Essential Cult Cinema Mirroring the Impact of The Almighty Dollar: Cult Guide

Dir: Robert Thornby

According to old Mr. Barry's will, if his son Jim fails to marry, the vast Barry estate will revert to the O'Maras. When one night Jim, an irresponsible drunk, falls down the stairs and is given until morning to live, Mrs. Barry, in order to protect the property from the O'Maras, pleads with Molly Shawn to marry her son. Molly, although in love with Barney Malone, agrees out of a sense of indebtedness to the Barry family, and the two are married. Much to everyone's surprise, Jim recovers and Molly pines for her sweetheart Barney until it is discovered that the priest who performed the ceremony was really a criminal who, to escape the law, had disguised himself in priests' robes. Overjoyed, Molly is disentangled and now free to marry Barney, the man she loves.

Dir: Robert Thornby

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

Mazie-Rosie Carden, a waif who pays her board by selling papers on the street, saves the life of starving musician Deal Hendrie by giving him her cherished "lucky dime." Meanwhile, her brother Ben, employed as a weigh-master by the West Coal Company, has been discharged on a trumped-up accusation by the company's manager, Samuel Winter, of falsifying weights. Later, West finds proof of Winter's false records, summons him to the house and, after a fight, is killed by his employee. Ben, induced by Mazie to go to West and say that he has been falsely accused, arrives in time to see Winter robbing the body of his employer and taking Mazie's dime, which Hendrie had lost. Winter attacks Ben, knocks him unconscious and escapes, but is seen by Mazie. The next Sunday, while at the church where Hendrie is employed as an organist, Mazie sees Winter contributing the lucky dime and accuses him of murder before the whole congregation. Mazie's accusation is corroborated by her brother Ben, who has regained consciousness to testify against Winter, and all ends happily when Hendrie proposes to Mazie.

Dir: Robert Thornby

Rose, a pretty young country girl,gets engaged to Steve, a handsome young lumberman whom she loves, but Claude, a city slicker who wants Rose, cons her into believing that Steve's obsessive love for her is ruining his life and that she should leave him for his own good. Steve, however, mistakenly thinks that Rose and Claude are having an affair, and breaks off the engagement. Complications ensue.

Dir: Robert Thornby

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

Mary Willard takes over her father's railroad after his death. Her major competitor is a ruthless crook named Harvey Judson. She arranges for Judson to be kidnapped and taken to an isolated spot deep in the forest and turned loose to fend for himself. She accompanies the kidnappers to the wild and Judson, not knowing who she is, begins to fall in love with her. Complications ensue.

Dir: Robert Thornby

An Englishman who has made his fortune in America decides to return to England. He takes his daughter Octavia to pay a visit to her relatives, especially Miss Belinda Bassett, an aunt whom she has never seen. An important business cable calls the father to America, and Octavia goes on alone to her aunt. The aunt's home, Slowbridge, is a sleepy little English village whose snobbish small-town aristocracy is headed by pompous Lady Theobald, who has everyone under her thumb, including Miss Bassett and her own granddaughter Lucia, a sweet, shy English girl. Octavia has the effect of a dynamite bomb in Slowbridge. Her dresses, her breezy ways, her unconventional conduct, all infuriate Lady Theobald, and at first terrify her aunt. Little by little, however, Octavia becomes a general favorite. She enjoys engineering a love affair between bashful Lucia and a fine young man who has no social standing in Slowbridge just because he is a mere manufacturer and not a "gentleman of leisure." The worst blow to Lady Theobald comes when her nephew Captain Barold becomes exceedingly fond of Octavia. His manner of demonstrating his affection does not please Octavia; he seems to feel that he is doing her a tremendous favor in bestowing his affection upon her. She decides to teach him a lesson. Lady Theobald wants Captain Barold to marry her niece Lucia, who is actually in love with the manufacturer. Lady Theobald is horrified when she sees Octavia snatching this wonderful catch away from Lucia. Just when Slowbridge is about to blow up with agitation, Captain Barold puts his fortune to the test. He asks Octavia to marry him. She refuses, thereby succeeding in injuring his bump of conceit. Octavia's father arrives with the news that he is more than a millionaire; that his mining stock has recently doubled in value. With him comes Jack Belsays, an energetic American youth who is a type as foreign to Slowbridge as Octavia. What is the surprise of the small township to learn that Octavia has been engaged to Jack all the time, and never at all anxious to fasten herself upon English small town society or to intrude into their affairs. A marriage ceremony follows in Miss Bassett's little villa with young Poppleton, the curate officiating. Through Octavia's good offices, another wedding follows later, that of Lucia and the young manufacturer, whom even Lady Theobald has come to realize is fully worthy of respect, and of the hand of her granddaughter Lucia.

