# Monte Cristo

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Cast and Crew :
| Cast ||
| Role | Actor |
| Edmond Dantès | John Gilbert |
| Mercedes Herrera | Estelle Taylor |
| | William V. Mong |
| Abbe Faria | Spottiswoode Aitken |
| Eugénie Danglars | Renée Adorée |
| | George Campbell |
| | Howard Kendall |
| Crew ||
| Production company | Fox Film Corporation |
| Director | Emmett J. Flynn (d. 1937) |
| Producer | William Fox (d. 1952) |
| Screenwriter | Charles Fechter (d. 1879) |
| Cinematographer | Lucien Andriot (d. 1979) |
| Based on available information, the latest crew member that is relevant to international copyright laws died in 1979, meaning that this film may be in the public domain in countries and jurisdictions with 44 years p.m.a. or less, as well as in the United States. ||
WILLIAM FOX PRESENTS MONTE CRISTO
BASED UPON THE FAMOUS NOVEL THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO BY ALEXANDRE DUMAS
WITH AN ALL-STAR CAST
Adaptation Bernard McConville.
Additional Story Alexander Salvini & Charles Fechter.
Photography Lucien Andriot.
Directed by Emmett J. Flynn.
In 1815, homeward bound, the good ship Pharaoh, to the port or Marseilles.
The mood on deck is grim. Captain Leclerc is mortally ill.
Edmond Dantes, a mate of the Pharaoh, and a citizen of Marseilles.
--- John Gilbert
Captain Leclerc's final wish: a letter must be delivered to exiled emperor Napoleon.
To his Majesty. the Emperor.
Elba.
To support Napoleon can mean prison or even death, but Dantes will keep his word.
Whenever there is success, there you will find envy. Danglars, the quartermaster of the Pharaoh.
--- Albert Prisco
As the sun's last golden rays touch the rigging of the Pharaoh, Captain Leclerc draws his last breath.
Napoleon on the island of Elba. The emperor in exile.
The end of another long voyage. The Pharaoh returns home to Marseilles under the command of her first mate, Edmond Dantes.
LA RÉSERVE
The elder Dantes, a veteran of the Napoleonic wars, his only interest in life—his son Edmond.
--- Harry Lonsdale
Caderousse, keeper of the tavern where lodges the elder Dantes.
--- William V. Mong
"My father, now that I know you're well, tell me, how is my Mercedes?"
"She has chattered all morning of nothing but yourself and how she means to receive you."
"Your son is to be congratulated. I am about to arrange for his commission as Captain of the Pharaoh."
Mercedes, an orphan, who earns her living from mending the fishemens nets.
--- Estelle Taylor
Fernand Montego, Mercedes' cousin.
--- Ralph Cloninger
"I'm letting the room to old Dantes too cheaply now that the son has become a Captain."
"He is not the Captain of the Pharaoh—Not the husband of Mercedes—Yet."
"I know what is wrong. Dantes is back."
"Let us dring to Captain Edmond Dantes, husband of the beautiful Mercedes."
"It is hard to believe that a Spaniard will give place to a rival so peacefully."
"She adores this Captain of the Pharaoh and would kill herself if I harmed him."
"Let us suppose that Edmond Dantes should disappear from the face of the Earth——without you drawing one drop of his blood!"
"Who dares threaten harm to my good friend Dantes?"
"Bring me pen, ink and paper."
Monsieur, The Royal Prosecutor is informed by a friend of the throne and religion that one Edmond Dantes, mate of the Pharaoh, arrived this morning from Smyrna, has been entrusted by Murat with a letter from the usurper, and by committee in Paris. Proof of this crime will be found upon him, or at his father's or in the cabin of board the Pharaoh.
"All that remains to be done is to deliver this letter into the hands of the Royal Prosecutor."
The much awaited wedding day, when two hearts that have loved long and well are made one.
"Who is he, who answers to the name of Edmond Dantes?"
"I bear an order for your arrest from the Royal Prosecutor."
"There is nothing to fear, my beloved. I am innocent—I will go and return to you before the sun goes down."
"Before the hour is up, you will drink at our wedding."
"Ah, Danglars—I remember the letter—You have betrayed my friend, Edmond Dantes!"
"Be silent, you simpleton. He is involved in a conspiracy against the King—Be careful, lest you find yourself implicated!"
M. de Villefort—The Royal Prosecutor.
--- Robert McKim
"Edmond Dantes, charged with political conspiracy—"
"You are reported as being on extreme Bonapartist, charged with bearing a letter from the usurper to his accomplices in Paris. Is this true?"
"I freely admit bearing the letter you mentioned, but it was in obedience to my captain."
"Your release depends on your giving me all the information in your power—Where is the letter?"
