Author Archive: Retro

The simple-minded son of a rich financier must find his own way in the world.

Beau Nash is a “gentleman crook” who headquarters his gang of jewel thieves in a run-down boardinghouse. When one of his gang, Mike, gets arrested, his sister Claire–aka “Lady Byron”–swears to get revenge. The gang frames Donald, the best friend of the detective who arrested Mike, for a jewelry store robbery. The detective gives Donald–and his new love, Claire–a short time to find the thieves and clear his name before he takes him in.

Mrs. Wiggs, a loving mother whose husband has abandoned her, supports her many children and lives in hope of her husband’s return.

Getting Mary Married was tailor-made to the talents of perky Marion Davies. The stepchild (Davies) of a millionaire is required by the conditions of a will to live with the family of her step-uncle, who makes life hell for the poor girl. She can’t even find solace in romance, since she’ll lose her legacy should she ever marry. At last deciding that she cares less for money than for happiness, our heroine defiantly weds. The upshot: the girl ends up as rich as Croesus, while her wicked uncle finds himself broke at fadeout time. The legend that all of Marion Davies’ films were fiascoes doesn’t stand up to such evidence as Getting Mary Married, which in addition to the sprightly performance of the star, boasts an excellent script by Anita Loos and John Emerson, and topnotch direction by the ever-reliable Allan Dwan.

When Empress Catherine of France launches an attack on French Protestants known as Huguenots, the Comte de la Roche saves the life of his enemy, the Huguenot Rupert de Vrieac, by making him an indentured servant in his castle. Rupert falls in love with Yolande, the count’s sister, and finds that his rival for the fair Yolande’s hand is none other than the despicable Duc de Tours, a notorious torturer of Huguenots.

A gambler decides to play one last game before he turns over a new leaf. However, during the game one of the players accuses him of cheating. Suddenly the lights go out, shots are fired and when the lights come back on, one of the players is dead. The gambler is accused of the killing. He didn’t do it, but has to find out who did, and why he was framed for it.

Immigrant child’s mother dies on the boat ride to America, and facing deportation, the orphan flees Ellis Island, taking up with a crusty old sailor.

In this comedy, Constance Talmadge plays Babs, a girl who is thrown out of boarding school because she’s more interested in studying romance than she is in studying books. The object of her affections is Jim Winthrop (John Halliday), but before they can wed, he has to find suitable mates for his two plain sisters, Dorcas (Natalie Talmadge, Constance’s real-life sister) and Matilda (Fanny Bourke) — and Winthrop’s elderly aunt, too. To speed things up, Babs takes it upon herself to find them all men. This picture was adapted from a Mary Roberts Rhineheart story by scenarist Anita Loos.

Roy Somerville has turned out a rather interesting story that will hold the interest of the majority of audiences as produced by the Triangle-Fine Arts Company. It is a five-reel feature and was produced under the direction of C.M. and S.S. Franklin, with Norma Talmadge as the star. Cora (Norma Talmadge) is wedded to Arthur Vincent (Eugene Pallette) and there are two children. Vincent is the son of the president of a bank and is devoting the greater part of his time to Jane Courtenay, a cabaret dancer, who is willing to have him devote his time to her as long as he is a good provider. The wife, who has been sadly neglected, turns to her sister, who is wedded to Fred Brown, a young detective. His brother Charles, who works in the elder Vincent’s bank as a cashier, lives with them. He was Cora’s first love and has never quite recovered from the [...]