June Mathis Movies

This routine drama was spiced up by a good cast and solid directing. A clerk (Lloyd Hughes) loses his job, so his wife, Tamara (Billie Dove), goes back to work as a Follies girl. This causes a rift between the couple and they separate. The clerk goes out to dinner with a friend, an inventor (Arthur Hoyt) who has been trying unsuccessfully to see a certain millionaire (Lewis Stone) to get financial backing. Little do they know, the millionaire is dining at the next table, and is infatuated with Tamara. The three men strike up a casual conversation, and when the clerk relates the tale of his separation, the millionaire insists that he should make his wife come back. He also has some advice for the inventor: he should force the man he seeks to listen to him. That night, Tamara goes to meet the millionaire and confesses she is already married. The clerk shows up and the millionaire reunites them. Meanwhile, the inventor, who can't get in to see the millionaire, comes in through a window and the millionaire is forced to listen to his pitch. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Even minus the original musical score, this silent-film adaptation of the Broadway hit Irene is a delight. Colleen Moore stars as Irene O'Dare, an Irish colleen who comes to New York in search of a job. She lands a position at the fancy fashion salon owned by one Mme. Lucy, a male couturier campily portrayed by George K. Arthur. Becoming the establishment's top fashion model, Irene is a huge success, though it takes her a bit longer to find romantic happiness in the arms of wealthy Donald Marshall (Lloyd Hughes), thanks to the strenuous efforts by Donald's snooty mother (Ida Darling) to break up the relationship. The highlight of the film is a Technicolor fashion sequence, which remains a visual feast even though the colors have faded in most available prints. Irene was remade in 1940 with Anna Neagle. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This society drama, adapted from the play by Arthur Richman, was the first directorial effort of cinematographer Silvano Balboni, who often was known just as Balboni. It features a color sequence of a decadent Roman banquet as its climax. Claire Marsh (Blanche Sweet) uses up a good chunk of her father's money when she divorces Max Fraisier (Leo White) in Paris. Claire discovers that Dick Clayton, her childhood pal (Jack Mulhall), is in the city studying art and they begin a romance. When his mother (Julia Swayne Gordon) disapproves, Dick goes to Venice. Claire follows, and they end up living together in unwedded bliss (not a common occurrence in 1926, and rather scandalous). Their affair is dampened when Count Filippo Sturani (John Sainpolis) starts up a flirtation with Claire, inflaming Dick's jealousy. The couple argues, and Claire returns to Paris, where Sturani holds a lavish Roman-style banquet in her honor. The curtains catch fire in the midst of the revelry, and Dick shows up in time to save Claire's life. The pair happily reunites. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Proving once and for all that Western filmmaking was treacherous work even for the greatest of stars, Colleen Moore broke her neck in a fall from a moving handcar during the making of this rousing sagebrush melodrama. The pert Moore, an idol of her generation, quickly regained her mobility but was reportedly forced to sleep in a leather neck support for nearly ten years. She had insisted on a departure from her usual flapper roles and screenwriter June Mathis had crafted this quaint melodrama of a mining camp girl who reforms a young derelict addicted to drink (Lloyd Hughes). Escaping her violent stepfather Mike Dyer (Frank Brownlee), Maggie Fortune (Moore) takes up residence in the rough mining town of Bullfrog. She falls in love with handsome Rance Conway (Hughes) and he with her, but Rance can't keep away from the bottle. While Conway is away grubstaking, Dyer turns up in Bullfrog, only to be killed by an unknown assailant. When both Rance and Maggie confess to the killing, a confused sheriff files the death away as a suicide. Revealed to be a wealthy young scion, a sober Rance proposes marriage, and Maggie accepts. A blandly handsome leading man from Arizona, dark-haired Lloyd Hughes was at his best when playing opposite strong female stars such as Mary Pickford (The of the Storm Country, 1922), Moore (five films including this one), and Mary Astor (eight times). His sound films were mostly in the "B" category. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

After her impressive dramatic role in So Big, Colleen Moore returned to light comedies (mostly because her studio knew they would bring in more money). Moore played the title role, made famous on Broadway by Marilyn Miller; Leon Errol reprises his stage role as the deposed Duke of Checkergovinia, who has been reduced to working as a waiter in America. That's where he meets Sally, an orphan girl who is working as a dishwasher. Sally has her sights on a better life -- she learned how to dance while living with Mr. DuFey, a dance teacher (Louise Beaudet), and she knows she has potential. With the help of Blaire Farquar, one of the restaurant patrons (Lloyd Hughes), she finally gets a break. An agent takes her on, and has her pose as a famous Russian dancer. While performing at a reception held by Mrs. Ten Broeck (Myrtle Stedman), she runs into Farquar, who falls in love with her. Sally, however, turns him down, since he did not love her when she was a dishwasher. After she becomes a star, he convinces her to reconsider. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Frank Norris' powerful Zola-esque novel McTeague was first filmed in 1915. While filmmaker Erich Von Stroheim would insist that he'd been enthralled by the book since it first came out in 1902, it is more likely that he didn't make the novel's acquaintance until seeing that 1915 film. Whatever the case, Von Stroheim vowed that, if he ever had enough Hollywood clout, he'd produce the "definitive" version of McTeague. After scoring an enormous financial hit with Foolish Wives, he had just that clout, and, in 1923, he began work on what he hoped would his masterpiece.

