William Surrey Hart (December 6, 1864 - June 23, 1946) was an American silent film actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. A successful Shakespearian actor on Broadway who had worked with Margaret Mather and other stars, William S. Hart went on to become one of the first great stars of the motion picture western. SAND! Was Hart's first film for his own production company. In it he plays a railroad-station agent fired from his job because of a villain's crafty scheme. The villain is a major stockholder in the railroad company and covets Hart's girl. While working as a ranch hand, Hart discovers that his enemy is actually the leader of a gang of train robbers and he sets out to expose the truth. This exciting movie was President Woodrow Wilson's favorite William S. Hart western.