Jobyna Ralston Movies

Canine star Rin-Tin-Tin's glory days as one of Warner Bros.' biggest moneymaking personalities were swiftly coming to an end when he was top-billed in Rough Waters. This time, Rinty is owned by crusty old seafarer Captain Thomas (Edmund Breese) and his pretty young daughter Mary (Jobyna Ralston). A pair of escaped criminals (Walter Miller and Dick Alexander) intrude upon Thomas's tiny fishing hut, taking the captain and his daughter hostage. If only Mary could get word to her boyfriend, motor-cop Cal Morton (Lane Chandler)! But fear not: Despite a bullet wound in his side, Rin-Tin-Tin tears the bad guys to shreds and delivers them to the nonplused Cal. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Demure college coed Doris Marlowe (Jobyna Ralston) wants desperately to be accepted by her peers, so she links up with campus "coquette" Betty Forrester (Ruth Taylor). Unfortunately, Betty plays fast and loose, keeping company with such unsavory types as lothario Tom Marion (William Collier Jr.) Set up on a date with Marion, Doris sacrifices her virtue to him, only to discover that he has no intention of making a lasting commitment. Subsequently, Doris is killed in a freak accident, laying a heavy guilt trip upon Betty. A former Mack Sennett bathing beauty, College Coquette leading lady Ruth Taylor had also been the original Lorelei Lee in the 1928 screen version of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes; she was also the mother of comedian/screenwriter Buck Henry. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The titular "toilers" are three coal-mining pals: Steve (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.), Toby (Wade Boteler), and Butch (Robert Ryan -- and no, not that Robert Ryan). While Toby and Butch fritter away their paychecks on booze and dames, Steve settles down when he falls in love with Mary (Jobyna Ralston). Alas, on the day of his wedding, Steve and his two buddies are among the dozen or so miners trapped in a cave-in. In addition to its well-staged "underground" scenes, The Toilers boasted an impressive musical score, courtesy of the RCA Photophone recording process. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Presently unavailable for public reappraisal, the biting and cynical melodrama Power of the Press would seem to be a precursor to such Frank Capra talkies as Platinum Blonde and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town. Cub reporter Clem Rogers (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) wants a "big scoop" more than anything else in life. Alas, he stumbles onto a hot news story that implicates his sweetheart Jane Atwill (Jobyna Ralston), daughter of mayor candidate Atwill (Edwards Davis), in a murder. Putting his job and his future on the line, Clem endeavors to help Jane prove her innocence, and together they begin to see a connection between the murder of the district attorney and the political ambitions of her father's political rival. Curiously, Capra never mentions Power of the Press in his autobiography. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Director James W. Horne, best known today for his Laurel and Hardy comedies, called the shots on the inexpensive "emotional" drama Black Butterflies. Heroine Dorinda Maxwell (Jobyna Ralston) enters into a marriage of convenience, even though she cannot abide her new husband. In so doing, she is separated from her true love, David Goddard (Robert Frazer). Fate and the scriptwriters contrive to keep hero and heroine apart for the balance of the picture; at one point, Goddard is blinded in an auto accident. All turns out OK in the end except for the "heavy" of the piece, vampish Kitty Perkins (Mae Busch, likewise a future Laurel and Hardy "regular"), who must pay for her sins with her life. Black Butterflies reaches three possible endings, opting at last for the weakest of the three. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Jobyna Ralston, perennial leading lady in the Harold Lloyd pictures, is afforded star billing in Pretty Clothes. When Marian Dunbar (Ralston) falls in love with wealthy young Russell Thorpe (Johnny Walker), Thorpe's father (Charles Clary) decides to break up the romance. The elder Thorpe arranges for Philip Bennett (Lloyd Whitlock) to present Marian with a gorgeous gown. The girl innocently accepts the gift, whereupon Thorpe Sr. triumphantly informs Russell that Marian is a gold-digger who "paid the price" for the gown. Only in the final few minutes does Russell realizes that he's been duped, whereupon hero and heroine are reunited. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The second and last of Eddie Cantor's silent vehicles, Special Delivery casts the wide-eyed comedian as a hapless mailman. While going through his swiftly appointed rounds, Eddie stumbles upon a gang of crooks who are planning a large-scale confidence scam. He exposes the villains and wins the love of heroine Madge (Jobyna Ralston). Though Cantor was a fine physical comic, he didn't truly score in films until the arrival of talkies allowed his fans to hear as well as see him. Special Delivery was directed by "William Goodrich," who in reality was comedian Fatty Arbuckle, hoping to stage a comeback after the sex scandal that destroyed his career. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Even taking into consideration such worthy candidates as Safety Last and The Freshman, many Harold Lloyd fans regard The Kid Brother as his finest film. A humorous variation on Tol'able David, the film stars Lloyd as Harold Hickory, the youngest member of the rural Hickory family. Though out-muscled by his sheriff father (Walter James) and brawny brothers (Olin Francis, Leo Willis), Harold is the cleverest of the Hickorys, industriously figuring out all sorts of clever devices to streamline his housekeeping chores. Still, his father and brothers treat him as the baby of the family, leaving him to mind the farm while they head for a town meeting. In his dad's absence, however, Harold is deputized to deliver a "cease and desist" summons to a travelling carnival which has pitched camp nearby. Upon arriving at the carnival, Harold discovers that its owner is the lovely Mary Powers (Jobyna Ralston), whom he'd met the day before. A fire breaks out in the tent, leaving Mary homeless, but Harold invites her to stay the night at his farm -- making certain that his roughneck brothers observe the proper social amenities. The next day, it is discovered that the money for an important dam project, left in the care of Harold's father, has been stolen. The elder Hickory is held responsible, but the real culprit is brutish carnival strongman Sandoni (Constantin Romanoff). Through a chain of incredible coincidences, Harold finds himself facing Sandoni on board a derelict boat. For a while, it looks as though Sandoni is going to mop the deck with Harold, but our hero gains the upper hand when he finds out that his behemoth opponent can't swim! Just as his father is about to be lynched by the angry mob, Harold delivers the unconscious Sandoni to the doorstep of the jail. Proudly, Harold's father declares "Son, you're a true Hickory!" -- but the story isn't quite over yet, since Harold still has to propose to Mary, and to clean the clock of the local bully who's been annoying him all through the picture. Beautifully photographed and expertly directed (Lewis Milestone, though uncredited, helmed many of the important scenes), The Kid Brother is everything a good silent comedy should be, and an enduring testament to the brilliance of Harold Lloyd. Best bit: That eye-popping crane shot as Harold shinnies up a tree to bid several fond farewells to the departing Mary. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A novel by Edna Ferber was the source for this Rod LaRocque vehicle. The story begins just before the outbreak of WWI, when Julia Gory (Louise Dresser) wealthy widowed mother of hero Gideon Gory (LaRoque), marries socially prominent doctor Blagden (Cyril Chadwick). Interested only in Julia's money and connections, the doctor talks her out of returning to her provincial hometown, and in so doing destroys the budding romance between Gideon and his childhood sweetheart Mary (Jobyna Ralston). During the Great War, Blagden thoroughly depletes Julia's bank account -- and breaks the old woman -- while Gideon is off fighting for his country. Penniless and disillusioned after the war, Gideon finds work as a gigolo in a seedy café, willing to forego his manhood and dignity for the sake of a quick buck. But at the last possible moment, he is saved from himself by the unexpected appearance of his beloved Mary, who has never forgotten him. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

