Top-Tier Alternatives In the Shadow of Molly O': Cult Guide

Dir: F. Richard Jones

Charles Murray gets caught by his wife flirting with a dancer.

Dir: F. Richard Jones

This short was a promo piece for Mack Sennett's Yankee Doodle in Berlin (1919), with many of the same characters in addition to the Mack Sennett Bathing Beauties.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Why Beaches Are Popular perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: F. Richard Jones

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Lloyd Ingraham

While walking along the street one day, Arthur P. Hampton, an impoverished young doctor, and his chums, Stub Masters and Johnny Stokes, are persuaded to part with their last remaining funds by tag day solicitor Mary Jane Smith, with whom the doctor promptly falls in love. Doc's friends then hit upon a get-rich-quick scheme. Knowing that his Uncle George has promised a large sum of money upon his nephew's marriage, they persuade Doc to send out fake wedding invitations naming Mary Jane as the blushing bride. Uncle George, elated at the good news, writes to Mary Jane's aunt, Angelica Burns, an old sweetheart, to invite Mary Jane and Angelica to be his guests on an ocean voyage. Meanwhile, Mary Jane pays a visit to the doctor's office and, upon seeing the wedding invitations, becomes so flustered that she trips and sprains her ankle. Doc comes to her rescue and then begs her to pose as his wife. She agrees, but at ship-side, Stub and Johnnie confess all to Uncle George, who flies into a rage until Doc announces that he and Mary Jane have chosen a wedding at sea.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Reilly's Wash Day perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Henry Edwards

A millionaire bets £25,000 that he can earn his own living for six months.

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.

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

Dir: F. Richard Jones

Behind enemy lines, Captain Bob White disguises himself as a woman in order to fool members of the German High Command, including the Kaiser himself.

Dir: F. Richard Jones

Mickey, an orphan who has been brought up in a mining settlement, is sent to New York to live with her aunt.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Charley Chase

A young married couple volunteer to take charge of several orphans after the asylum has burned down. Of course they find their hands full with their troublesome charges.

Dir: F. Richard Jones

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.