Editor's Top Picks Following the Footsteps of Rouge and Riches: Cul...

Dir: Alexander Butler

In Alberta, Canada, a Cornish emigrant unmasks a rustler posing as the girl's "blind" father.

Dir: Harry L. Franklin

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

John Maddox, Sr., who directs the Equity Trust Company with James Buckley, sends Henry Jenkins to steal a note of security from Buckley's safe, and in the struggle that ensues between Buckley and the burglar, the former is killed. Maddox claims that Buckley, failing in his scheme to steal from the company, committed suicide, and John Maddox, Jr., knowing that Buckley's daughter Beatrice is now penniless, breaks his engagement with her. Forced to earn her own living, Beatrice opens a candy factory, and with the help of her loyal friend, Robert Howard, the business becomes so successful that it presents a threat to Maddox's candy company. Maddox sends Jenkins to instigate a strike at Beatrice's factory, but when he is mortally wounded in a fight, he confesses everything. With her father's honor restored and her business flourishing, Beatrice happily agrees to marry Robert.

Dir: Maurice Elvey

A lady marries a horse trainer but withholds herself until her crippled brother is cured.

Dir: Bruno Ziener

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

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Edgar Jones

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

Dir: Robert N. Bradbury

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Eva, wo bist du? perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A simple country girl, brutally mistreated by her stepfather, awakens first the sympathy, then the love, of The Boy. The Spider, who lusts after The Girl, makes a bargain with the stepfather and takes her to the city where, kept prisoner, she is soon broken in health and spirit. Cast out and near death, she is taken in by The Boy. Following the demise of The Spider, The Boy takes her to church, where he prays, and after many hours she is restored to health.

Dir: Harry L. Franklin

Because her mother wishes it, Kate Leigh marries Basil Kildare, the wealthy owner of a Southern plantation called Storm. His servant Mahaly, the mother of his illegitimate son, protests his infidelity so bitterly that Basil takes the child away from her. Kate soon finds that her new husband is a coarse and brutal alcoholic and seeks comfort in the friendship of Dr. Jacques Benoix and his mother. When Basil obtains a note written from his wife to Jacques, he finds the doctor and engages him in a brutal fight. After Basil is found dead, Jacques is sentenced to life in prison, but some years later, owing to Kate's unceasing efforts on his behalf, he is granted a pardon. On her deathbed, Mahaly confesses that she killed Basil, leaving Kate and Jacques to begin a new life together.

Dir: Harley Knoles

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

Jim McDonald, the foreman of a shipbuilding plant and head of the labor union, strives to combat the anarchistic propaganda being put forth by Klimoff, the leader of a Bolshevik gang whose goal is to disrupt the country with strikes and anarchy. Despite McDonald's efforts, a strike is called, resulting in chaos. McDonald's child is knocked down by runaway horses abandoned by their striking driver, and dies. Mob scenes take place in America, as well as in Russia. Eventually, the unrest is quelled with an armistice called between Capital and Labor for a year, during which time wages are to be increased to reflect the cost of living, and leaders are to work out a common plan for their mutual advantage. The strikers now realize that they have been pawns of the Bolsheviks and call off the strike, agreeing to the plan.

Dir: Harry L. Franklin

Twins Nelson and J. Barrington Drake return home for the celebration of their parents' 50th wedding anniversary. Barrington is a wealthy oilman, but Nelson is a pastor in a small rural church, who is struggling to increase his ever-shrinking flock, Barrington tells him that his problem could be solved with the right type of salesmanship, and proceeds to map out a plan to do just that. However, a case of mistaken identity--and a scheme by two of the church's deacons to take over all of the church property--throws a wrench into his plans.

Dir: Harry L. Franklin

Socialite Thomas Wentworth Duncan reunites with his former lover, Sally Reeves, after a trustee absconds with his fortune. Realizing he cannot afford to support Sally in the manner to which she is accustomed, Duncan impulsively accepts an offer of $250,000, then discovers that he has sold his heart to Dr. Spleen, a surgeon who plans to exchange the organ with that of Sally's uncle, Judah P. Corpus, believing it will restore the old man's youth. Duncan learns that the surgery has only been attempted twice before with a pair of dogs, neither of which survived. He tries to renege on the deal, but a huge attendant prevents him from leaving the doctor's island sanitarium. Spleen dies from excitement before he can begin the operation, leaving Duncan unscathed with his newfound wealth. Duncan and Sally marry, while Uncle Judah believes the operation to have been a success.