One of Harold Lloyd's best feature-length comedies, The Freshman, features the bespectacled regular guy as Harold Lamb, a naïve young man who heads off to college believing campus life will be just as it is in the movies; he even learns a little dance he saw one of his favorite actors do in a film. However, Harold soon discovers that real life isn't all that much like the pictures, and he quickly becomes the laughing stock of the university. Determined to prove himself, Harold tries out for the football team, but he serves as water boy and rides the pine until he finally gets a chance to redeem himself at the big game. Along the way, Harold also tries to woo a lovely co-ed, Peggy (Jobyna Ralston). 22 years later, writer/director Preston Sturges used the climactic football game as the opening for his collaboration with Harold Lloyd, The Sin of Harold Diddlebock. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

In this riotous silent comedy, hilarious bespectacled "everyman" Harold Lloyd plays an introverted, speech-impaired, awkward tailor's assistant who secretly writes a book, The Secrets of Making Love and decides to leave his small-town home to get it published in the big city. While aboard the train, he helps a lovely girl smuggle her doggy past a conductor. Afterward, romantic sparks fly between the shy guy and the gal. Their blossoming love is nearly nipped in the bud when Harold's manuscript gets rejected by the publisher. Devastated, he suddenly feels himself beneath the girl's love and abandons her. Poor Harold's broken confidence is instantly mended when the publisher decides to publish the book after all and hands him a healthy advance. Elated, Harold rushes off to find his girl. Unfortunately, he learns she is about to marry another. In the story's riotous, thrill-packed climax, the determined lover uses every means of transportation available in his frantic rush to get to the alter in time to stop her. The film's other highlights involve inventive fantasy excerpts from his lovemaking book. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Originally released on July 1, 1923, the silent, two-reel Dogs of War may well have been the most schizophrenic entry in the entire Our Gang series. The film begins with an elaborate sandlot recreation of a battlefield, with the Our Gang kids staging an elaborate mock war, complete with such "artillery" as rotten eggs and overripe vegetables, and with makeshift tanks and cannons adding to the imaginary carnage. Suddenly an armistice is declared when "Red Cross Nurse" Mary Kornman is called away to the local movie studio to appear in an epic titled Should Husbands Work? for a magnificent five dollars a day. Recognizing a good thing when they see it, the rest of the kids head to the studio (actually the Hal Roach lot) and offer their services as actors. Ordered to get out and stay out, the youngsters devise a clever method to gain access to the studio where, in addition to wreaking their usual havoc, they produce a one-reel "masterpiece" that more closely resembles an Andy Warhol experimental picture of the 1960s. Watch for comedy great Harold Lloyd in an amusing cameo -- which also serves as a plug for Lloyd's latest release, Why Worry?. One TV version of Dogs of War, retitled Hollywood USA, jettisons the "war" sequence entirely, with little damage to the film's continuity. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi