John Cossar Movies

Although her brief stardom had faded by 1927, former DeMille leading lady Lillian Rich was equal to the opportunity afforded her by Web of Fate. Rich is cast in the dual role of bitchy actress Gloria Gunther and her sweet-tempered look-alike, Beverly Townsend. When Gloria's face is scarred in a fire, Beverly is persuaded to go on stage in the actress' place. Beverly's success in this endeavor is tarnished when she is blamed for the murder of the film's villain. Put on trial for her life, Beverly is about to be sentenced when Gloria comes forward, emotionally confessing to the crime. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

My Lady of Whims was one of the last of Clara Bow's vehicles for Arrow Productions before the actress' upward move to Paramount. Clara plays wealthy Prudence Severin, whose reckless, profligate behavior causes nothing but headaches for her father. A detective (Lee Moran) is hired to protect Prudence from herself, but to no avail. Our heroine gets mixed up with the starving-artists community in Greenwich Village, where she is finally straightened out by handsome, level-headed Bartley Greer (Donald Keith). Despite a lively "Bohemian" party sequence, My Lady of Whims was something of a bore, totally reliant on Clara Bow's vivacity for whatever success it had. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This second film version of the Victor Hugo novel Notre Dame de Paris (the first was a Theda Bara vehicle, The Dancer of Paris) was a super-duper-spectacular as only Hollywood of the 1920s could make them, but it is never so large that it dwarfs the contribution of its star, Lon Chaney. As the hunchbacked bellringer Quasimodo, Chaney adorned himself with a special device that made his cheeks jut out grotesquely; a contact lens that blanked out one of his eyes; and, most painfully, a huge rubber hump covered with coarse animal fur and weighing anywhere from 30 to 50 pounds. While Quasimodo is but one of many interconnecting characters in the original Hugo novel, he dominates the narrative of this expensive Universal production. Set in the walled city of Paris in the 16th century, the story is set in motion when the evil Jehan (Brandon Hurst), brother of saintly Notre Dame archdeacon Dom Claude (Nigel De Brulier), orders the dog-like Quasimodo to attempt to kidnap gypsy girl Esmeralda (Patsy Ruth Miller). Quasimodo is captured and flogged for his crime, whereupon Esmeralda shows him kindness by offering him water. He reciprocates when Esmeralda, framed on a murder charge by the obsessed Jehan (if he can't have her, no one can), is sentenced to be hanged. Quasimodo grabs a rope and swings down from the towers of Notre Dame, rescues Esmeralda from the gallows, and carries her into the church, shouting "Sanctuary! Sanctuary!" Through a series of convoluted plot twists, Clopin (Ernest Torrence), the king of beggars, leads an army of the Parisian poor to storm the gates of the cathedral and reclaim Esmeralda. Quasimodo defends both the girl and his church by tossing heavy objects and pouring molten lead upon the invaders. This climactic scene was filmed at night, requiring the services of literally every arc light in Hollywood. The Notre Dame set (which wasn't quite as large in real life as it seems on screen) remained standing on the Universal back lot for years after this film was completed, doing background service in the 1925 Lon Chaney starrer The Phantom of the Opera. With Hunchback of Notre Dame, Lon Chaney rose from mere leading player to major star, which led him to even greater success at MGM, where his reputation as "the man of a thousand faces" really got a workout. The story would be remade by in 1939 with Charles Laughton, in 1955 with Anthony Quinn, in 1982 with Anthony Hopkins, and again in 1996 as a sanitized Disney animated musical. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It is a surprising and little-known fact that Louis J. Gasnier, who today is most well known for directing the unintentionally hilarious Reefer Madness, was a well-respected filmmaker during the 1910s and '20s. This passionate drama was welcomed by exhibitors of the day. While traveling through Spain on business, Southerner Alan Randolph (Kenneth Harlan) becomes involved with Rosita Mendez, a fiery singer (Estelle Taylor). Randolph's friend, Barnes Ramsey (Arthur Hull), convinces him to forget the singer and return to New Orleans, where his sweetheart, Violet Beaton (Edith Roberts), is faithfully waiting. But Rosita is not thrown over so easily -- she follows Randolph to New Orleans. Rudolph, who is now afraid of his Spanish flame, elopes with Violet. They keep the marriage a secret, and plan an actual ceremony at Violet's home. When Randolph finds out that Rosita plans to disrupt the proceedings, he goes to plead with her. Rosita points a gun at him, and in the ensuing struggle she is shot. She claims that Randolph shot her and sends him to jail. Later on, when Rosita discovers that Randolph and Violet have already married, and that she has had a baby, she helps get him released so he can return to his family. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Leatrice Joy and Richard Dix play an ambitious couple in this domestic drama. John and Katherine Colby (Dix and Joy) decide to put off parenthood until he has become wealthy. Their friends, Tom and Grace Donaldson (John Bowers and Louise Lovely), decide to start a family right away. While John works his way up to a position of power at a steel firm, Katherine begins to question the wisdom of their decision. When she sees how happy the Donaldsons are with their brood, she begins to feel like she has been missing something. On a drive, the Colbys are involved in an accident and Katherine is seriously injured. When she is well enough to be told, the doctor informs her that she will never be able to bear children. Katherine is shattered by this news. An ironic note -- according to her daughter, Joy was not very maternal and had to be prodded into motherhood by her then-husband, John Gilbert. