Underground Favorites Mirroring the Impact of The Big Show: Cult Guide

Dir: William Campbell

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: William Campbell

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

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: William Campbell

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: William Campbell

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of You'll Be S'prised perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

An expedition enters an area of the Congo jungle to investigate reports of a gorilla-worshipping tribe. After many dangerous adventures, they come upon the tribe they sought, only to watch as a virgin is sacrificed to a huge gorilla, who takes her away. The expedition follows the gorilla in an attempt to save the woman.

Dir: William Campbell

An uncle is cheated out of a heritage by his baby nephew. He and his conspirators plot to finish off the interloper.

Dir: William Campbell

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

A father's accumulated funds for the payment of his mortgage vanish just previous to the landlord's collection call. The two desperadoes that steal the wealth are trailed by Snooky, and the funds finally are retrieved and the home saved.

Dir: William Campbell

In Babyland the babies are made of clay and baked in ovens until done. When they are overdone they come out brown, and when they are burnt, as it sometimes happens when the elves play a little game of African golf, then the babies come out Black. But they all seem just as happy regardless of the shade of their skin. The master of the factory keeps a stock room and in each pigeon hole he has a child. They are classified, indexed, and ready for delivery, so that when a little boy asks his mother for a brother he can get permission to call up on the 'phone and the master will deliver by stork. But this time the stork makes a mistake and picks a Black one instead of a white, which causes much trouble. The master himself rides a high-wheel bike through the air, overtakes the stork, and sees that the right baby is delivered.

Dir: William Campbell

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Four Times Foiled perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

The town of Beer Bottle Bend is so tough that the babies chew tobacco. It is run in a high, wide, and handsome manner by the owner of Riley's Saloon. There is a little church in the town that was built in haste many years ago when there happened to be a lull in the festivities; it has been securely boarded up for years. Mr. Riley intended that it should remain so for his Sunday business was booming. A traveling evangelist who learned his profession as a circus performer arrives in the town with Charles Bullephant, a peevish elephant; Joe Martin, a highly-cultured orang-outang; and Buster, a famous trained horse. With help from his friends he sets out to make Beer Bottle Bend a church-going community. Riley realizes that he has strong competition and tries to upset the sky pilot's plans by having his favorite dancing girl vamp him. The preacher, who is somewhat of an athlete, takes the toughest of the bar-beetles down the line for a sound thrashing and begins work with his animals. Charley Bullephant stampedes them into the church. Joe Martin dashes around and drags in delinquents. Buster hauls off and flattens out the unruly with his last two feet. Within a fortnight Beer Bottle Bend enjoys a change of heart. On Sunday morning the little church is filled to the brim. The minister hands out large slices of the gospel, the animals stand by for more service, and right again triumphs over might.

Dir: William Campbell

This comedy short is about two broken families on different sides of the track. A little girl played by three-year old Doreen Turner has a caretaker played by Pal the Dog, and a secondary caregiver, her grandmother. Pal wakes her up, taking her from her bed to the downstairs kitchen in hopes of starting her day with a full breakfast. Meanwhile, Mr. Race (Jack Cooper) is living in a freight train car depending on the 8A train to wake him up along with his nephew (Lawrence Licalzi) and their pet monkey (played by Joe the Monkey). A comic scene has Race taking a shower using the steam engine water trough at the water stop. The makeshift wall obscuring his shower is blown over revealing him fully clothed man with an umbrella as he waits for the proper water temperature. Meanwhile, Jimmy has gone to forage for food and try to get some work for needed money. Fate brings the upper and lower class together when the girl's baby buggy with her rag doll and morning bottle of milk are intercepted by a hungry baby goat. The goat steals the bottle of milk and in the process the carriage with doll rolls down a steep hill. Enter Jimmy who saves the day by stopping the carriage and returning the doll. Jimmy is repaid by the grandmother allowing him to assist with the laundry. Yet more reveal humor transpires as Jimmy is given fresh clothes and he tries them on behind sheets hanging from the clothesline. As the dog and monkey play around the clothesline, the sheets move revealing Jimmy in underwear and other garments to the delight of the young girl. But things take a turn when Joe steals the rag doll and Pal, trying to retrieve it, ends up tearing the leg off of the doll. To punish the pair, Jimmy assigns Pal and Joe to laundry detail. Pal operates the hand-cranked washer with Joe on line duty. The grandmother has the rent money for the landlord but Jimmy's Uncle swipes it to take to his homeless friends. Joe and Pal must retrieve the money and convince him that honestly is the best policy - also the original working title of the short. This brings the whole cast together in a Sunday evening revival in which the tramps meet the better-off characters and they have a happy ending with boy and girl, uncle and grandma, and monkey and dog all paired together in harmony.

Dir: William Campbell

A rare film from C.L. Chester Productions. The wealthy and now-dead Mr. P. Nutt, in revenge upon his, bequeaths estate to his lovely niece-on the condition she marry a genius whom the world calls crazy. The search is on for a crazy genius.