Cinematic Discoveries Resonating with the Themes of The Price She Paid: Cult Guide

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Immediately after Susan Lane becomes Mrs. Richard Greer, she grows jealous when she sees her husband talking to Marion Starr, one of her bridesmaids. Susan's brother Phil wishes to marry Marion, but is entangled with actress Maizie Middleton. Consequently, Dick Greer agrees to see Maizie, whose troupe is playing Niagara, and attempts to buy her off. Susan follows Dick to Marion's dressing room, returns to the hotel and wires her Uncle Jimmy to file for divorce. Uncle Jimmy, resolved to cure Susan of her jealousy, intends to allow Susan to believe that she has been divorced, without actually filing. His law partner rushes the case through the courts, however, and the divorce is granted. Susan suffers such despair at the news of her separation from Dick that Uncle Jimmy rushes out and secures a minister, the couple are remarried and begin their honeymoon again.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

In Italy, Sister Beatrice becomes the confidante of the Contessa Angelica de Vecchio, whose brother, Prince Candoni, has placed her in a convent for having an affair with Carlo Parodi, a young radical. Angelica soon dies, and Beatrice, suddenly aware that she needlessly has shut herself off from the real world, leaves the convent and joins a group of revolutionaries. She marries Guido Perli, one of the leaders, and tries to temper his radical fervor with some religious tolerance. Finally, however, he calls on the people to rise against Candoni, and a horrified Beatrice alerts the prince. Candoni sends out his guards, and during the fighting, both Carlo and Guido are killed. Before he dies, however, Guido forgives his wife for betraying him to the prince, after which a remorseful Beatrice returns to the convent.

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

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Mabel waits on the residents of a local boardinghouse, but her fondness for pranks finally leads to her dismissal. By a strange turn of fortune, Mabel finds herself in the possession of a traveling corset saleswoman's suitcase, whereupon she adopts the profession herself. While passing through a small town, Mabel decides to take a swim in the ocean, but as she frolics, her suitcase, which contains all of her clothing, is stolen. Forced to wear only her bathing suit, Mabel sets off in search of her clothing and learns that the police, having identified the suitcase as belonging to a jewel thief, are in search of her. Following several adventures, she discovers that the jewel robbery, which involved her friend Lena, was only a publicity stunt.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Bored by the slow pace of life in her little home town, Helen Drayton rebels when her friends and relatives assume that she will marry her friend and escort, Chet Vernon. Helen is so anxious to experience life in the big city that she falls in love with visiting New York architect John Galvin almost immediately after his arrival. Several weeks later, the two marry and move to New York, where, after a series of painful experiences, Helen finally realizes John's selfishness. In the end, she gratefully returns home and becomes Chet's wife.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of A Perfect 36 perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Having to support her impoverished family, Grace Tyler poses for artist Michael Arnold, who seduces his new model and then leaves her. A few years later, after Grace has married the wealthy John Marshall, her sister Ruth, repeating Grace's mistake, becomes involved with Michael. Grace tries to break up the romance, until Michael threatens to expose their own affair to John, who has already become somewhat suspicious. Determined to learn the truth about his wife and Michael, John goes to the artist's studio while Grace and Ruth are also there, then, after a brief struggle, Michael dies from a knife wound. John is accused of the murder, but just before a jury convicts him, Ruth confesses to the crime and the court quickly acquits her because she had been defending her honor against Michael's advances.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Minnie Penelope Peck, the village scamp of Yaptank, accompanies her father to the bank to demand the $9 owed him for his work as a night watchman. When the bank president refuses to pay Peck, Minnie posts a sign which states that the bank is insolvent, so all of the depositors immediately demand their money. The fire department is called in to quell the mob, but things get worse when Minnie accidentally turns on the fire hose. Minnie is saved from reform school by a new woman in town, Hortense Martinot, who hires the tomboy to model clothing in her shop. After falling in love with jewelry-store proprietor Dick, Minnie discovers that Hortense, in league with two gentlemen from the city, is planning to rob the bank. With the help of Dick, who is actually a detective, Minnie captures the crooks, then accepts a wedding ring from her jewelry salesman.

