The Definitive Watchlist Seeking the Same Brilliance as Hickville t...

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

The film tells the story of a noble but poor woman who arrives at Boston in the 17th century. There she marries an old but quite rich doctor but does not become happy.

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

Hezekiah Dill is a meek clerk in a store in a small town. One day a pair of criminals robs the store safe, but Hezekiah manages to lock them in the safe, and begins to pick up their intended loot. He suddenly realizes that all this money would enable him to become the "Broadway Sport" he's always wanted to be, so he goes for it. Complications ensue.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Broadway Sport perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

Three New York families are introduced: wealthy Fred Hartley and his wife, who, feeling neglected, encourages the attentions of debonair J. Douglas Kerr, the middle-class Moore family, consisting of mother, daughter, and son Jimmie who supports them, and the Simons, an East Side Jewish family. When America enters the war, Hartley, Jimmie, and Davy Simon enlist. When Jimmy says goodbye to his sweetheart Becky, one of Davy's three sisters, her father refuses to consider him as a future son-in-law. Kerr sends Mrs. Hartley a cablegram reporting Hartley's death in the war. She puts off responding to Kerr's proposal, and after the armistice, Hartley finds her trying to break free from Kerr's embrace. When Kerr hastily exits, an irate butler grabs his trousers. Mr. Simon accepts Jimmie as Becky's fiancé, and Kerr is last seen squatting so that his overcoat covers his backside.

Dir: Reggie Morris

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Other Man's Wife perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

Finding that marriage conflicts with his carefree life, Teddy Brant, a dissolute man-about-town, fakes his own suicide, thus freeing Rose, his self-sacrificing wife, and his baby daughter Helen from life with an irresponsible drunk. Learning of her husband's alleged death, Rose remarries. Years later, Teddy, now a hopeless derelict, wanders the country until, unable to find a place to sleep one night, he strays into the waiting room of a train station. Here he sees a young girl being accosted by an elderly gentleman who entices her home. Teddy thinks nothing of the incident until he finds a purse lying on the seat and learns that the girl is his daughter Helen. Teddy hastens after them and in the ensuing fight, strangles Helen's assailant and then flees. Helen is arrested for the murder, but is acquitted when Teddy staggers into the police station and confesses to the crime, takes his life in his cell.

Dir: Unknown Director

The Judge needs a present for his wife's birthday, so Harry suggests a new corset. They go to the shop, but he's so embarrassed to ask the saleslady he hides in a phone booth.Harry goes in, but finds a GUY wearing one, and runs out.They both dress as women to get back in, but Mrs. Rummy gets there and chases him out.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Striking Models perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

After Mary Page marries Fred Walton, she soon discovers that he is a womanizer. She tries to ignore Fred's affairs but, refuses to file for divorce even when Platt Sinclair, her husband's lawyer, urges her to do so. Mary does not realize that Sinclair is actually helping Fred, who is in love with his current mistress, Helen Lee, and wants to marry her. To escape her misery, Mary organizes a settlement house in the slums and there meets reporter Eric Mann, with whom she becomes very close. One night, as Sinclair goes to Mary's house to try to convince her to change her mind, he sees Eric through the window and informs Fred that she is seeing another man. Fred wants to sue Mary for divorce, but when Eric threatens Sinclair with disbarment, the suit is dropped. One night, Mary interrupts Fred during his evening with Helen on the same night that Jimmy Hope, a burglar, is robbing their house. The result of the night's activities are the death of Fred and the ultimate arrest of the real murderer who was obsessed with Hope.

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

Celeste Hardin wants to set up her brother Henry, a confirmed bachelor, with her college friend Henrietta Downs, believing that she wold be a good wife for him. Henry and Henrietta discover Celeste's scheme and decide to play a trick on her--Henrietta will pose as Myra Haynes, an escaped lunatic and pretend to be in love with Henry. However, the real Myra Haynes attends a political rally, at which Henry declares his intention to run for mayor, and she becomes convinced that he is her long-lost lover, also named Henry. Complications ensue.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Derelict perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Carl Harbaugh

Sarah Maitland is consumed by two interests, managing her steel mill and raising her children, Blair and Nannie, to be honest and caring. As a result, she is shocked when Blair seduces Elizabeth Ferguson away from his best friend, Doctor David Ritchie, and marries her. Elizabeth soon realizes her mistake and begs David to take her back, but his mother Helena, calling upon personal experience, warns the couple against an extra-marital affair. Then, Sarah is injured in a mill accident and doctors predict that she will die in a few hours. David manages to save her, however, and when Blair comes to see her, he vows to divorce Elizabeth so that she can marry the man she really loves.

Dir: Richard Smith

Two female candidates for Chief of Police live across the hall from each other, and their political rivalry follows them home, leading to plenty of hi-jinks.