Author Archive: Retro

Animated industrial short

Animated educational short

“Wild Bill” Gray is a renegade and a wife-beater. He is about to start on some expedition of crime and his wife implores him to stay at home. She receives a beating for her trouble. Jim, a cowboy, rides past the shack, hears Mrs. Gray’s screams and interferes, and takes Mrs. Gray over to his friend, the postmaster, so that she may have a good home. “Wild Bill” plans vengeance. Paxton, the postmaster, starts for the station with money and gold, and is accompanied a short way by Jim. Gray sneaks after them. After going with Paxton a short distance, Jim takes a turn in the road and Paxton rides on alone. Gray closes up on the postmaster, gets the drop on him, but Paxton is quick and there’s a hand-to-hand struggle. Bill, however, worsts Paxton, and finally sends him over a precipice. But in falling, Paxton falls into a tree and thus is saved [...]

It’s wash day. Mabel works hard while her husband sleeps in. Next door, Fatty works hard while his wife bosses him about and dresses up to go out. The two neighbors meet outside: Fatty offers to let Mabel use his wringer. Her husband shows up just as her skirt gets caught in the wringer, and he’s jealous. So is Fatty’s wife when she hears the arguing. Later that day, both couples take a stroll, and, through a series of misadventures and innocently swapped purses, Mabel and Fatty’s friendship blossoms, their spouses again think they have cause to be jealous, and the cops join the chaos.

Controversial story about a light-skinned black woman whose resentment of her heritage leads to tragedy. Dir. Anthony Mann.

A WWI fighter pilot returns to his former job as a railroad detective, and must recover a satchel filled with $25,000 of stolen payroll, locate a missing employee, and capture the gang of thieves responsible.