The brevity in which I hereby convey my instructions will, I trust, correspond to the swiftness with which you will execute them. I am very appreciative of your loyalty but I again warn you to beware of the activities of your rebellious son, M. de Villefort in the services of the King.
Napoleon
With his own father implicated, de Villefort knows that if this letter should ever reach the King, he himself is in danger.
"It is necessary for me to detain you overnight as a matter of formality—Tomorrow you will be released."
"I shall return the letter to you then."
Beneath the prison walls of the Chateau d'If, whose very name makes all the France shudder, Dantes realizes this is more than a nights's stay.
"There is some terrible mistake. I tell you, I have the word of the Royal Prosecutor I am to be released tomorrow."
"This is a conspiracy! I have committed no crime!"
Five months passed—Five months of desperate solitude amidst walls terrifyingly mute.
"Oh, Mercedes, my beloved. Do not forget me. I'm coming back to you!"
"Have you received any word today from the Royal Prosecutor—About my release?"
"I tell you no! For the thousandth time!"
"Number 38. Get your pan!"
The elder Dantes has become a helpless invalid, too proud to accept assistance from his friends.
"I'll wait for my rent no longer—Out you go on the highway with the other beggars!"
"Speak! You have news of Edmond?"
Mr. Morrell I have made further investigation and have just learned that the unfortunate Dantes was secretly executed as a dangerous conspirator, by order of the King. Sincerely,
De Villefort
Frailty, thy name is woman—Scarcely one year after Dantes' supposed death, Mercedes becomes the bride of Fernand Montego.
Six years of endless days fading into endless nights.
Destiny recognizes no limitations—Not even stone walls.
"Can you hear me?"
"Who are you? And how long have you been imprisoned in this horrible tomb?"
"I am Edmond Dantes, a French sailor, innocent of any crime, but arrested on a false charge preferred by some unknown enemy—that was in 1815."
"I am the Abbé Faria, an Italian priest. I was lodged here on a political charge in 1811."
--- Spottieswoode Aitken
"I separated the fat from the meat served me. This wick is cotton from my shirt."
"I feigned a disorder on the skin and secured sulphur with which to make matches."
"With such tools at our command we can soon make our escape."
"I despair of that now—It required eight years for me to tunnel twenty feet of rock—with the mistaken calculation that our wall was the outer one—"
"—and then, to my horror, I realized that it opened on the courtyard."
"At least we will have the confort of each other's society to relieve the loneliness."
"The time will pass profitably, for I shall instruct you in the languages, the sciences and the literature of the world."
"Quick! The guard is about to make his rounds."
"This is my second attack of paralysis—and the next attack will mean my death."
"I swear to remain with you until death divides us."
During the intervening 14 years, the scholarly Abbé has imparted his faithful pupil a vast fund of knowledge.
"Thanks to your perfection and patience, I feel that should I ever escape, I could enter the world like a man reborn with such knowledge as to surpass my fellow-man."
"Now I shall show you how to reach the courtyard."
"There is a secret I must reveal to you before I die—Beneath ma cassock, next to my heart, is pinned a parchment map—"
"—I am a descendant of the Roman Cardinal Spad who, during the middle ages, accumulated the greatest fortune in Italy."
"Fearing in those turbulent times that his fortune would fall to marauders, he hid it on the island of Monte Cristo."
"I discovered the map among the Cardinal's books—But before I could seek his treasure, I was arrested and—"
27
"Prepare the body for immediate burial."
"Attach a cannonball to the body and see that it is cast far enough from the wall, to sink."
38
"Mon Dieu, a most novel way of committing suicide."
"You may also sign a death certificate for Edmond Dantes, Prisoner N° 38."
"Now on to Monte Cristo, and the world is mine!"
Rescued by smugglers, Dantes soon won their confidence and passage to the island of Monte Cristo.
Proceed to the waterfall above the abyss. To the right you will find a lone rock covered with hanging moss. It will lead you to the treasure.
"Henceforth I will be the hand of God! The avenger!"
A stormy night in 1835. There have been many changes in Dantes' absence.
"Hurry up lazybones—Here is a guest!"
Benedetto.
--- Francis McDonald
"Am I addressing Gaspard Caderousse?"
"Were you once acquainted with a sailor of Marseilles named Edmond Dantes?"
"He died a more wretched hopeless heartbroken prisoner that if victim of the guillotine—He was buried alive for twenty years in the dungeon of the Chateau d'If."
"Being innocent of any crime, he cursed with his last breath the unknown enemy who caused his arrest."
"But before dying, he requested me do divide among his friends—Caderousse, M. Danglars and Fernand Montego—this diamond, which is worth about 50,000 francs."