Stripped to its bare essentials, McTeague tells the story of a brutish, but basically good-natured, miner named McTeague (played by Gibson Gowland), who finds his true calling in life by taking over the practice of a traveling dentist. Setting up shop in San Francisco, McTeague falls in love with Trina (ZaSu Pitts), the daughter of German immigrants. It happens that Trina is the girlfriend of McTeague's best pal Marcus (Jean Hersholt), who is mildly resentful, but ultimately forgiving, when McTeague and Trina are married. Always seeking out an opportunity to better herself, Trina buys a lottery ticket. When the ticket pays off and she wins a fortune, the previously even-tempered Trina undergoes a complete personality change, metamorphosing into a grasping, greedy, miserly shrew, hoarding huge sums of money while her husband must get by on his meager earnings as a dentist. Trina's sudden windfall sparks a change in both McTeague and Marcus, as well; driven to distraction by his wife's avarice, McTeague turns into a violent beast, while Marcus boils with jealousy over losing the now-prosperous Trina to McTeague. Pushed too far, McTeague ultimately murders Trina and escapes to the desert with her money. Appointed a sheriff's deputy, the envious Marcus heads out to bring McTeague in, and the two men catch up with one another in the middle of Death Valley. Their water supply gone, their packhorse dead, McTeague and Marcus begin a fight to the death. McTeague manages to shoot and kill Marcus -- only to discover that Marcus has manacled himself to McTeague. Utterly defeated, he sits benumbed on the scorching rocks, awaiting madness and a horrible death.

Filming at actual locations (the murder scene was shot at a locale where a real murder had occurred, while the sweltering Death Valley sequence was, likewise, made there), Von Stroheim remained doggedly faithful to the Norris original, shooting every page word for word. The end result ran 40 reels, or roughly 10 hours of screen time. Then came the corporate intrigues. Von Stroheim, who had begun the film through the auspices of the old Goldwyn studios, now had to contend with the newly formed Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer regime. Production head Irving Thalberg argued logically that no audience would sit still for ten hours of unrelenting realism. Von Stroheim reluctantly responded by paring his film down to 20 reels, but it was still far too long and depressing for MGM's taste. The director's friend Rex Ingram weeded out two more reels, warning Von Stroheim that "If you cut out another inch, I'll never speak to you again." At this point, MGM, feeling that too much money had already been spent on the project, took McTeague away from Von Stroheim and ordered June Mathis to whittle the picture down to ten reels. It is this version, retitled Greed, that was released to the public in late 1924.

Far from the financial disaster that MGM always claimed it was (the film actually posted a small profit), Greed was still too overpowering for many observers. Critics and audiences were sharply divided, some hailing the film as a work of unbridled genius, others dismissing as "an epic of the sewer." Von Stroheim, angered that his baby had been "butchered," refused to ever see the ten-reel Greed. When viewed today, the film retains its raw dramatic power; the continuity gaps and clumsy transitional titles that once seemed so unforgivable are generally ignored by contemporary audiences. Still, Greed is not a happy, high-kickin' production. Though a rewarding experience, it remains very rough sledding for those accustomed to traditional, conservative entertainment. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This comedy-melodrama, based on the novel by Rupert Hughes (who also directed), blends fiction and reality to tell the story of a young woman's rise in Hollywood; the film uses real stars and productions (even Charles Chaplin filming A Woman of Paris) as its backdrop. Eleanor Boardman plays Remember Steddon, better known as Mem. Mem is a small-town girl who marries slick bad guy Owen Scudder (Lew Cody); Owen insures his brides and then murders them for the money. After the wedding, Mem starts to have her doubts about him and runs away while their train is chugging through the desert. She happens on a film crew and gets work as an extra, later becoming a famous dramatic actress in Hollywood with the help of director Frank Claymore (Richard Dix). Scudder finally tracks her down during a shoot involving a circus tent; when a storm sets the tent on fire, Scudder loses his life saving Mem from a wind machine's propeller. Freed from her marriage, Mem is able to choose between Claymore and her leading man. Boardman, whose first starring role finds her surrounded by a long and impressive supporting cast, wound up at the Goldwyn studios through a "New Faces" contest. Her co-winner, future star William Haines, also had a bit part as the company's assistant director. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

