The Loon's Necklace
The Loon's Necklace is a Canadian film, directed by F. R. Crawley and released in 1948.[1] The film recounts the Tsimshian legend of how the loon received the distinctive band of white markings on its neck, by granting the gift of restored sight to a blind Tsimshian medicine man and being given a traditional Tsimshian necklace in return.[2]
| The Loon's Necklace | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | F. R. Crawley |
| Written by | Douglas Leechman |
| Produced by | F. R. Crawley |
| Starring | George Gorman |
| Cinematography | Grant Crabtree |
| Edited by | Judith Crawley |
Production company | Crawley Films |
Release date | 1948 |
Running time | 12 min. |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $7,000-10,000 |
The film is based on a folk tale known all across Alaska, Northern Canada, and Greenland, The Blind Man and the Loon. The variant of the tale used by Crawley was recorded during the early 1930s in British Columbia by Douglas Leechman of the National Museum of Canada.[3]
The film is narrated by George Gorman, and performed by actors in traditional West Coast First Nations masks in front of a backdrop of brightly coloured oil paintings.[4] The film has sometimes been erroneously credited to the National Film Board of Canada, but was in fact produced by Crawley's own independent studio Crawley Films after being rejected by the NFB.[4]
Production
The film had a budget between $7,000 (equivalent to $84,000 in 2021) and $10,000 (equivalent to $120,000 in 2021). It was sold to Imperial Oil for $5,000 and the company commissioner Crawley to make Newfoundland Scene due to the success of The Loon's Necklace.[5]
Reception
Arthur Crawley considered the film a financial failure as they failed to sell it to the National Film Board of Canada, but the film later earned $1.5 million over the course of thirty years.[6] The film won the inaugural Canadian Film Award for Film of the Year at the 1st Canadian Film Awards in 1949.[7]
References
- "Award-winning film maker was a pioneer in industry". The Globe and Mail, May 15, 1987.
- "The new loon: The Legend of the Loon's Necklace". Ottawa Citizen, July 23, 2005.
- Mishler, Craig (2013). The Blind Man and the Loon: The Story of a Tale. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 9780803239821.
- "Treasures from 'Canada's King of Film': F.R. Crawley gave the country its first feature film Oscar and changed driver's ed films". Toronto Star, February 27, 2016.
- Melnyk 2004, p. 93-94.
- Melnyk 2004, p. 93.
- "Loon's Necklace Wins Canadian Film Award". The Globe and Mail, March 30, 1949.
Works cited
- Melnyk, George (2004). One Hundred Years of Canadian Cinema. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 080203568X.
External links
- The Loon's Necklace at IMDb
- Watch The Loon's Necklace at the American Indian Film Gallery, University of Arizona