by John White “You are quite correct in assigning huge importance to Horace [Kephart’s] Stark Love (Paramount, 1927) is a movie ‘Our Southern High- Unicoi Mountains of Graham County, I’ve known about for nearly twenty landers.’ Even in Mr. North Carolina around Rattler Ford (now a years. I’ve written a lot of articles about Brown’s very barren later popular tourist campground), and on loca - it, I’ve made a movie about it, I’ve come circumstances, when he had tions since covered by Santeetlah Lake. to know the families of the people who about one linear foot of The movie is a compelling visual depiction made Stark Love way back eighty-five books in his room, he kept of life in the mountains in the second years ago. Yet every time someone like decade of the last century. Steve Kemp of the Great Smoky Moun - two copies of the [Kephart] Although critically acclaimed, Stark Love tains Association asks me to revisit the book, one of which he gave (one of the last silent films made before story, I find something brand new. to me. He regarded ‘Stark the ascension of “the talkies”) has never Revisiting my jumbled manila folders Love’ as essentially based been released to the public on VHS or and scores of computer files, I stumbled upon the book.” DVD. Only a small community of film his - across two unnoticed pieces of evidence torians and enthusiasts have seen the reinforcing my long-held view that the —historian David Shephard movie, plus those lucky enough to have at - film is largely based on Our Southern tended its special screenings, usually host - Highlanders by Horace Kephart. Legendary for his outdoor ed by universities, museums, and film festivals. writing, with books such as Highlanders, Camping & Woodcraft , The screenplay is simple yet powerful: Rob Warwick’s hundreds of articles in sporting magazines, and famous for mother is in poor health from toiling in the home and field his efforts in helping create Great Smoky Mountains Na - to feed and clothe her family. Meanwhile, her husband Ja - tional Park, Kephart is less well known for his contribution son Warwick hunts, drinks whiskey, and loafs. to a Hollywood movie that was heralded by The New York Rob grows fond of a young mountain girl, Barb’ry Allen, and Times as “one of the top ten movies of the year.” is determined she will not suffer the same fate as his mother. Stark Love was shot in the summer of 1926 in the nearby He views education at the mountain school far away in Smokies Life v 20 Horace Kephart, circa 1928-1931, on Mt. Kephart. Photograph by George Masa. the valley town as a means of escape for both Barb’ry and Quill Allen accepts the Warwick’s proposal and forces himself. Barb’ry to go home with him. They must hurry for the rains Rob sells his horse and travels with a circuit preacher to have come and the creek is beginning to flood. the school. When he arrives, he decides to use his money Rob arrives soon after Jason Warwick returns with Barb’ry to pay for Barb’ry’s tuition instead of his own. to his cabin. Along the way home, Rob has learned of his As Rob travels by foot on the long way back home, his mother’s death. mother passes away. When he understands his father’s intentions toward Bar - Mr. Warwick hires a woman to take care of his children b’ry, Rob is horrified. He tries to reason with his father but and home but is dissatisfied. Unaware of the affection be - Jason’s mind is set. This leads to a mighty brawl between fa - tween Rob and Barb’ry, Warwick asks his best friend Quill ther and son. Rob is determined to protect Barb’ry. But, alas, Allen for Barb’ry’s hand in marriage—a socially accepted he is defeated and thrown out of the cabin. He lies by the “wild marriage” until the preacher returns in the spring to raging creek which is near the point of flooding. “sanctify” it. When Rob is powerless to protect her, Barb’ry takes matters Smokies Life v 21 —and a sharp axe—into her own hands. She escapes from reverence for the writer until his dying day. the cabin in time to save Rob from the flood. Always a showbiz guy and spinner of yarns, Brown cited Through Barb’ry’s brave actions, Rob and she are able to Lucy Furman’s The Quare Women as his source and inspiration leave the mountain for a better life. Barb’ry is the true hero for the Stark Love story. It was not until he penned a memoir of the story. late in life, posthumously published in The Appalachian Jour - In the care of a less sensitive and skillful director, Stark nal , that he acknowledged Kephart’s influence on Stark Love Love would be poor melodrama. Instead, it