This film is based on the novel by F. Marion Crawford, and involves the court of King Philip II of Spain. Philip is jealous of his powerful and popular brother, Don John (Edmund Lowe), so he sends him to fight in the Moors, hoping that he will not return. John leaves behind the woman he loves, Dolores Mendoza (Blance Sweet). Dolores' father, General Mendoza (Hobart Bosworth), believes that John is playing with his daughter's heart and disapproves of the match. John returns victorious from the Moors and continues to push his suit. Meanwhile, Princess Eboli, the king's favorite (Aileen Pringle), is in charge of a plot to depose Philip and put John on the throne. The two royal brothers have a heated argument, and Philip leaves John for dead. To save the king, Mendoza claims responsibility. But Dolores knows the truth and threatens to tell all unless the king pardons her father. The king agrees, and when it turns out that John has only been wounded, Philip also consents to his wedding to Dolores. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Eleanor Boardman and William Haines came to Hollywood when they were winners in the same contest held by the Goldwyn studios. While Boardman's star rose faster than Haines' (with Brown of Harvard, he would eventually catch up), they appeared together in this comedy-drama adapted from the play by Austin Strong. Claude Gillingwater, who played Findley on Broadway, reprises his role. Three men -- Findley (Craig Biddle Jr.), James Trumbull (Creighton Hale), and Gaunt (Raymond Hatton) -- are all in love with the same woman. Although none of them win her, the men remain lifelong pals. As old bachelors (Findley is played by Gillingwater, William H. Crane is Trumbull, and Gaunt is Alec B. Francis), they're surprised when Sydney Fairchild (Boardman) shows up. Sydney is the grown daughter of the girl they lost, and her mother has willed her to the three men. She brings light into their lives until a con who knows her father tries to kill Trumbull, a judge. Findley's nephew, Gordon Schuyler (Haines), helps her untangle the mess, and weds her in the bargain. Eventually, a real-life wedding would happen as a result of the film -- director King Vidor met Boardman while casting the picture, and they married in 1926. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Alice Lake has a surprisingly unsympathetic role in this melodrama, based on a magazine story by mystery writer Wadsworth Camp. She's showgirl Babe Lennox, who allows herself to be romanced by two gamblers who hate each other -- Dave Hume (Harry Northrup) and Edward Felton (Charles Clary). She is also loved by assistant district attorney Dick Talbot (Conrad Nagel). The gamblers' rivalry comes to a head about the time Hume finds out that, due to a fatal disease, he only has a few weeks to live. In lieu of waiting for the end, he chloroforms himself to death, using a handkerchief belonging to Felton. Because of the circumstantial evidence, Talbot aggressively convicts Felton of murder and sends him to the electric chair. But on the day of his execution, Babe delivers a bronze statue of a devil, inside of which Hume has left a suicide note. At the very last moment Felton is freed. It would make sense at this point that Babe would go to him, but instead she marries Talbot. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Although she came from a comedy background, Alice Lake preferred to concentrate on dramas during most of the 1920s. The majority of these films were undistinguished, so this light comedy comes across like a breath of fresh air. During a train trip, Betty Ellen Estabrook (Lake) meets Bill Bailey (Harry Myers), who is impressed both with her and her homemade candy kisses. He asks her to sell them at a booth at a charity bazaar and they are a huge success. Unfortunately for Bailey, however, Betty is already taken -- her fiancé is Norman Maynard (Dana Todd), the son of a confectioner (Edward Jobson). But then Betty's father (Edward Connelly) dies, and Maynard breaks off the engagement. She turns to Bailey, and they form a partnership to manufacture her kisses, going into direct competition with the Maynard concern. Betty and Bailey do so well that her former fiancé is compelled to pay a hefty price for the business. Of course, Betty and Bailey go on to form a more romantic type of partnership. This picture was one of the last from the influential producer and director Maxwell Karger -- he died of a heart attack only weeks after the film was released. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Bert Lytell stars in this slightly absurd romantic comedy. When Bedford Mills (Lytell) returns from the Great War (or World War I, as it was later known), he takes a job as a bank clerk. Somehow he and a couple of his pals wind up at the Fifth Avenue home of the Jessops, a society family. Mills falls hopelessly in love with the Jessop daughter, Helen (Lucy Cotton). She likes him, but she's very conscious of the difference in their social standing, so she tells him that if he wants her he must make a name for himself. Mills has no idea about how to do this until he concludes that the cost of shoes is outrageous. In protest he decides to go barefoot. His crusade takes him to a fashionable restaurant where Helen is dining. She's less than impressed with his attempt at publicity. The police are not happy with him either, and he winds up in jail. The folks on the Lower East Side believe in him, and they all begin going barefoot, too. Mills' name becomes known, and even though he doesn't get Helen, he does win Mary Turner (Virginia Valli), who dares to go barefoot alongside him -- and who is the daughter of the president of the shoe trust. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Famed screenwriter June Mathis wrote the screenplay to this comedy from Kennett Harris's Saturday Evening Post story, "Junk." Sam Weatherbee (Bert Lytell) was born into money, and he seems to think his whole purpose in life is to spend it. But in the midst of a party he is throwing, the young millionaire receives word that his fortune is gone. The concept of working for a living is completely beyond him until he inherits his aunt's cottage in Los Angeles He goes West to discover that the place is loaded with junk, but he realizes that this supposedly worthless stuff may be of use to somebody. So he opens up a trading post in the front yard, which eventually develops into the West Coast Barter and Exchange Company. Weatherbee is once again in the money, and is able to win pretty Mattie Walling (Virginia Valli from his rival, Dillingham Coolidge (John Davidson). ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi