Rare Cinematic Gems Exploring the Legacy of Ship of Souls: Cult Guide

Dir: Charles Miller

Wee Lady Betty rules the O'Reilly castle with a stern hand and a big heart until she learns that Roger, the O'Reilly heir, is coming to take possession of his estate. Unable to provide for her aged father, Betty conceives of a scheme. Feigning to leave the castle, she returns after dark with her father and installs him in the haunted chamber. The next day when Roger arrives with his mother, he is met by villagers angry at Betty's banishment. In the guise of a maid, Betty shows the O'Reillys through the castle, laying special emphasis on the haunted chamber. That night, while bringing food to her father, Betty hears Roger opening the chamber door. Attempting to frighten him away, she jumps behind a suit of armor, but he shoots at the "ghost." Meanwhile the villagers storm the castle and Roger goes to appease them. Betty saves Roger by commanding them to leave, and her future at the castle seems secure when she and Roger embrace.

Dir: Charles Miller

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

In a squalid mining town in West Virginia James Herron, a consumptive, has built a shack in the hope that the mountain air may prolong his life. With him dwells his daughter, Fay, whom he idolizes. Fay, who has been blind from her birth, has a wonderful imagination. Even the town and its sordid inhabitants become invested with romance and take their part in the stories of adventures that her father reads to her. While Fay goes about with security and fearlessness, which causes the ignorant to regard her with almost religious respect, her inner life is in sharp contrast. She has secret haunts, where she hides, and in thought recreates fairyland. Her favorite retreat is a cavern formed by an old abandoned tunnel which she peoples with knights and princesses, gnomes and fairy guardians. The one thing lacking is the Prince. And one day he comes. The "Prince" is a hunchback, "Crip" Halloran, the son of the village drunkard, who stumbles into Fay's imaginary fairyland, and is at once endowed by her with every heroic attribute. Finally Fay's father passes away and Fay becomes a drudge in the hut of ignorant aliens, and the meetings between her and the Prince are few and far between, and "Crip" is almost heartbroken. Jack Rockwell, son of a rich mine owner, comes to look after his property. Chance throws him in contact with Fay, and he becomes infatuated with her charm and idealism. He is admitted to the kingdom and gradually dethrones "Crip," to the hunchback's bitter distress. In love and pity for Fay's misfortune, Rockwell secures a great oculist and an operation opens Fay's eyes to the harsh world that her fancy idealized. She sees her two devoted admirers as they really are, and shrinks with horror from the poor misshapen "Crip." Broken-hearted, the hunchback seeks the old cavern and with a revolver ends a life that holds nothing but hopeless misery. Rockwell and Fay visit their old haunt, and with years of love and happiness opening before them discover the body of the poor hunchback, who had once for a few happy hours reigned as a Prince in a fairy realm of a girl's imagination.

Dir: Charles Miller

Widow Catherine Winship treasures the memory of her late husband so greatly that she has given up her life to the adoration of his memory, spending her days strewing flowers on his grave. Catherine's idealism is rudely shattered, however, when she discovers a package of love letters in a secret drawer in Winship's desk. Deciding to throw aside her widow's weeds, Catherine's next hurdle is to choose a spouse from the many male admirers who are pursuing her. Among her suitors are the sentimental bore Archibald Herndon and Morley Morgan, a determined young man. After many misadventures, Morley finally beats out Herndon and marries Catherine in an impromptu ceremony at a hunting lodge.

Dir: Charles Miller

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

Young Polly-Ann works in a small town inn as a maidservant. A troupe of actors comes to town and the innocent girl falls in love with one of its members. Howard Straightlane is sent to the small town by his father, to work as a schoolteacher in hopes of smartening up the young man from his wild ways. Howard soon meets Polly-Ann and saves her from the unscrupulous actor, meanwhile Howard's father has discovered Polly-Ann is his niece and sends for her. Another niece, greedily tries to force Polly to give her, all of her share of the family fortune. Upon hearing this the father insists that Polly return and since she and Howard have fallen in love, his son is now forgiven.