"Oh, M. l'Abbé, I cannot permit such a mockery—Danglars and Fernand were not friends, but the enemies who conspired Dantes' arrest!"
"God forgive me—I too was guilty, for I could have saved Edmond Dantes had I not been such a coward!"
"To accuse yourself is to deserve pardon from your sin."
"What became of the conspirators—Danglars and Fernand?"
"M. l'Abbé, they both went to Paris and I hear have become rich and famous."
"Did you now the father of Dantes?"
"Did I know Dantes' father?"
"Indeed, we were great friends. The poor man died of a broken heart."
"And didn't young Dantes have a sweetheart named Mercedes?"
"Pardieu, the most beautiful girl in Marseilles—but faithless."
"She married Fernand."
"Do you know whether the Royal Prosecutor, M. de Villefort, who sentenced Dantes unjustly, is still in Marseilles?"
"M. l'Abbé, I have good reason to know—He is in paris and high in the King's favor."
"De Villefort betrayed my daughter Nanette—I followed him to his chateau at Auteuil to kill him."
"I found a live baby in the casket."
"Who was the mother of this child?"
"She is the wife of Baron Danglars!"
"And the child? What has become of him?"
"That boy, Benedetto, whom you saw asleep by the fire, is de Villefort's illegitimate son."
"I could betray you to the police, who would send you te the guillotine—but I will save you on one condition—"
"—that you be my devoted servant."
"By what name shall I call my master?"
"The Count of Monte Cristo!"
END OF PART ONE
WILLIAM FOX PRESENTS MONTE CRISTO
BASED UPON THE FAMOUS NOVEL THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO BY ALEXANDRE DUMAS
WITH AN ALL-STAR CAST
PART TWO
Paris. At the chateau of Fernand Montego, now the Count de Morcerf.
Ferdinand and Mercedes, the Count and Countess de Morcerf.
Danglars, now Baron Danglars, noted Parisian banker, and his wife, the Baroness.
M. de Villefort, formerly Royal Prosecutor, now judge at the Royal Court.
Fernand's son, Viscount Albert de Morcerf.
--- Gaston Glass
"And now, my friends, I shall explain why I have assembled you all!"
"During a stay in Rome last month I was set upon by bandits and rescued at the last moment by a foreigner."
"And who was your mysterious savior?"
"You will be amazed when you find out!"
"And you shall meet him this evening at the stroke of eight!"
"It strikes eight o'clock yet your mythical hero does not appear."
"His Excellency, the Count of Monte Cristo!"
"Your Excellency, I owe to you the life of my son, for which I bless you from the bottom of my heart."
"May I introduce M. de Villefort, Judge at the Royal Court."
"Did you bring Princess Haidee to Paris with you?"
"May I introduce the daughter of Ali Pasha, Princess Haidee."
--- Virginia Brown Faire
The Count of Monte Cristo made it his business to acquire the Chateau at Auteuil that had once belonged to Villefort. The wise spider spins his web for the silly flies.
Luigi Vampa, now Bertuccio, an infamous bandit whose life Dantes saved after escaping from prison, is now his butler.
--- George Siegmann
"You are no longer Benedetto—I will present you to the aristocracy of Paris as Count Andrea Cavalcanti of Naples, heir to fortune of two million francs."
"Bertuccio will supply you with the proper house, costumes, and an income befitting your station."
"But remember, M. le Count, one false move and I will send you to the guillotine."
The elite of Paris are invited by the Count of Monte Cristo to a banquet which eclipses his previous records of extravagance.
"My ward, Princess Haidee. I will interpret for her as she speaks only Arabic."
"His Excellency, Count Andrea Cavalcanti!"
"You are late, dear Count!"
"So sorry, Your Excellency. I was delayed at a meeting with my banker."
"Mlle. Danglars, I depend upon you to protect M. le count from the designing females of Paris."
--- Renée Adorée
"Like the Roman epicureans, I have collecte dishes for you from the ends of the earth!"
After the banquet—Phantoms.
"Here is a room which should particularly interest you—it is said to be haunted."
"Perhaps M. de Villefort can expand on this legend. I am told the room was once his."
"Some years ago a child was born in that bed—out of wedlock—"
"The guilty father tore the innocent infant from the mother's arms, placed in in a casket—"
"—and rushed downstairs."
"When my gardeners were digging beneath that sycamore, they unearthed a wooden box—"
"—an empty casket!"
"I humbly beg Madame's pardon—I did not know you believe in ghosts!"
The avenger strikes with an invisible hand.
"As Your Excellency ordered, I have bought up Danglars' bills to the amount of two million francs."
"Do not cease until you have purchased all the outstanding obligations of Danglars."