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Before he was known as "the man of a thousand faces," Lon Chaney had already become famous for portraying underworld characters. If he does not come off well in this Goldwyn picture, in which he plays a gang leader, it has nothing to do with his acting and everything to do with the editing. The film was based on a controversial tale of the underworld, The Night Rose, by Leroy Scott. The Censorship Commission refused to give it their stamp of approval, so it was recut, which eliminated much of Chaney's part. Leatrice Joy co-stars -- this was one of the last pictures she made before signing with Paramount and Cecil B. DeMille. Duke McGee (Chaney) takes a liking to Georgia Rodman (Joy), with little regard to the fact that she is the sweetheart of his bookkeeper, Jimmy (Cullen Landis). He decides to frame Jimmy, thus getting him out of the way, but Sally, McGee's former mistress (Betty Schade), foils his plan. Jimmy, however, is shot before he can get away. Georgia believes Jimmy is dead and goes to a ball thrown by McGee to exact revenge. But Sally grabs the gun from her hands and completes the job for her. Jimmy recovers from his wounds, and the picture ends happily. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Tom Moore stars in this light comedy. He is Tom O'Gara, who arrives in New York from Ireland and takes a job as a fireman (instead of the stereotypical policeman like most movie Irishmen of the silent era). One night, while fighting a fire, he saves Claudia Royce (Helene Chadwick), the daughter of a wealthy family. Claudia had been staying with a friend to avoid Loland (Herbert Prior), who wants to marry her. When she confesses that her parents are trying to force her into the marriage, O'Gara suggests that he marry her to keep the man away. She agrees, but O'Gara puts on a mock ceremony, figuring that Claudia will want to have the marriage annulled anyway. O'Gara winds up inventing an appliance that becomes a success, and he and Claudia never forget each other. Eventually they decide to make their union legal. An interesting side note -- Renée Adorée, a few years off from stardom, plays Moore's sister. In real life, she had recently become his bride. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Based on a play by Edward Peple, A Pair of Sixes starred Taylor Holmes and Robert Conness as T. Boggs Johns and George Nettelton, the eternally squabbling partners in a pill-manufacturing firm. At the insistence of their harried lawyer, Johns and Nettelton decide to resolve their differences with a game of cards. The winner will have total control of the business for a period of one year; the loser will be forced to serve as the winner's butler for that same period of time. The rest of the picture finds the winner trying to force the loser to call off the agreement, and vice versa, resulting in a series of hectic farcical complications. A musical version of Pair of Sixes, retitled Queen High, was staged in 1926 and filmed four years later. The property was again filmed in 1937 as the Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey vehicle On Again-Off Again. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Alster Case was based on a novel by Rufus Gilmore. Set in Chicago (the home of Essanay studios), the film deals with a murder mystery, the solution of which will bode either good or ill for hero George Swan (Bryant Washburn) and heroine Beatrice (Ruth Stonehouse). Since the victim, Miss Cornelia Alster (Louise Croilus), was not universally beloved, there is no shortage of suspects. Detective Trask (John H. Crossar) dedicates himself to finding the truth as quickly as possible. Were it not for the "star" power of Washburn and Stonehouse, no one would have gone to see The Alster Case except the critics who were paid to do so. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In its short-lived heyday, the Chicago-headquartered Essanay Film Manufacturing Company would frequently base a major film on either a novel or short story published in a popular magazine. Just in case you were really wondering, The Motor Buccaneers was adapted from an Edgar Franklin novel of the same name published in the January 1914 issue of Argosy Magazine, which was a part of the Frank Munsey publishing empire. The plot involves an attorney (Francis X. Bushman) who is framed for the murder of a colleague. He uncovers the bad guys and in doing so, he clears his name and wins the love of his sweetheart. Contemporary reviewers liked the film, and in particular, they cited the exciting automobile chase scenes. Unfortunately, the film itself is not known to have survived and is considered lost. ~ Richard Gilliam, All Movie Guide

Although already a matinee idol, handsome Francis X. Bushman reportedly won the leading role in this very popular adventure melodrama by winning The Ladies' World's highly publicized "Hero Contest." Bushman played John Delancey Curtis, an American railroad magnate who saves the beautiful Lady Hermione (Beverly Bayne) from being forced into marrying the nasty Count Vasillian (Rapley Holmes). One of Essanay's largest undertakings, One Wonderful Night was filmed on location in New York City and not in Chicago, the company's usual haunt. Considering that Bushman was the only Essanay star to be entered into the "Hero Contest," his victory over such major names as Crane Wilbur and J. Warren Kerrigan was a bit suspect. Bushman later married his leading lady in this and many other films, Beverly Bayne. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide