The Spirit of the USA

Emilie Johnson claimed Woodrow Wilson inspired this story. This film takes place during World War I.[3]

Still with Carl Stockdale, Mary Carr, Johnnie Walker, and Gloria Grey

Thomas Gains Carl Stockdale and his wife, Mary Mary Carr, play a couple living on a farm with their two sons. Her oldest son is Johnnie, played by Johnnie Walker. Her youngest son is named Silas, played by Cuyler Supplee.

In April 1917, the U.S. joined the Allies, declares war against Germany, and enters World War I. Overwhelmed with a sense of duty, Johnnie immediately wants to enlist in the Army. He is rejected. He then enlists in the Salvation Army and is shipped to Europe. His lazy, cowardly brother shrugs his duty, takes over the farm, and marries Zelda Burrows, played by Rosemary Cooper. Zelda's father, John Burrows, played by Mark Fenton, wants to acquire the Gains farm to build a dam – legally or otherwise.

Zelda teases Silas for staying home during the war. Showing Zelda, he's not a coward, Silas enlists in the Army. Silas is shipped to France and dies on the battlefield. Learning of her husband's death, Zelda takes control of the farm. Her father's lawyer, Jim Fuller, played by Dave Kirby, claims Johnnie has also been killed in Europe. Zelda promptly evicts Thomas and Mary from their home. Then Zelda claims the farm along with her father. Her father starts to build his dam.

Suddenly, Johnnie returns home. Everyone thought he had died in battle. After his return, he starts to restore order. Johnnie tosses Zelda off the farm, blows up the dam, and restores his parents' property. Then Johnnie finds out his sweetheart – Gretchen played by Gloria Grey has been waiting for him. Johnnie marries Gretchen, and they live happily ever after.[4]

FBO logo

‘’’Film Booking Offices of America’’’ (‘’’FBO’’’) operated as a dynamic and autonomous film studio during the silent era of American cinema. With an output of approximately 110 features and shorts annually, FBO dedicated itself to creating low-budget films that excelled in various genres, including top-notch westerns, action-packed thrillers, heartwarming romantic melodramas, and comedy shorts. The company primarily distributed its productions to modest-sized towns and independent theater chains that frequently refreshed their film selection three times per week.[6] FBO would make their pictures appeal to every member of the American family.[7]

In 1924, the average cost per FBO production ranged from $50,000 to $75,000, which is equivalent to $809,443 to $1,214,165 in 2022 currency. In comparison, the Major film studios had significantly larger budgets, spending up to five times more to produce a single movie. Alongside their regular productions, FBO also undertook a few high-budget projects known as "Gold Bond" or "Special" productions. Emory Johnson, during his tenure at FBO, exclusively worked on eight films that fell under this category.[8]

In 1923, Emilie and Emory Johnson entered into a contract extension with FBO, which spanned a period of two and one-half years. The terms of the agreement stated that Emory was obligated to create eight attractions for FBO. Notably, the agreement acknowledged that his previous four films would be included in this tally. To support the production of the remaining four films, FBO committed to investing two and a half million dollars, which, in today's currency, is equivalent to $40,472,167 in 2021.[9]

Additionally, an integral part of the new contract stated that Emory Johnson's mother, Mrs. Emilie Johnson, would be responsible for developing all the stories and writing the scripts for the Johnson attractions. Furthermore, she would provide assistance to her son during the filming process.[9]

Screenplay

"The greatest appeal in pictures is not in extravagant spectacles, historical pageants, or adaptation of fairy tales. I think the straight-forward, clean, wholesome Melodrama will always have the choice corner in the hearts of the American public."

Writer Emilie Johnson, [11]

Emilie and Emory

Emilie Johnson was 56 years old when she wrote the story and the screen adaptation for this film. The Spirit of The U.S.A. was the fifth film in the 8-picture FBO contract. [12]

Emilie Johnson (1867–1941) was born on June 3, 1867, in Gothenburg, Västra Götaland, Sweden. After emigrating to America, she married Alfred Jönsson. Their only son was born in 1894 – actor, director and writer Alfred Emory Johnson.[13]

In the 1920s, Emilie and Emory Johnson developed one of the unique collaborations in the annals of Hollywood. The decade saw the mother-son team develop into the most financially successful directing and writing team in motion picture history. She wrote most of the stories and screenplays her son used for his career in directing melodramas. Emilie Johnson wrote stories about lunch pail characters living paycheck-to-paycheck like law enforcement officers, firefighters, mail carriers, railroad engineers, patriots, baseball players, and newspaper press operators.[lower-alpha 2]

Emilie's conviction in the cinematic potential of her human-interest stories was matched by her son's ability to bring them to life on the silver screen in grand, sweeping melodramas. The Johnsons collaborated closely, working alongside each other during the pre-production phase and continuing their partnership on set once filming commenced. This extraordinary creative alliance flourished throughout the entire decade, albeit gradually fading in the early 1930s.

Many silent-era films did not survive for reasons as explained on this Wikipedia page.[lower-alpha 3] The posting on the Library of Congress Performing Arts Database lists this film as "No holdings located in archives." The complete LOC record is shown here.[lower-alpha 4]

A 15-minute excerpt is available on the Internet Archive. The same film segment is also available on YouTube.