Public Domain Movies

The Lost Zeppelin is a 1929 sound adventure film directed by Edward Sloman and produced and distributed by Tiffany-Stahl. The film stars Conway Tearle, Virginia Valli and Ricardo Cortez.

Tearle plays a navy officer modeled on U. S. Navy Commander Richard Evelyn Byrd, who was then a national aviation hero. Byrd made his own genuine Antarctic adventure film, With Byrd at the South Pole, during his South Pole Expedition 1928-1929.

Plot

At a banquet preceding his flight to the South Pole, Commander Donald Hall (Conway Tearle), a zeppelin commander in charge of the Explorer, learns that his wife, Miriam (Virginia Valli), whom he worships, requests a divorce. She is in love with Lieutenant Tom Armstrong (Ricardo Cortez), his best friend and partner in the flight. Hall agrees to grant the divorce after the flight.

When the zeppelin reaches the South Pole, a sudden gale causes it to crash, and the men divide up into search parties. An aircraft with room for only one survivor leads to a decision by Hall that Armstrong should be the one to be saved.

Armstrong is welcomed in Washington as the only survivor but finds that Miriam still loves her husband. Later, news comes of Hall's rescue and miraculous recovery, and he is happily reunited with his wife.

Cast
Conway Tearle as Commander Donald Hall
Virginia Valli as Miriam Hall
Ricardo Cortez as Tom Armstrong
Duke Martin as Lieutenant Wallace
Kathryn McGuire as Nancy
Winter Hall as Mr. Wilson

uncredited

Richard Cramer as Radio Announcer
Ervin Nyiregyhazi as Pianist
William H. O'Brien as Radio Operator