Cinematic Discoveries Following the Footsteps of The Town That Forg...

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

When her son has married beneath the family, Mrs. Van Twiller Du Bois disowns him and decides to leave her fortune to her nephew, Cecil Harrington. She does, however, agree to educate her granddaughter Mary, who comes to live with Mrs. Du Bois in hopes of reconciling her father and the old woman. Cecil, actually a local robber whose identity has just been discovered by the police, plans to rob his aunt and leave town. Just as he is emptying the safe, Mary enters the room, and when Mrs. Du Bois comes in, Cecil tries to blame Mary for the robbery. The police soon arrive to clear Mary's name and arrest Cecil, and Mrs. Du Bois is reconciled to her family.

Dir: Bruno Ziener

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Eva, wo bist du? perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

After her lover, Kale Loomis, has had her husband sent to prison on a false charge, Fay Gonard leaves her little daughter, Dolores May, on the steps of a convent. Reared in an atmosphere of strictness and seclusion, Dolores is possessed with a desire to see the world, and after meeting Lawrence Grant, a politician's son, her curiosity is aroused even more and she escapes from the convent. Found on the road by Kale's friends, Dolores lives in his home for a time, but later, Lawrence takes her under his wing with the intention of marrying her. Although she loves Lawrence, Dolores misses Kale's parties and returns to him, whereupon Kale threatens to publicize her activities unless Lawrence's father agrees to his demands. Lawrence takes a repentant Dolores away from one of Kale's riotous parties, but after Kale is found dead, Lawrence is arrested for murder. Dolores' father, however, confesses to the crime, and following his acquittal, he is reunited with his daughter and Lawrence, now her husband.

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

Eloise Jackson, the ward of her wealthy uncle, Judge Stafford, spends thousands of dollars on extravagant parties for her friends. Harvey Greyson is a young and penniless writer struggling for recognition. When they meet at a party and fall in love, the judge, certain that Harvey is only enamored of Eloise's fortune, announces that he is bankrupt. Of all her friends, only Harvey sticks by her, offering his manuscripts to the deputy sheriff as security on the family's debts. Through his repeated efforts to secure money and employment for Eloise, Harvey convinces Judge Stafford that his love for the girl is true, and Eloise learns to curb her lavish spending. The judge sends Harvey's works to a publisher, and Harvey and Eloise become engaged.

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

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

A marital misunderstanding between iron manufacturer Perry Risdon and his wife Olive occurs when her extravagant spending forces him to devote all of his time to business, which she interprets as neglect. Millionaire Ned Beckwith, Olive's former suitor, sees the developing breech and attempts to use it to his advantage by secretly forcing a bank to make Perry repay an $80,000 loan within 24 hours. When Beckwith agrees to Perry's loan request on the condition that he divorce Olive, Perry knocks him down. Olive, vacationing alone in Pasadena, gets word of her husband's straits and sells her jewelry to raise $30,000. Beckwith replies to her request for the rest by inviting her to his apartment that night. Deeply troubled, Olive goes and is saved from Beckwith's seduction when Beckwith's mistress, Marta Holmes, calls Perry, who arrives and fights Beckwith. Marta then kills Beckwith and drowns herself, while the Risdons are reconciled.

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

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

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

Rudolph King becomes engaged to Martha Thorne, the niece of John Chandler, when he and Chandler form a pork-and-bean producing partnership. The two hold a house party for Pell Kingston, who buys pork and beans for the United States Army, to negotiate a contract. To convince Martha of the merits of kissing, the shy Rudolph asks Pell to kiss her in the dark, and when she responds favorably, Rudolph claims the credit. Martha discovers that Pell, to whom she is attracted, actually kissed her, but things become confused when Mrs. Irene Chandler also demonstrates an interest in Pell. After several amatory mix-ups, everything is cleared up, and Pell and Martha leave the party together.

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

Gretchen, an abandoned child, is raised by Frau Van Lom, the nastiest woman in the little Dutch village of Olenburg. As she grows up, Gretcen's few moments of happiness are those she spends with Carl, who is also an abandoned child, but who is raised by a poor family. When Gretchen refuses to marry a wealthy old man in exchange for his paying off Frau von Lom's mortgage, she is framed for theft and jailed. On top of that, Carl is taken away from the village and sent to the palace of the king. Complications ensue.

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

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

Signa Herrick, a stenographer whose skills leave much to be desired, finds out that her boss is keeping her on only because he's a friend of her recently deceased father. Embarrassed, she leaves her small Wisconsin town for New York to live with her married sister, Janet. She quickly proceeds to get mixed up with jewel thieves, detectives, an alcoholic millionaire and his greedy, scheming relatives.

Dir: Harry F. Millarde

Eugene Lenoir weds the sister of Major Warfield. The couple dies not many months after the marriage, but there is much animosity between the two families. Gabriel Lenoir inherits his brother's estate, and he makes the nurse, Nance Wilson, swear to kill the baby that was born to Eugene's wife shortly before she died. But the nurse takes the infant to be raised in a New York tenement instead. After the girl is grown, the nurse tells the Major of her existence. Warfield brings her back to Virginia under the name Capitola Black. When the United States declares war on Germany, Herbert Grayson comes to town to ferret out a gang of spies. Capitola decides to help her country, too, and she discovers that Gabriel Lenoir is one of the conspirators. She is almost killed but Grayson rescues her and reveals that Lenoir stole Capitola's fortune when she was a baby, and the villain gets his just rewards for his wrongdoings. The estate is returned to Capitola, who is attacked by one of Lenoir's accomplices that she locks up in the cellar. As Grayson is about to enlist and leave for the front in France, he asks for Capitola's hand in marriage.