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
Rip Van Winkle out of sight for 70 years. When he awakens, he finds a fully mature tree and learns he has a grandson. When nobody believes that he is Honi, he prays to God, and God takes him from this world. The story also bears some similarities to stories from east Asia, including the third century AD Chinese tale of "Ranka", as retold by Lionel Giles in "A Gallery of Chinese Immortals", and the eighth-century Japanese tale "Urashima Tarō". The Hindu story of Muchukunda from the "Bhagavatam" also displays many similarities to the story of "Rip Van Winkle". The story has been