Dir: Robert Thornby

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

Susie is the daughter of a very good bricklayer. The lad who loves her is a very rich lad, as all lads should be, but, alas are not. To win her, he poses as a hod-carrier, certainly an unromantic disguise for a wooer. His mother has social aspirations for him, with Newport as a base of action, but what cares he? He loves the bricklayer's daughter. Is it not simple? It is. Simple, but sweet. Later Susie gets rich by means of a legacy, and the bricklayer's family moves into opulent quarters. Then sweet Susie is elegantly-gowned, but no happier. What are mere dollars to sweet Susie? The main situation in which Susie figures is one of finance. Seeing that dollars mean unhappiness, she plans to induce her father to invest in the stock market and to let him believe that he has lost all. This scheme succeeds in bringing the picture to its ideal end, and Susie marries the lad who posed as the hod-carrier. - Picture Play Magazine 1917.

Dir: Robert Thornby

Newt Spooner's determination to kill Henry Falkins. who has denounced Newt and sent him to prison, grows deeper rooted with the years. It seems that the red-branded hatred in his mind has seared its impression upon every fiber of his being. And then Minerva Rawlins enters his life. The change in Newt's nature does not come in a flash. Despite the influence of the girl he loves, he still cherishes his hatred. Fate throws the two men together in the Philippines. Amidst battle and bloodshed the vision of Minerva follows Newt. His opportunity to slay Henry Falkins occurs, but the influence of Minerva reaching out even across miles of salt ocean, stays his hand at the eleventh hour. How Newt's final stage on the upward path he has set himself to follow is reached, is depicted dramatically. The last barriers with which Newt has steeled his dark hatred are swept away and a woman's power saves him from himself and the vengeance of the law.

Dir: Robert Thornby

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

Vaudeville artist LaBelle Geraldine and her dancing partner Freddie Montgomery are stranded in Arizona when their troupe breaks up. In order to raise money, Geraldine orders Freddie to impersonate masked bandit Black Jim so that she may turn him in and collect the $2,000 reward. When the real Black Jim holds up her coach, Geraldine, believing that he is Freddie, boldly pulls out her gun, and the bandit shoots her in the wrist and takes her to his cabin. Later Freddie is captured too, but when members of the gang insult Geraldine, he refuses to protect her. Gradually Black Jim falls in love with her, and she comes to admire him so deeply that instead of seizing a chance to escape one night, she returns to warn him of the gang's plot to kill him. Together they hold the gang off until their cabin is set on fire. Dashing through the flames, they leap onto their horses and escape to safety.

Dir: Robert Thornby

Mining engineer Paul Grayson writes a play that is sent to theatrical producer McKay Hedden, who decides that it is so good it is worth stealing. Hedden makes a copy and then returns the original with a note that it is worthless. At Hanleytown Harbor on the New England coast, Hedden meets Silver Sands, the daughter of an old sea captain, and decides to star her in the play. Paul also visits the harbor and falls in love with Silver. Hedden begins rehearsals with Silver in New York, then a drama critic notifies his friend Paul of the treachery. Paul arrives in New York and rescues Silver from Hedden's advances. Hedden acknowledges Paul as author of the play which is a success with Silver in the leading role.

Dir: Robert Thornby

Young Celeste Janvier ( Bessie Love ) lives in an East Side tenement with her immigrant grandfather, a humanitarian and socialist. Like her kindly grandfather, Celeste also has a kindhearted soul, and her friendly nature has earned her the nickname, " the little sister of everybody." When several unpleasant men try to court her, Celeste turns them down. Meanwhile, Hugh Tavers Jr., ( George Fisher ) whose father owns a factory, has died suddenly. The young Tavers poses as a laborer in order to understand why the workers want to strike. He meets and falls in love with Celeste, who works at the factory, and he secures a better job for her. Celeste learns that anarchist Ivan Marask ( Hector Sarno ) plans to kill Travers, she hurries to warn her employer and is shocked to learn that he is the poor laborer whom she loves. Marask comes to respect Travers, who agrees to improve working conditions for the factory workers, and finds lasting contentment with the lovely Celeste.