is a stunningly —and, even then, the extent of the author’s involvement beautiful vignette of early twentieth century Appalachia. was only partially admitted. Brown always maintained the idea for his film sprang from a magazine article he read on location for The Covered Wagon (Paramount, 1923). He was the cameraman on that f picture, a ruggedly realistic western (the first “epic” western) Kephart’s influence is prevalent throughout Stark shot on the desolate prairie of Snake Valley, Nevada em - Love . Eighty years after the film’s release, historian David ploying four hundred Conestoga wagons and seventeen- Shepard, a close friend and neighbor of director Karl hundred extras, including seven hundred Native Americans Brown, wrote the following: —Arapahoes, Crows, Bannocks, Navajos and Shoshones “You are quite correct in assigning huge importance to imported from Wyoming and Arizona. Horace Kephardt’s Our Southern Highlanders . Even in Mr. According to Brown, during a break in shooting the film, Brown’s very barren later circumstances, when he had about he read an installment of Quare Women in the Atlantic Month - one linear foot of books in his room, he kept two copies of ly . No doubt, it was the “The Widow-Man” chapter which the Kephardt (sic) book, one of which he gave to me. He appeared in the November, 1922 edition and contains sev - regarded Stark Love as essentially based upon the book.” eral essential ideas found in the storyline of Stark Love : Thir - Indeed, anecdotes, even photographic plates from the ty-two year-old Jeems Craddock is a recent widower forced 1922 edition of Our Southern Highlanders , come to life in Stark to take on the hard chores—farm and house work—former - Love . Yet, surprisingly, throughout his life, especially in in - ly carried out by his deceased wife Mallie. Desperate for a terviews during Stark Love’s initial theatrical run, the film’s di - replacement, he trains his eyes on an inappropriate succes - rector Karl Brown made very little mention of Kephart or sor, his children’s 28 year-old, city-raised teacher, Amy. his contribution to the film. Despite the fact, Brown held a The desperate widower, the suspicion of education, the Smokies Life v 22 From Kephart’s book Our Southern Highlanders (left to right): Title page from the book’s first edition; a moonshine mill; a bear hunt; “Let the women do the work”; moonshine king Quill Rose and family. slave-like toil of mountain women, and an unrealistic choice “Git!” Then he turned on Brown to tell him to “Leave my of bride, are all elements which appear in Stark Love . But the wommern-folks be! They ain’t none of ‘em agoen to be no detail, and possibly the central conflict, of Stark Love —a fa - movie Jezebels for you or nobody else…” ther and son’s mutual affection for a mountain girl—are After father and daughter departed, a mountain man told found in the pages of Our Southern Highlanders , a book Brown Brown, “Don’t pay no mind to him. He got soured when his happened upon while traveling South by train in 1926 to new woman ran off down to this Berea place with his own scout locations for his Appalachian movie. He was so en - son [Berea College is known for providing work-for-tuition thralled he read the book non-stop, cover to cover. opportunities for its students]…” He further explained that Yet, in several interviews at the time of the picture’s re - the young girl had been promised to the father and the son lease, Brown failed to mention the book. In fact, even in his had “put up a fight for her.” memoirs, he instead tells of finding his story while attempt - In the legend, this provided a “Eureka!” moment for ing to cast his leading lady. Brown. The mountain man’s offhanded comment had sup - Brown recalls his introduction to “a dark-haired beauty” plied the basis for his mountain story. in the mountains with whom he discussed the part of the While this is a marvelous anecdote, regrettably for histo - leading female character, Barb’ry Allen. He was so im - rians, Brown never let the truth get in the way of a good pressed with the young woman, he even staged an im - story. For instance, he told interviewers until the day he promptu rehearsal. He pitched a chip of wood into a nearby died that the leading man, Forrest James, was an illiterate creek’s slow current and “asked her to follow it with her mountain lad who disappeared into the woods with rifle eyes, wishing she could be that chip, well on its way from a and coon dog never to be seen again after filming was com - lifetime of slavery.” plete.