Dir: Charles Miller

While covering a sensational divorce case, reporter Janice Salsbury becomes disillusioned with the institution of marriage. Convinced that her impending marriage to fellow reporter Billy Williams will result in a loss of her freedom, Janice breaks her engagement and enters a period of Bohemian living. Her mentor, elderly Phillips Hartley, sadly watches as Janice's friends lose all respect for her and finally succeeds in effecting a reconciliation between Billy and Janice.

Dir: Charles Miller

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

In a prologue, Wilhelm II is born into opulence to continue the Hohenzollern dynasty of his father Frederick III, while Woodrow Wilson is born into the modest manse of his father, a Presbyterian reverend who tells his wife that the boy must be brought up "in the fear of the Lord." Conrad Le Brett from Alsace-Lorraine is forced to fight for Germany because his land has been conquered. Conrad, seeing other soldiers take girls into a church to rape them, kills one who murders a baby, and is then shot and taken to a Brussels hospital run by famous nurse Edith Cavell. He and his American nurse, Amy Gordon, fall in love. After Cavell helps Amy escape the pursuance of General von Bissing, the German governor, von Bissing has Lieutenant Ober execute Cavell. Learning of the Kaiser's order that all unmarried women be given to soldiers so they can bear sons for the army, Ober returns to Alsace-Lorraine, where he earlier insulted Conrad's sister Vilma. Ober kills Conrad's grandfather and rapes Vilma. Conrad honors her dying request that he go to America and defend Alsace-Lorraine's reputation. He marries Amy and convinces President Woodrow Wilson that Alsatians should be allowed to enlist. Fighting with the "doughboys," Conrad kills Ober, and after the armistice, returns to Amy.

Dir: Charles Miller

John Adams is working his way through college. Jane is the little slavey in his boarding house. John at first has no idea of falling in love with Jane, but she is completely gone on him from the beginning. In fact, he has his eyes on Ethelda Rathbone, a young college girl. There came a time when John wanted to attend a ball at which Ethelda was to be present, but he hadn't a dress suit. Jane chanced to become aware of this, and with her scanty savings rented him one. Of course she couldn't tell him she did that, but she pretends that it was left there by a former boarder. So he goes to the ball. But boys will be boys, and his classmates rip the coat up his back, and he is compelled to come home without having seen Ethelda at all. Jane takes the suit back to the dealer, unaware that it is ruined. When the dealer discovers it, he demands payment. There follows a scene in the street in which she is humiliated. It was then that old Frederick Verstner, the town photographer and a man of considerable means, came to the crowd. Hearing her pitiful story, he made good the amount to the dealer. Shortly after this, Jane went to Verstner's to have her picture taken that she might give it to John. A newspaper in New York was offering a prize for the most beautiful photograph of a college girl, and Verstner's was crowded with girls from the school. Verstner took a picture of Jane, and, by loosening out her tresses and placing something filmy about her shoulders, he made her look beautiful. Through a course of circumstances, and without Jane's knowledge, this photograph is sent along with the others to the paper. And it wins the prize. Jane is, of course, as much surprised as the rest. And so is John. Verstner adopts the girl, educates her and makes her the most popular girl in the place. And then comes a great awakening for John.

Dir: Charles Miller

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

Janet sets out to find her circus ringleader father, who her mother abandoned believing him to be unfaithful. Along the way, Janet and her friend Peter join Colonel Simmonds's circus, she as a trick horse rider and he as a clown, but Janet cannot help but wonder why she finds Simmonds so familiar.

Dir: Charles Miller

Vera Souroff, a young Russian girl, is seized on the street and dragged into a room where three officers of the Czar's guard have been dining. The lights are turned out and the girl is outraged. The crime is brought to the attention of the Czar. Vera cannot tell which of the three officers is the guilty man. The Czar orders Count Nicho, the eldest of the three officers, to marry the girl, and makes them all turn over their fortunes to her. They are then sent to prison. The revolution breaks out. Vera saves her husband at the risk of her own life, as she wishes to wring from him the name of the man that violated her. Nicho, now honestly in love with his wife, admits that he was her assaulter, and the couple clasp each other in a fervent embrace.

Dir: Charles Miller

When a distant Irish relative dies, a young American travels to Ireland to obtain his inheritance. He gets far more than he bargained for when a beautiful Irish colleen catches his eye.