Rare Cinematic Gems Exploring the Legacy of The Evil Eye: Cult Guide

Dir: J. Gordon Cooper

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

This short film concerns the trailing of a counterfeiter to his haunts, and his eventual arrest. The story opens in the offices of the detective bureau, and shows the method by which headquarters keeps track of its men. The scene then shifts to a narrow street in the slums, where a man who tries to pass a counterfeit bill is given a run by the police, and is wounded and finally evades them, finding shelter at the headquarters of the master counterfeiter. When he appeals to the counterfeiter to go and get him a doctor, he is killed for his pains, placed in a barrel and dropped over the edge of the pier under the cloak of night. The little Irish terrier who appears with patches of hair clipped from his coat, suggesting the origin of the hair used in place of silk in the counterfeit notes, scratches his way out of the den in search of his master. Detective Arnold, discovering the dog sitting on the side of the pier looking into the water, finally locates the body of the dead man in the barrel. He orders a truckman to drive out of sight with the barrel, and the counterfeiter's den is easily found by following the dog, who goes back to where he believes his master has returned. Arnold gains admission while the counterfeiter is off his guard, arriving in time to save the dog from meeting the same fate as his master. The police, notified by messenger, reach the scene in short time, the counterfeiter along with Arnold is taken into custody. The next morning an empty cell greets the guard, who is then made aware of the fact that Arnold is a secret service man and not a criminal. The dog finds a home with the detective, who expresses the hope that he may be as faithful to him as he was to his former master. Moving Picture World, March 13, 1920

Dir: J. Gordon Cooper

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

After demobilization, Silk Merrick and Chicken O'Toole go west and find work on an Arizona ranch. Fired from their jobs for laziness, they are caught by Mary Barton attempting to steal one of her chickens.

Dir: J. Gordon Cooper

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

A man who has been imprisoned for implication in the manufacture of counterfeit money is totally blind when released from prison. His little daughter, through the kindness of Detective Arnold, comes to meet him at the prison gate, and becomes her father's helper at the news stand, where he is placed by Detective Arnold. Through his friendship for the little girl and her father, the detective is able to trace the gang of counterfeiters when they negotiate for the Harrison plate, the whereabouts of which is known only to the released convict.

Dir: J. Gordon Cooper

A chorus girl goes out on a date with a rich man, but later that night he is murdered. Although she didn't do it, she doesn't want to be suspected of the crime by the police, so she marries a wealthy but very ill man who believes he will soon die and wants to leave her all his money. Complications ensue.

Dir: J. Gordon Cooper

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.