100 years ago in North Idaho: A silent film star’s stomping grounds were expanding from Spokane to Priest Lake

Nell Shipman’s movie company was expanding with the acquisition of property at the north end of Priest Lake.

Now, the Canadian silent movie star would be making her films at her Spokane studios at Minnehaha and in Priest Lake. Shipman’s big “wild animal zoo” had been relocated to the Priest Lake headquarters, which would become known as Lionhead Lodge.

Shipman was known for making adventure movies showcasing wilderness locations and wild animals. Shipman’s company was now preparing to shoot a number of “one-reel animal pictures,” to be followed by a feature film titled, “Over the Last Bridge.”

Her latest film, “The Grub-Stake” – shot in Spokane and North Idaho – was in the editing process and would soon be released. Her manager predicted that “we are going to have one of the biggest pictures of the year.”

This would prove optimistic. “The Grub-Stake” did well in 1923, but it failed to make the year’s top ten list.

From the mermaid beat: Ruth Harkins, recently crowned as the Spokane Daily Chronicle’s “Mermaid Queen” (bathing beauty), was embarking on a stage career.

Harkins and her mother left Spokane for Los Angeles, where she was joining a theatrical company on the Orpheum circuit.

This was not her first foray onto the stage. At her former home in Los Angeles, she had performed on stage in song-and-dance skits and appeared in several movies.

She was scheduled to rehearse for a month in Los Angeles before going on the road.