Hidden Genre Gems for Fans of The Single Standard: Cult Guide

Dir: Alexander Butler

In Alberta, Canada, a Cornish emigrant unmasks a rustler posing as the girl's "blind" father.

Dir: John S. Robertson

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

Olivia Dangerfield and her brother are hired as servants in the household of the meticulous Mrs. Falkner. When another pair of servants is detained by the law, Olivia decides to pose as a master cook, though she knows little about the culinary arts. Meanwhile, Burton Crane, the boyfriend of Mrs. Falkner's daughter, becomes attracted to the "wonderful cook" at the Falkner home.

Dir: John S. Robertson

Dr. Henry Jekyll experiments with scientific means of revealing the hidden, dark side of man and releases a murderer from within himself.

Dir: John S. Robertson

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

To prove his theory that environment rather than heredity determines a man's character, Dr. Burnell adopts young Richard, the son of an imprisoned crook Morgan. Upon graduating from college, Richard proposes to Virginia Denton, but several days before the wedding, Morgan appears and threatens to reveal himself as Richard's father unless the young man aids him in a number of robberies. Through Robert Hargraves, Dr. Burnell discovers Richard's part in the crimes and starts to believe that his theory is incorrect. When Morgan decides to rob the Denton home, Richard arranges with Dr. Burnell to trap them in the act, but it is Virginia who discovers the two rifling the safe, and she immediately breaks the engagement. After the police arrive, however, Morgan reveals that Richard is actually Dr. Burnell's son, kidnapped by Morgan at an early age. His name cleared, Richard marries Virginia.

Dir: John S. Robertson

A young man with little means wants to marry a rich girl, and thinks up a scheme to get rich.

Dir: John S. Robertson

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

Phyllis Ashbrook hosts a party in the Adirondacks for her fiancé Roger Mason and their engaged friends, John Manning and Anita Webb. In a climbing expedition, Phyllis and John are separated from the others by a storm and seek refuge in a cabin. To save her reputation, Phyllis' parents insist that she marry John immediately, after which they may obtain a divorce and marry their respective partners. After the ceremony, John leaves for China to provide grounds for divorce, but upon discovering that he has mistakenly taken his new wife's suitcase, he returns to his apartment, where he finds Phyllis. Anita and Roger arrive and confess their devotion to each other, and when John and Phyllis realize that they, too, are in love, the divorce plans are abandoned.

Dir: Edward LeSaint

When famous opera singer Elinore Duane undergoes an operation on her throat, she has a series of ether-induced visions. In one, she is transported to ancient Rome where she appears as a much-admired woman in love with Paul, a young heretic, and at odds with Lutor, the high priest. To save her love, she poisons Lutor with her ring. After several other visions which involve variations on this love triangle, Elinore awakens to discover that Lutor is actually her doctor, Sascha Jaccard, and that Paul is the son of a friend who has come to visit the recovering prima donna.

Dir: Edgar Jones

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

A mail-order bride arrives at a Maine lumber camp but doesn't like her prospective husband.

Dir: John S. Robertson

During World War I, beautiful and patriotic Leslie Selden is courted by two ardent admirers: Jack Wynn, a young man not yet taken by the draft, and Dr. Wolff, a Danish scientist who is actually a German agent. When Jack learns that Wolff is masterminding a plot to bomb several munitions factories and destroy the water system in New York City, he goes to the spy's home and confronts him. Wolff locks him up, then forges a note to Leslie claiming that the young man has run away to escape the draft. Her suspicions aroused, Leslie alerts the authorities and plants a dictograph in Wolff's house, through which she learns of the scheduled bombings. Accompanied by the police, she arrives at Wolff's residence just in time to prevent Jack's murder and the destruction of the city.

Dir: John S. Robertson

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.