"The Daughter of Dawn" (1920), the first film made
in Oklahoma, was shot using a cast of 300, entirely made up of the Comanche and
Kiowa tribes, using traditional costumes, teepees, and weapons. The story of bravery, star-crossed lovers and
duels to the death also featured buffalo hunts (staged at the Wichita
Mountains Wildlife Refuge) and some striking visual compositions.
Writer-director Norbert Myles (described as
"fiery," which may explain his being cast out of Hollywood studio
offices) worked with a Texan named Richard Banks to produce the film, which was
lost for decades following a single screening in Los Angeles. [Only some still
images and a script existed in archives.]
In 2005, a private investigator obtained some nitrate reels
that turned out to be "Daughter of Dawn," and turned them over to the
Oklahoma Historical Society, which preserved the footage and commissioned a
musical score by David Yeagley, a composer of Comanche descent.