The Auteur's Selection Complementing the Tone of The Nervous Wreck: Cult Guide

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A young married couple volunteer to take charge of several orphans after the asylum has burned down. Of course they find their hands full with their troublesome charges.

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While walking along the street one day, Arthur P. Hampton, an impoverished young doctor, and his chums, Stub Masters and Johnny Stokes, are persuaded to part with their last remaining funds by tag day solicitor Mary Jane Smith, with whom the doctor promptly falls in love. Doc's friends then hit upon a get-rich-quick scheme. Knowing that his Uncle George has promised a large sum of money upon his nephew's marriage, they persuade Doc to send out fake wedding invitations naming Mary Jane as the blushing bride. Uncle George, elated at the good news, writes to Mary Jane's aunt, Angelica Burns, an old sweetheart, to invite Mary Jane and Angelica to be his guests on an ocean voyage. Meanwhile, Mary Jane pays a visit to the doctor's office and, upon seeing the wedding invitations, becomes so flustered that she trips and sprains her ankle. Doc comes to her rescue and then begs her to pose as his wife. She agrees, but at ship-side, Stub and Johnnie confess all to Uncle George, who flies into a rage until Doc announces that he and Mary Jane have chosen a wedding at sea.

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

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Nan is the soda fountain queen in Dead Dog. She is in love with Billy, but she got a letter from a New York lawyer saying that she and her cousin, Hezekiah, a New England school teacher, would have to marry in order to share a bequest of some thousands of dollars. Hezekiah was on his way west and because Nan would lose the money if she turned him down, she conceived the idea of rejuvenating the wildness of Dead Dog to frighten poor Hezey out of marrying her. With the scene all set and Hezekiah duly shocked, Nan made her entry, riding her horse up the steps and into the bar. In spite of his terror, Hezekiah was willing to go on with the ceremony, and just as Nan and he were about to say "I do," Billy made his entry and began to shoot up the place. This was too much for Hezekiah, and he started running, caught the observation platform of a train starting for the east.

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John Kemp, a wealthy man, after the announcement of his engagement to Eleanor Dutton, overhears her declare her love for another man, at the same time stating that she must marry Kemp for his money. Heartbroken, Kemp goes to the mountain wilderness. Eleanor marries the man she loves and Kemp marries The Morning Star, an Indian. They have a daughter, Alona, whom Kemp idolizes. She meets Frank Colvin, a poor young prospector, and they become attached to each other. Kemp feels it his duty to return to civilization in order to complete Alona's education. He places her in a fashionable boarding school. Upon learning that she is of Indian blood the girls snub her, only one, Myra Agnew, being kind. Myra takes Alona home with her at Christmas time, that she may meet her brother, Blinn, in the hopes that he will marry her. Alona, by accident, learns that Blinn cares only for her fortune, and upon the death of her father she returns to her people, embittered. She again meets Frank Colvin, who declares his love for her. She decides to test him and buys his mine through an unknown agent. He returns to the city, seeks out Alona, and promises to bring his mother and sister to see her. The mother and sister, however, having been informed that Frank intends to marry an Indian, call on Alona and, when they see her real beauty, tell her they do not wonder Frank loves her, and plan a big surprise for him. That night Alona sends her car for Frank and, accompanied by his mother and sister, they are driven to Alona's beautiful mansion. Here he finds her transformed from the simple Indian maiden he believes her to be into an heiress. Now that Alona is satisfied he loves her for herself alone, she reveals her real identity and their happiness is complete.

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

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Most of the patients of Dr. Ward Allison are women, and his wife Margery is becoming increasingly jealous of all the time he spends with them. One day he tells her that he has been called out of town, but she is told that he is really staying at the house of a friend and colleague, Dr. Hendon, and the two are planning wild parties with their female patients. What she finds out, however, is even more shocking than what she expected.

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Reared by a childless ape, the orphaned heir of the Greystokes becomes one of the apes. Then Dr Porter organises a rescue expedition, and his beautiful daughter Jane catches his attention. Has Tarzan of the Apes found the perfect mate?

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

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Barnard completes a study in oils which he calls "The Resurrection." It represents a beautiful, dark woman, her awakened soul shining from her eyes. At a private exhibit in the studio the painting causes a great deal of admiring comment, and Barnard's mother, a society leader and an art connoisseur, admits to her son that he virtually "imprisoned a woman's soul" in the canvas. The soul of the picture, a few days later, stirs to the depths of her being a sordid girl of the underworld whom Barnard has found in the night courts and persuaded to become his model for "The Fallen Woman." Irene Brock, once she has met the rapt, spiritual gaze of Barnard's ideal, involuntarily revolts against the hideousness of her environment. The trade she has been accustomed to ply in saloon dance-halls and low resorts becomes a torture to her. Day by day Irene watches the new painting grow. But she is changing. Barnard, feeling that something is unsatisfactory, and that he will be unable to paint from his model "The Fallen Woman" of his imagination, reluctantly brings the sittings to a close. The moment of parting precipitates an emotional crisis. Love, for the first time, has dawned in the girl's soul, and Barnard, moved by a profound sympathy, takes her in his arms. The young artist's mother finds them in this position; she diplomatically conceals her horror while smilingly asserting that "that could never be." Irene goes away, struggling to be resigned. But the young artist, fired by a self-sacrificing love, refuses to let this end the episode. At last, the mother seeks Irene in her squalid lodging. "Such a marriage," she pleads with the girl, "would make my son a social outcast. Even your love could not always make him forget." The soul of "The Resurrection" working upon her heart, and controlled also by her deep love for Barnard, Irene promises to cure him of his passion. That same night she deliberately gives herself up to a detective an old enemy of hers. The following morning she sends for Barnard to come to the night court and pay her fine. He goes. She is brought before the judge. To the charge, she replies, "I am guilty." Silently, Barnard puts the money on the desk. Outside, in the corridor, they meet. By sheer force of will, she resists the almost overwhelming impulse to fling herself in his arms and tell him the entire story of her deception. The next instant, with a murmured good-bye, he turns and rushes out of doors. That evening Irene slips into the deserted studio, and stands long before the painting of "The Resurrection." From these wonderful eyes she imbibes strength for her lonely struggle with the world.

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A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

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

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A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

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Dorothy is a girl who romantically fell in love with a long haired professor with whom she eloped. "The other fellow" is played by Earle, whose black face make-up at a critical situation almost loses him the girl of his choice.