Native customs subverted federal laws.
By July 22, 1920, assistant director Roy Coulson was preparing to depart from Los Angeles for Lawton, Oklahoma, with cameraman Ray Ries, as shooting was scheduled to commence imminently.[xvii] That day’s Lawton News confirmed that hundreds of members of the Comanche and Kiowa tribes were camped out at Panther Creek in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, in preparation for the production, and a “model Indian village” had been constructed for filming.[xviii] The article mentioned that the crew included “several camera men.”[xix] Three months after production began, the October 16, 1920, edition of Camera! announced that the Texas Film Company had returned to Los Angeles after completing THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN. The same day’s Motion Picture News noted that the film was set to premiere at the College Theatre in Los Angeles within the week, and on October 17, 1920, the Lawton News reported that a preview had already taken place in New York City to critical acclaim.[xx] Another showing occurred at the same time in Kansas City, Missouri,[xxi] followed by a preview in Boston at the end of October.[xxii]
Perhaps the most consequential exhibition took place in the East Room of the White House on November 20, 1920, for President Woodrow Wilson, who received an introduction to the film by Banks, Edward McManus (an executive from Hearst-Vitagraph), and Oklahoma Representative James V. McClintic.[xxiii] Although Wilson was an advocate of assimilation, he credited himself with ushering in a new era in which the U.S. government and Native Americans could co-exist on equal ground, announcing in a rather patronizing phonograph message shortly after his election that “the Great White Father now calls you his brothers, not his children.”[xxiv] The depiction of Native Americans defying federal law by enacting their customs on screen in THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN may not have been regarded as overtly subversive at the time, but the projection of the film at the White House was a momentous expression of Native cultures in the halls of government that oppressed them.
Regional newspapers continued to document screenings over the following years, primarily in the Midwest and the East Coast, and sometimes advertisements would promote the attendance of Native Americans in person, demonstrating traditional dances. A tour headed by Hunting Horse and other members of the Kiowa Tribe followed the film in the summer of 1921[xxv], in which Native Americans shared their customs and honored local politicians for their contributions to preserving their culture. THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN was exhibited to audiences for several years after the tour ended, but tribe members remained an attraction. For example, a week-long release at the Olympic Theatre in Altoona, Pennsylvania, in February 1924, was highlighted by personal appearances of Chief Buffalo Bear and his wife, four times daily.[xxvi] The couple, who were not in the cast, trailed the film across the East Coast with a mission to make the American public more familiar with, and less prejudiced against, Native traditions.
Nearly a century after its initial release and its disappearance, THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN was restored and made its world premiere in June 2012 at the deadCenter Film Festival in Oklahoma City. Milestone Films then licensed the picture from the Oklahoma Historical Society for worldwide distribution and performed a 2K digital scan for its Blu-ray and DVD release.[xxvii] Comanche composer David Yeagley, who hailed from Oklahoma City, was commissioned to write a new score, and students at Oklahoma City University recorded the piece as a class project.[xxviii] Special screenings were organized by the Oklahoma Historical Society for members of the Comanche Nation and the Kiowa Tribe, and these events proved to be very emotional, as audiences recognized long-lost relatives and helped identify some of the performers.[xxix] For a time, THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN was streaming on Netflix, giving new viewers insights into ancient customs through the lens of white filmmakers, and projecting the story of an indefatigable feminine protagonist who was not beholden to traditional stereotypes and tropes. Dawn, in the title role, was independent and strong-willed with the agency to recognize her own power in a way that was rarely portrayed in early American cinema.[xxx] As a woman who stood up to authority to preserve her integrity, Dawn’s story represents the plight of her fellow Native Americans as they continue in their struggle to safeguard ancient cultures,[xxxi] and draws a parallel to the survival and preservation of the film, itself.
