Essential Cult Cinema Mirroring the Impact of Your Friend and Mine:...

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

Jim Fenton helps rescue a falsely imprisoned inventor and assists him in avenging himself on the man who robbed him of his invention and of his freedom.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

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

Homely schoolteacher Sam Lyman arrives from New England to settle in the Mississippi Valley town of Old Ebenezer, Arkansas while he studies law. During a game of forfeits given at the annual town social by Banker McElwyn, the richest man in town, Sam marries the banker's daughter Eva, the prettiest girl in town, in a fake ceremony. The couple later discovers that the marriage is legal and Sam offers to bow out, but Eva, who does not want to marry her father's choice, rich mule dealer Zeb Sawyer, persuades Sam to continue the marriage in name only. After Sam withstands slander from Zeb and McElwyn, they send night riders to horsewhip Sam and run him out of town, but he stays. When Zeb launches a run on McElwyn's bank, Sam saves it by depositing money he receives from writing a novel and bags marked $20,000, which are filled with horse shoes. Afterward, Eva refuses to have the marriage annulled.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

Dorothy Dean, a wealthy young woman with modern ideas, abhors the institution of marriage but discovers that she must be wed in order to receive a wealthy relative's inheritance. Through Judge Roan, the family lawyer, Dorothy meets Don Morton, who agrees to accept a $10,000 check to marry her and then leave her in peace. After the ceremony, however, Dorothy's new husband takes her to a lonely island retreat where he tries unsuccessfully to win her love. Defeated, he leaves the island. In his absence, she is attacked by thieves and is fighting for her life when Don returns and rescues her. Dorothy now realizes that she is happy to have a husband, and the two embark on a real honeymoon.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

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

A young woman reads tales of a gallant White Knight and imagines that such a knight might come to rescue her from her dull existence. Although she is wooed by a wealthy industrialist, she rejects his suit in hopes that her romantic ideal might come. One day a young writer comes to her village, and it seems as if he might be the hoped-for White Knight.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

An easy-going tramp with a love of food and an aversion to work suddenly gets deeply involved in the life of a farmer and his daughter.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

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

Susan, a wealthy young Easterner, is making her way across the country when she accidentally becomes separated from the train carrying her west. She finds herself in the clutches of a gang of bandits, who discover they've got more on their hands than they bargained for.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

A young woman goes to visit friends but mistakenly rings at the wrong address. She is greeted and taken in out of the storm by a handsome young man to whom she is immediately attracted. What she does not know, however, is that this young man has been fleeced by her father and has sworn vengeance against him.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

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

A burlesque dancer overcomes the puritanism of a repressed small town.

Dir: Clarence G. Badger

Coarse country girl Sis Hopkins and general store clerk Ridy Scarboro are so engrossed in their dalliance that a basket is overturned and a large can of oil spills into a pool, creating a slow leak. Wealthy villager Vibert thus becomes convinced that Sis's farm is located on a pocket of oil, and he schemes to gain control of the property by marrying Sis. Vibert sends her to a young woman's seminary for refinement. Sis creates chaos in the school and is a problem for principal Miss Peckover. Vibert eventually realizes Sis will never measure up to his standards for a wife. Ridy, who has been jealous, is overjoyed when Sis returns home. Vibert entices Pa Hopkins into selling the property for a small amount, but Sis shrewdly succeeds in tripling the price. Finally Vibert discovers the can in which he has invested so heavily.

Dir: Harley Knoles

Jim McDonald, the foreman of a shipbuilding plant and head of the labor union, strives to combat the anarchistic propaganda being put forth by Klimoff, the leader of a Bolshevik gang whose goal is to disrupt the country with strikes and anarchy. Despite McDonald's efforts, a strike is called, resulting in chaos. McDonald's child is knocked down by runaway horses abandoned by their striking driver, and dies. Mob scenes take place in America, as well as in Russia. Eventually, the unrest is quelled with an armistice called between Capital and Labor for a year, during which time wages are to be increased to reflect the cost of living, and leaders are to work out a common plan for their mutual advantage. The strikers now realize that they have been pawns of the Bolsheviks and call off the strike, agreeing to the plan.