Masterpiece Selection that Capture the Essence of Rags: Cult Guide

Dir: James Kirkwood

Young Dolly Lane has committed herself to becoming a star on the stage, but when she meets handsome and wealthy farmer Steve Hunter, she falls in love and marries him. Unfortunately, Steve soon loses his fortune and the couple is forced to move in with a friend, Teddy Harrington. Not long afterwards Steve's rich uncle dies, leaving him wealthy, but on that same day Dolly is asked to take the place of a stage star who has taken ill. She does and becomes the toast of Broadway, but now Steve wants her to return with him to the West and become a farmer's wife. She relents, but soon becomes bored with that role and longs to return to the stage.

Dir: James Kirkwood

"Little Pal" is the daughter of a saloon keeper in a rough Alaskan gold rush town. During a game of dice, he loses his daughter to the brutal "Black Brand". A fight ensues and her father is killed, Little Pal flees and seeks refuge with John, an Easterner who has come to Alaska to mine. When he falls ill, the lovestruck Little Pal nurses him back to health with the help of her loyal friend, Cultus. Little Pal is heartbroken with the arrival of John's wife, and when she learns he will die if he remains in the harsh climate, Little Pal and Cultus steal gold dust from a rival claim in order to provide John with money. Meanwhile, Black Brand who is suspected of the crime is shot. As John and his wife leave Alaska, a despondent Little Pal finds comfort in Cultus' love.

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

Dir: James Kirkwood

Fanchon, a wild young girl, resides in a forest with her unconventional grandmother accused of witchcraft by villagers.

Dir: James Kirkwood

Sylvia is the niece of a man who leaves a fortune for her. He leaves it in the hands of his attorney, who is supporting an aspiring wife and daughter. Sylvia goes to the lawyer's home and is looked upon as an intruder. The lawyer's son sets out on a road of dissipation and soon becomes a devotee of gay life. He is saved just in time by the gentle influence of Sylvia and, upon discovering that his father is using all of the girl's fortune, he makes him give her the money. The family is horror-stricken at the thought of losing their fortune. They ask Sylvia's forgiveness for their treatment of her and she insists upon sharing her fortune with them. She also tells Arnold, the son, that his love is reciprocated.

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

Dir: James Kirkwood

When a young girl who has grown up as a music hall entertainer is brought to live in a stodgy New England town, the quiet town life is changed forever.

Dir: James Kirkwood

Suffering from aphasia after being conked on the head, a man is coerced into robbing his fiancée's home.

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

Dir: James Kirkwood

A notorious gambler and card cheat, George Forrester, rules a little western town with an iron hand. The men of the town plot to catch him cheating and do, but his men save him from danger. In the same town lives Gerald Austen, or Aitkens, who had left his tyrannical father in the east and made good in the west. Later, Forrester and his men rob a payroll messenger for Austen's enterprise. Forrester is apprehended and is about to be hung when Austen saves his life. The man has just been scribbling a message to his daughter who lives in the east and who believes her father a prosperous mine operator. On being saved he tears the card in two and gives half to Austen, saying that if he ever needs a friend that will be his passport. Forrester then returns east, rejoins his daughter and assumes his real name of Marrable. Austen also goes east under his real name of Aitkens and the men later meet but do not recognize each other. Austen falls in love with Margaret Marrable. Marrable's happiness, however, is curtailed by the arrival of his former western associates who threaten to expose his identity if he does not aid them in robbing Austen's father of a shipment of English bonds. He is forced to consent. The gang rents offices opposite those of Austen and await the day of shipment, July 4. Fortune plays into their hands when the boy visits his father to obtain consent for marriage to Margaret. The father refuses and a stormy quarrel ensues, which employees overhear. The son leaves his walking stick. The conspirators enter the office. In order to quiet the elder Austen they hit him over the head with the stick. The blow kills him. The boy returns to make up, finds the door locked and leaves. The others then escape, taking the key with them. Later, the son overhears the gang dividing the spoils. He makes his presence known. They tell him that his death is inevitable. He asks Marrable to take a card out of his pocketbook. Marrable finds it. It is the fatal card. He now knows that Margaret's fiancé is the man who saved his life. In gratitude he takes upon himself responsibility for the crime and makes a supreme sacrifice, paving the way for the lovers' ultimate happiness.

Dir: James Kirkwood

A young girl, Anemone (Mary Pickford), who lives with her Aunt (Ida Waterman) is abducted by a crude family of Virginia mountain moonshiners. A fight between two of the young male relatives decides who will marry the girl. Lancer (James Kirkwood) is the winner and marries Anemone against her will. She is reunited some time later with her Aunt, but when she learns Lancer is in dire trouble she returns and stays by his side, realizing she had always been in love with him.

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

Dir: James Kirkwood

Dulcie's once-aristocratic Southern family has fallen upon hard times, so her Aunt Netta decides to take her to California in search of a millionaire husband. While Dulcie pines for Harry, her sweetheart back home, Netta triumphantly arranges an engagement with a wealthy suitor. On her wedding day, preparing to sacrifice herself for her family, Dulcie discovers that her fiance's millions actually belong to other people when he is arrested at the altar on a bank robbing charge. Meanwhile, Harry, who has come West to get Dulcie back, arrives at the wedding just as the police interrupt it. He volunteers to take the arrested fiance's place, and Dulcie accepts his offer instantly.

Dir: James Kirkwood

David Remon loves barmaid Dulcie, not by choice but by force of circumstances, and attempts to persuade her to marry him rather than submit to a life of drudgery. But Dulcie is thoroughly independent and prefers to earn her own living. Life at the inn, however, soon becomes irksome to Dulcie, who grows so tired of it that she is ready to accept the first wealthy man who proposes to her. A charity auction is held at the inn, to help the family of a poor man and Dulcie auctions off a kiss. David, bent upon preventing anyone from kissing her in public bids every cent he has in the effort to gain the prize himself. But Sir Brice, a bon vivant, doubles his offering and adds his hand in the bargain. Dulcie accepts the proposal, but soon finds that her husband, when under the influence of liquor, is a very ugly tempered man. As the years drag on, Sir Brice becomes more and more intolerable, until at last he openly humiliates Dulcie and insults her guests at a reception. He demands that someone gamble with him, and grows abusive when they refuse. Finally, David, who has remained faithful to Dulcie through all the years, in a desperate game, stakes his entire fortune against Dulcie herself. Sir Brice is penniless, having squandered his fortune, and he gladly offers his wife as the prize. After a nerve-wracking battle of wits, David wins. It is not before Dulcie, thoroughly disillusioned, accepts the verdict of the god of chance and finds a new happiness with the man whose love has remained constant.