La Vie
"I had the story published as you requested, Your Excellency."
period in human creativity
The traitor sold his benefactor to the Turks for three million. The man in question is General Fernand Montego, although he later came to be known as Count de Morcef and now belongs to the cream of French nobility.
Many names have had to be left
"When I find that published, I shall force him to retract his lies or challenge him to a duel!"
"First, identify your unknown enemy. It is he who must give you satisfaction."
The Count de Morcerf is summoned to defend his honor before the Chamber of Peers.
"It is a sad duty of the House to consider a charge of dishonor against a peer of France."
It is charged that the Count de Morcerf, a Peer of France, in 1820, while serving under the title of General Montego in the army of Ali Tebelen, did treacherously betray the Greek patriot to his enemies the Turks.
"My answer to the political enemy who makes this charge is, let him produce proofs or witnesses to substantiate this calumny!"
"I beg to introduce a witness."
"I ask the privilege of translating the testimony, as the witness speaks only Arabic. The Greek Ambassador can verify the translation and also the substance, for he is familiar with the facts."
"I am Princess Haidee, daughter of Ali Teleban, Pasha of Yanina. I was by my father's side when he was killed."
"That is the man who betrayed my father and fired the shot that robbed him of his life—"
"The assassin should still bear on his right hand the wound from my father's sword!"
"Gentlemen, is Count de Morcerf convicted of felony, treason and murder?"
"You have brought disgrace upon my father's name—I shall avenge his honor!"
Discovering that he is on the verge of bankruptcy, Baron Danglars hopes to mend his broken fortune by marrying his daughter to Count Cavalcanti.
"Which of you gentlemen answers to the name of Count Andrea Cavalcanti?"
"I have an order for his arrest on the charge of murder!"
Cavalcanti's arrest dashed Danglars' last hope. Financially and morally ruined, he fled Paris, absconding with five million francs earmarked for orphan relief.
The night before the duel between Monte Cristo and Albert de Morcerf.
"Your Excellency, the Countess of Morcerf."
"Edmond!"
"Edmond—forgive! I believed you dead. See, this is the letter M. Morrell gave me!"
Mr. Morrell I have made further investigation and have just learned that the unfortunate Dantes was secretly executed as a dangerous conspirator, by order of the King. Sincerely,
De Villefort
"You will not kill my son?"
"Speak, Edmond!"
The duel.
"My mother has told me everything! You were justified! I beg your forgiveness—"
"Should anyone here entertain a false opinion of my bravery, I am ready to correct it!"
"Gentlemen, let it be remembered there is no enmity between Albert de Morcerf and the Count of Monte Cristo."
"My son was a coward but you will not find his father one!"
"One of these pistols is loaded. God will place the empty weapon in the guilty man's hand!"
"I am Edmond Dantes!"
Number one.
The trial of the imposter, Count Cavalcanti, attracts a notable audience to the Palais de Justice.
"Benedetto, alias Count Andrea Cavalcanti, is hereby charged with the murder of one Gaspard Caderousse—
"I refuse to answer any questions of the King's Prosecutor for a reason which the Court will soon understand!"
"Your age?"
"I am twenty years old—I was born on the night of the 27th of September, 1817."
"Where were you born?"
"At Auteuil, near Paris."
"What is your father's name?"
"M. de Villefort—my father is the Royal Judge!"
"That is a lie!"
"My father tore me from my mother's arms, placed me in a casket, and buried me in the garden. Caderousse, who was hiding in the garden to kill Villefort, dug up the casket and saved my life."
"Who is your mother?"
"She is now the wife of Baron Danglars!"
"What proof have you to support this tale of horror?"
"Who might you be, Monsieur?"
"Edmond Dantes!"
"I hope you are no coward, Monsieur!"
Number two.
The author of the letter that sent Dantes to prison.
"How much would you charge me for that roast?"
"Five million francs!"
"How much is the bread alone?"
"Our establishment has but one price, Your Excellency: five million francs."
"The money will go back to the orphans."
"You! What have I done that you have punished me so terribly?"
"I have compelled you to suffer for one week the hunger you caused Dantes to endure for twenty years in the Chateau d'If."
"Who is it that speaks to me of the dead?"
"Edmond Dantes!"
Number three.
Albert and I have drunk the cup of anguish to the dregs. Our good fortune was purchased by the ill fortune of others. When you receive this we shall be in Marseilles. God protect you and forgive us.
Mercedes
"Lord of my life, happiness is gone from my heart."
"God is good—I have found our way to happiness."
"You will arrange to distribute my entire fortune among the most deserving charities of Europe."
The Way to Happiness.
"Albert!"
"We have our nets, and as long as there are fish in the sea, we can live!"
THE END
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1929.
The longest-living author of this work died in 1937, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 86 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
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