A scene from "Sweet Inniscarra," Ireland's first 'talkie' film.
In late 1931 and early 1932, scenes were shot for the first 'all talking picture' (ie talkie) to be made in entirely in Ireland with an all-Irish cast and scenes.
Entitled "Sweet Inniscarra," the bulk of the filming took place in the Cashel area, although shooting was also carried out in counties Cork, Dublin, Kerry, Limerick, Waterford and Wicklow.
"Sweet Inniscarra" was directed and produced by an Irish-American named Emmett Moore. The actors who were all amateurs, hailed from dramatic societies in Cashel, Fethard, and Portarlington.
The plot of "Sweet Inniscarra" was centered around Gerald O'Carroll's love for Kate O'Donoghue. Although her father's preference was a wealthy major as a suitor for his daughter, O'Carroll ultimately wins the day and they marry.
The film encompassed music, song, and dance, was 72 minutes in duration, and shot in black and white on nitrate film. It was shown in cinemas in the USA in 1932 and in Ireland in 1933.
In the decades that followed, the film was believed to have been lost or destroyed.
Over the course of a six-part radio documentary, Tom Hurley has been investigating the story of "Sweet Inniscarra," its cast, its producer Emmett Moore, and examined some of the unsuccessful efforts made over the years to try and locate a copy of the film.
In episode six, Hurley reveals the outcome of his own attempt to find a copy.
It transpires that when the film was shown in the US, its title was changed from "Sweet Inniscarra" to "The Heart of Ireland." This made it harder for Irish researchers over the decades to track it down in America as many had been unaware of the title change.
Like others before him, Hurley was unsuccessful in his endeavour to find a copy of "Sweet Inniscarra," but his research did lead to the unearthing of a trailer for the film which lay undiscovered in the UCLA Film & Television Archive, Los Angeles.
(Courtesy of the UCLA Film & Television Archive)
Hurley reveals: "The element was contained in a 400-foot can and contains 16 distinct title cards.
"There is no moving footage, no soundtrack and it is tinted green to associate it with Ireland.
"The trailer is made up of text only. It is on nitrate film and looks like it's never been projected. It looks pristine.
"It's a complete mystery how the UCLA acquired the trailer. It comes under what they call an anonymous donor category. They had even been unaware that they possessed it until conducting a search of their archives for the documentary.
"There was no date on the trailer but there's a good chance it can be dated to 1932 when 'Sweet Inniscarra' / 'The Heart of Ireland' was being shown in cinemas across America. The trailer runs for about two minutes.
"Although the actual movie hasn't been discovered, I’m informed that this can be regarded as a significant find as it's a small piece of evidence of how 'Sweet Inniscarra' was presented in America."
The documentary entitled "Sweet Inniscarra" produced by Tom Hurley is available to listen to on Tipp Mid West Radio. The sixth and final episode which explores the discovery of the trailer aired on Friday, March 14.