The Auteur's Selection In the Shadow of Play Ball: Cult Guide

Dir: Bud Fisher

Mutt and Jeff go on strike and make their own film.

Dir: Unknown Director

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

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

Dir: Mason N. Litson

Edgar and his chum try to amass a fortune in one day by cornering the fan market on a hot afternoon when the circus comes to the small town where they are spending their vacation.

Dir: Henry Edwards

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

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Get-Rich-Quick Edgar perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Malcolm St. Clair

A dancing instructor gets involved with a newly rich family.

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.

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: Edgar Jones

A mail-order bride arrives at a Maine lumber camp but doesn't like her prospective husband.

Dir: Ralph Ince

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Don't Weaken! perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Maurice Campbell

Carver Endicott, a young sophisticate, is rejected by his fiancée for being too foppish and dull. When she feigns an interest in his father, Carver attempts to disgrace his family name by working as a farmhand and later as a busboy in a hotel. However, the newspapers only praise him for his self-sacrificing principles; and finding that he cannot bring shame to the family through menial labor, he takes up with a notorious actress. But when this maneuver also fails, he returns to his former fiancée, who has no further complaint about his being an inexperienced dullard.

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.