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

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Peggy, a rambunctious young American girl, goes to Scotland to visit her uncle. Her American ways both shock and eventually delight the people of the old village--especially the handsome young minister.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

The Sardou play begins with this girl's life as the young wife of a man nearing forty, kind enough to his bride, but more or less absorbed in his serious work. She has dreamed of romantic love, intoxicating adventure, and tumultuous passions only to find none of these things in retirement with a good husband. She decided that her existence has been wrecked and ruined, and gets it into her foolish head that the only remedy is a divorce. There is a lover handy, her husband's cousin Adhemar, French in his ambition to have an "affair" with some charming married woman, and equally French in his thrift; he is a poor young man in no situation to marry any such extravagant young lady. The clear-headed husband enters into a little conspiracy with some friends to let his bored young wife have her own way, ostensibly yielding to her wishes, and he even makes things as easy and comfortable as possible for the unsuspecting lover, inviting him to the house, and announcing that he has even provided for his wife's future by settling a large sum of money upon her. She sees that this settlement has weight with the lover, and begins to falter, but she goes on determinedly with what gradually loses all the charm of forbidden fruit. Her relations with Adhemar become more and more commonplace at a time when she begins to realize her husband's magnanimity. He has denied her nothing, and he gives Adhemar full permission to marry her as soon as the divorce is granted. Meanwhile she begins to be distressed by the fact that her husband seems to be enjoying himself, staying out late at night, and suspects that he has an "affair" with some woman "not worthy" of him. She revolts when he announces he has a dinner engagement, urges him to break it and have a little celebration with her and Adhemar, finally deciding to leave Adhemar out altogether. It would be such a lark to steal away from him and have dinner in a private room with her husband, so compromising. Adhemar learns of the infidelity of his wife-to-be, and goes in search of her in a rainstorm. He is drenched when he finds the restaurant where she is dining alone with her husband in a private room contrary to what he conceives to be the rights of a husband-to-be, and he is so indignant that he seeks the protection of a Commissary of police as a safeguard for his future marital rights. The situation now becomes ludicrous in the extreme, and it ends with restored sanity for the young wife, and a complete reconciliation with her husband.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Not My Sister perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Alice Chesterton (Olive Thomas) is described as a "Baby Vamp" by the social set and engaged to boring Tom Carey. She flirts with many of the male guests idling at the Ives' Long Island house party, then encourages Terence O'Keefe, a playboy polo player from Ireland in New York to purchase horses for the British army, to rendezvous with her in the city, they are seen together at the "Midnight Frolic." Because of this, Mrs. Ives convinces Alice's newly-arrived sister Betty to look after Alice. Betty arranges for Terence to find her in an auto wreck where he revives her with a kiss. Genuinely in love with each other, they plan to marry, until the jealous Alice tells Betty that Terence "ruined" her. When Betty accuses Terence, he makes Alice confess her to her lies. Tom, encouraged by Terence's advice, overwhelms Alice with his "caveman" tactics. At the end, the servants, who have observed the upstairs activities, emulate their masters' flirting mannerisms.

Dir: Charles Giblyn

Tessa Doyle, an innocent country girl who has come to New York and joined a vaudeville sister act, becomes embroiled in a scheme to earn money at her partner Trixie Dennis' insistence. When millionaire Billy Swayne is jilted by his fiancee, Millicent Lee, he and his friend Rodney Dolson get drunk and decide that Billy must get married that night. Tessa agrees to marry Billy so that Trixie can use the money to obtain a divorce. After the marriage, Trixie tries to blackmail Billy. Tessa becomes angry and leaves without accepting any payment. Later, after she has become the private secretary to a woman who turns out to be Billy's mother, Tessa meets Billy again. They fall in love and get married again.