Claire McDowell Movies

Although director Cecil B. DeMille was known for his Biblical spectaculars and florid comedy-dramas about domestic relations, it was his older brother William C. DeMille who had taste and class. His pictures were smaller and more intimate, and they were also often more sophisticated. This picture, based on the stage play by Rachel Crothers, was very well cast, and while Wallace Reid gets top billing, he really has very little to do. Bebe Daniels is clearly the star. Jazz baby Teddy Glouster (Daniels) infuriates her father (Edward Martindel) with her wild ways, so she goes to stay at the family's country home. This does not slow her down one bit, and her entanglement with alcoholic fortune hunter Scotty Wilbur (the very hard-to-resist Conrad Nagel) gets her in a lot of trouble. One night he tries to force himself on her, and she is saved only by the sudden appearance of a stranger, who puts a halt to the assault. Since both men wind up staying the night, it causes a scandal. Mr. Glouster, however, forgives his daughter, and after she promises to settle down and lead a quiet life, the stranger, ex-soldier Billy Wade (Wallace Reid), agrees to marry her. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

After the success of the 1919 picture The Miracle Man, producers made quite a number of films about faith-healers in hopes of duplicating its box office returns. This one is no classic -- considering the weak plot, it's a surprise that it came off so well. Joe Laird (Carl Gantvoort) is a hardworking young businessman who works his way up in the company, eventually becoming the private secretary of boss Adam Breed (Robert McKim). But life at home isn't so sweet -- he has a cynical, ungrateful wife, Gladys (Betty Brice), who is less than thrilled when Laird's mother, May Caroline (Claire McDowell), moves in. Gladys laughs at May's claim that she is a faith healer, but then she cures grandson, Bobbie (Frankie Lee), who is crippled. And when the boss's daughter Vivian (Claire Adams) injures her back while trying to rescue Ella, the Lairds' little girl (Mary Jane Irving), from a tree, May gets down to praying once again and heals her. None of this has any effect on Gladys, who runs off with a lover, leaving a note that says, "If my going wounds you, get your mother to heal it." In a way, that's just what happens because after Vivian's recovery, she and Laird fall in love. Gladys is killed, which conveniently gets her out of the way so that the couple can marry. This picture was based on the story by Clara Louise Burnham; the directing credit went to Benjamin B. Hampton "and associates" -- whatever that meant. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

