Rip Van Winkle (1921 film) Catskill mountains. Upon drinking a strange concoction of theirs, he falls asleep and wakes up 20 years later. Rip Van Winkle (1921 film) Rip Van Winkle is a 1921 American silent fantasy film directed by Edward Ludwig and starring Thomas Jefferson and Milla Davenport in oft-filmed story made famous in the 19th century by Thomas Jefferson's father, Joseph Jefferson. T. Jefferson had starred in a 1914 feature-length version of the story which was re-released in 1921 just as this film was premiering. However, they should not be confused as the same film, they are two different films starring the same
Washington Irving trying to bail out the family firm financially but eventually had to declare bankruptcy. With no job prospects, he continued writing throughout 1817 and 1818. In the summer of 1817, he visited Walter Scott, beginning a lifelong personal and professional friendship. Irving composed the short story "Rip Van Winkle" overnight while staying with his sister Sarah and her husband, Henry van Wart in Birmingham, England, a place that inspired other works, as well. In October 1818, Irving's brother William secured for Irving a post as chief clerk to the United States Navy and urged him to return home. Irving turned