Rare Cinematic Gems Exploring the Legacy of Masken: Cult Guide

Dir: Ewald André Dupont

Fred Hopkins, a jeweler's assistant, replaces the pearl necklace Lord Reading bought as a wedding present with a worthless imitation. A hunt begins, which the flower seller Rahel and the jumping jack dealer David are able to end by finding the jewelry. Hopkins, who is convicted, then commits suicide for fear of being punished with poison.

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

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

Desperate because a wealthy man has reduced her father to thievery, Rhoda agrees to rob the poor box of the church, although she finds the act abhorrent. During the robbery, Rhoda's father is shot and dies in the priests's arms, seeking absolution, while the man who ruined him looks on. Penitent, the man appoints Rhoda as his representative to return the ill-gotten gains to those he has robbed. Rhoda enters the underworld as an angel of mercy, gaining the sobriquet of "The White Moll." After many thrilling escapades, she brings The Dangler, the leader of a gang of crooks, to justice, saves others from death and finally wins The Pug, the man of her choice.

Dir: Tom Mix

Wealthy Eastern railroad magnate Buchanan Atkinson sends his wayward son Timothy to Calm City, Arizona for safe keeping. Once there, Timothy falls in love with Alice Spencer whose father, the superintendent of the railroad in Calm City, is threatened with the loss of his position because of the great number of recent train robberies. To prove his love for Alice, Timothy decides to track down the bandits. Locating their hideout in a cave, he discovers that they are about to abduct Alice and escape across the Mexican border. Timothy rescues Alice, saves the loot and becomes the town hero. Accompanied by Alice, he returns East and is redeemed in his father's eyes.

Dir: Joseph A. Golden

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

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: J. Gordon Edwards

William Farnum is Drag Harlan, a tough cowboy vigilante. After learning about a gold mine from a dying man, he seeks his daughter (Jackie Saunders) as well as the gold. He falls in love with her, but the same gang that shot the old man is after the gold.

Dir: George D. Baker

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

A prison inmate obtains his release from prison in order to rescue his daughter from the clutches of her unscrupulous mother's plot to implicate the girl in a blackmail scheme.

Dir: Joseph Henabery

When respectable Lloyd Norwood becomes infatuated with moll Goldie Lewis, he falls into a life of debasement that results in his being accused of the murder of gangland henchman Joe the Swell. Norwood's wife Mary, convinced of her husband's innocence, determines to clear his name. Disguising herself as a vamp and infiltrating the underworld, Mary extracts a confession from the real murderer, Pussyfoot Connor, whom she dupes into believing that he sees the ghost of the murdered man. Later, to have witnesses to the story, Mary takes a midnight dinner with gang leader Jack Frost, arousing the jealousy of Connor, who enters and accuses Frost of instigating the murder. The police, alerted to the scheme, rush in and arrest the criminals. Finally, a phone call to the prison warden results in Norwood's release as a wiser man.

Dir: Scott R. Dunlap

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

When saloon owner Bill Lark detects that gambler Jim Pemberton is cheating, both men draw their guns. In order to prevent a double killing, it is agreed that the first shot should be decided by a draw from a deck of cards. Bill loses and Pemberton gives him three days to live. Meanwhile, Pemberton has persuaded Jess Jones to leave her husband and ride with him to his cabin in the hills where he is chief of a gang of bandits. Upon discovering his wife's absence, Scipio Jones follows Jess but is driven away by Pemberton's gang. After Jones fails, Bill retrieves Jess and brings her home. The next day, Bill is severely wounded when he drives a stagecoach through an attack by Pemberton's gang, but escapes to keep his date with the outlaw. Arriving to accept his fate of the last draw, Bill discovers that the outlaw has been killed by Scipio Jones. Provided with a new lease on life, the honest saloon keeper marries his sweetheart Little Casino.

Dir: Rudolf Meinert

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Rudolf Meinert

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.