This drama was a rare directing effort from screenwriter Marion Fairfax. Sam Clairborne Sr. (Charles Mailes) wills his estate to his foster son, Bill O'Hara (Pat O'Malley), because his own son, Sam Clairborne Jr. (George Dromgold), has proven to be a drug fiend and unworthy. Part of the Clairborne estate is a dying newspaper, and O'Hara struggles to keep it alive. Although O'Hara loves Sue DeMuidde (Marjorie Daw), he still exposes her father (Noah Beery) in the paper as someone who rents out his property to drug smugglers. Other than that, there's very little news to be had and the paper is about to fold when O'Hara decides to fake a murder to drum up some excitement. The endeavor is a fiasco, and when a dead body is found in the river, Mr. DeMuidde encourages the townsfolk to believe that O'Hara is the killer. It turns out that the dead man is Sam Jr., and he committed suicide. The truth is revealed just in time to save O'Hara. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Emory Johnson both directs and acts in this sentimental family drama. Patrick O'Hara (Ralph Lewis) is a kindly policeman who finds a lost little girl (Josephine Adair) who has stolen some milk. Instead of turning her in, he brings her home, and, when she is discovered to be an orphan, adopts her. Mary grows up with O'Hara's two sons, Harry (Benny Alexander) and Johnny (Johnny Thompson). When the children grow up, Johnny (Johnnie Walker) and Mary (Ella Hall) have fallen in love and plan to marry. Harry (Johnson), a law student, is accused of stealing several hundred dollars, and his mother (Claire McDowell) is devastated by the news. Johnny resolves to get the money and clear Harry's name; unbeknownst to him, Mary also decides to help Harry. The bank where Johnny works is robbed, and he is accused of the theft. At the trial, the evidence seems overwhelming until Harry steps in and begins to work on his defense. The real robber confesses, clearing Johnny's name. Harry, too, is cleared of the charges against him and the family is happy once again. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Director William DeMille was stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place with this light comedy, based on the play by James M. Barrie. If he remained faithful to Barrie, he risked having a wordy, rather static picture. If he took cinematic liberties, Barrie disciples would be furious -- as they already were at his brother, Cecil B. DeMille, for turning Admirable Crichton into Male and Female. DeMille decided to remain true to the author, with mixed results, even though Lois Wilson was perfectly cast as Maggie. Maggie Wylie is married off to aspiring politician John Shand (Conrad Nagel) because her father is afraid she's headed for spinsterhood. Shand makes a success of himself because of his speeches. What he doesn't know is that Maggie has been rewriting them when she types them up, and it is her additions that are putting him over. Shand takes Maggie completely for granted and begins a flirtation with Sybil Tenterden (Lillian Tucker). Maggie allows the affair, and the day comes when he has to give a speech and he realizes the one he has written is a washout. He asks Maggie for help and finally understands just how much she means to him. Barrie's story was also filmed in 1917 and in 1934 -- the latter version starred Helen Hayes, who had played Maggie on Broadway. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Cosmo Hamilton, a popular author of the era, wrote the novel on which this drama was based. During a train trip, Mary McLeod (Ethel Clayton) loses her purse and her ticket, and Phillip Dominick (Herbert Rawlinson) comes to her rescue by offering her his drawing room, while he sleeps in the smoking car. The pair fall in love and wed, but Mary is distressed to find out that Dominick is satisfied to live off his mother (Claire McDowell). Mrs. Dominick is a snobbish society matron who wants the couple to separate so her boy can marry a girl of his own class. When Mary has a child, she sees no alternative but to stay under her mother-in-law's roof. Mrs. Dominick firmly takes charge of the infant and Mary is not allowed near it. In spite of Mrs. Dominick's care (or perhaps indirectly because of it), the infant dies. Mary finally can stand it no more and returns to her studio. This wakes Phillip up to the fact that his mother's money is doing him no good, and he resolves to earn his own living. His decision helps him to reunite with Mary. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Parental indiscretions break up a marriage in this rare surviving melodrama directed by King Vidor. Upon learning that her new husband John Trott (Lloyd Hughes) is the son of a notorious woman, Tilly (Madge Bellamy) is all too easily persuaded by her father (Frank Brownlee) to leave home and hearth. Believing that John has perished in a train wreck, a reluctant Tilly agrees to marry old beau Joel Epperson (Joseph Bennett). But when circumstances bring Tilly and a very much alive John back together, a rather accommodating Joel opts to commit suicide. In the end, Liz Trott (Claire McDowell) proves not to be John's mother after all and Tilly and John are reunited with everyone's blessings. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Johnston MacCulley's 1913 adventure yarn The Curse of Capistrano was given its first filmization in Douglas Fairbanks' 1920 The Mark of Zorro. Fairbanks plays the outwardly foppish Don Diego de la Vega, the son of wealthy Spanish Californian rancher. In reality, Don Diego is the dashed masked-and-caped Zorro, who wages a one-man war to rescue his fellow citizens from the tyranny Captain Juan Ramon (Robert McKim). The lovely Lolita (Marguerite de la Motte) despises the namby-pamby Don Diego, but loves the devil-may-care Zorro, never dreaming (until the end, of course) that the two men are one. In turn, Lolita is loved by Captain Ramon, who is as ruthless in his domestic dealings as he is in his political weight-throwing. Noah Beery Sr. plays Sgt. Garcia, a buffoonish minion of Ramon's who eventually casts his lot with Zorro--after being bested time and again by the hero's swordplay. Best scene: Zorro insouciantly challenging Ramon's soldiers to capture him while he wines and dines at a local cantina. At the time he made Mark of Zorro, Fairbanks was best known for his peppy contemporary comedies. He hoped that Zorro would be an interesting temporary change of pace for him, never dreaming that the film's popularity would lock him into the swashbuckling mode for the rest of the silent career. In 1925, Fairbanks starred in a sequel, Don Q, Son of Zorro; the original film has, of course, been remade many times since 1920. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The careful direction of William C. DeMille (brother of Cecil) brought fresh life to Cosmo Hamilton's all-too-typical story, His Friend and his Wife. Because Bob Meredith (Jack Holt) spends all his time working, his wife Margaret (Lois Wilson) feels the romance has ebbed away from their marriage. One night, while Meredith is at the office, family friend Julian Osborn (Conrad Nagel) -- whose own spouse (Lila Lee) is out of town -takes Margaret to a dance. They wind up at a hunting lodge and begin to get carried away, but stop before things get out of hand. The pair agree to keep their encounter a secret, but unfortunately, they've been seen and word gets back to their spouses. Finally everyone gets together, confessions are offered and all is forgiven. Incidentally, Midsummer Madness was released in the dead of winter. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

This film was one of Mary Pickford's attempts to add at least a touch of maturity to her little girl characterizations. She is a Kentucky mountain girl in this romantic adventure film, and Harold Goodwin is the boy who befriends her. Sam DeGrasse was the villain. Future silent-screen idol Jack Gilbert also had a small role. While Heart O' the Hills received politely positive reviews and some interest surrounded Pickford's more mature role (the character was teen-aged; Mary herself was 27), there were no real raves. After this, Pickford firmly returned to the security of her more youthful portrayals -- her next film was Pollyanna. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Early silent-screen western stars Jack Richardson and Josie Sedgwick starred in this average melodrama from the Triangle film factory. The theme of the film was a favorite of the 1910s: miscegenation. Duce Chalmers (Richardson) runs a saloon in Indian country and sires a child with Indian maiden Natcha ({veteran character actress Claire McDowell). All kinds of trouble breaks lose when newly arrived schoolmarm Esther Brown (Sedgwick) allows the "half-breed" child into her classroom. The hubbub convinces Chalmers to seek redemption and not only ceases selling booze to the Indians but marries Natcha. It is highly unlikely that this denouement would have passed censors a decade later. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Although Rupert Julian was basically a journeyman director, he never saw himself in that light. He certainly liked to challenge himself, and that he does in this version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol by playing Scrooge. He was ably supported by John Cook as Scrooge's overworked clerk Bob Crachit, Francis Lee as Crachit's boy, Tiny Tim, Francelia Billington as Scrooge's long-ago sweetheart and Harry Carter as the ghost of Scrooge's partner, Jacob Marley. This take on the Dickens story was decent enough (if you ignored the fact that it was obviously shot in sunny southern C alifornia, and that the actors in their heavy coats and mufflers were undoubtedly sweltering), but any of the later versions are better. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide