Bess Meredyth Movies

After several years of lending support to "bigger" Universal contract players, Lon Chaney Sr. was at last afforded star billing in Pay Me. Typically, however, Chaney's character, shiftless wanderer Joe Lawson, was secondary to the film's "official" star, Dorothy Phillips. The story concentrates on Marta (Phillips), the daughter of faded dance-hall girl Nita (Claire Du Brey). Utterly ignorant of her mother's previous occupation, Marta is confronted by a man who claims to be her father and insists on being paid a huge sum of "hush money." The outcome of the film is contingent upon the re-awakening of the blackmailer's sense of decency and honor. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The first Tarzan starring Elmo Lincoln did so well that, in time-honored cinematic tradition, the studio, First National, made a sequel. This picture covers the last chapters of Edgar Rice Burroughs' novel, Tarzan of the Apes, and brings Tarzan back to civilization -- jungle man or not, Tarzan is still the son of Lord and Lady Greystoke and needs to claim the family fortune. He sets sail for England, along with his ladylove, Jane Porter (Enid Markey) and the villainous Clayton (Colin Kenny), who wants to get his hands on the Greystoke millions. The ship is attacked by natives, and although Tarzan saves everyone else, they sail away without him because Clayton claims he was killed. But this doesn't stop Tarzan -- he swims out and boards another boat. Eventually he lands in California, where Jane and her father (Thomas Jefferson) are entertaining Clayton at their ranch. When Tarzan shows up, Clayton enlists the help of a dance hall girl, La Belle Odine (Cleo Madison). Odine compromises Tarzan and Jane rejects him. So Tarzan returns to the jungle. But Odine, who has fallen for Tarzan herself, goes to Jane and tells her the truth. So Jane goes to Tarzan in the jungle and they reunite. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Future Judge Hardy Lewis Stone plays a restless middle-aged man in this drama. After 20 years of marriage, Mary Emerson (Cleo Madison) treats her husband, John (Stone), more like a son than a spouse, so it's no wonder that a fresh young thing by the name of Gloria Sanderson (Ruth Clifford) catches his eye. Rejuvenated by Gloria's attention, Emerson takes her on dates to the races and attends the most fashionable cabarets. Somehow he manages to evade her inquiries into his marital status. Emerson decides that he is in love with Gloria, so he writes Mary a letter saying that he will not be returning to her. He only realizes his foolishness when he discovers Gloria in the arms of another man -- her fiancé. In a panic he tries to retrieve the letter he wrote, but discovers it is already on its way. In a mad dash, he drives his car in front of the train, which stops after smashing the car to bits. Emerson uses this opportunity to get on the train. He arrives home ahead of the letter, in time for the wedding of his daughter, Ruth (Edith Roberts). Mary, however, manages to get her hands on the letter, but instead of being upset over it, she realizes that her behavior is, in good part, to blame. A reconciliation between husband and wife follows. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Veteran silent star Henry Walthall shines in this drama, based on the novel by Frances Nimmo Greene. In spite of the complaints from his sister, Maggie Thornton (Irene Rich), Dr. Alan Hamilton (Milton Sills) insists on befriending Henry Garnett (Warner), who runs a gambling hall. A young woman (Claire Windsor) is brought into Hamilton's hospital unconscious, and she refuses to reveal her identity. Hamilton falls in love with the girl, who he calls Faith, and she is the only one who encourages his friendship with Garnett. On the night he keeps a rioting mob away from the gambling hall, he reveals to Faith that he is looking for Garnett's long-lost wife because the gambler has only a limited time to live. Faith finally reveals that she is the wife, but Hamilton turns around and urges her to keep her secret. His bad advice eats away at him, and he turns to drink until he is compelled to tend to his nephew, who has been badly injured. He then takes Faith to Garnett, but the dying gambler wishes her only happiness and releases her from her bond to him by drinking poison. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

Wealthy Julia Long (Mabel Trunelle) is in love with a poor boy, but Julia's snobbish mother (Helen Strickland) forces her into a loveless marriage with millionaire George Bender (Robert Connesse). Out of boredom, Julia begins taking singing lessons, and before long she has fallen in love with her handsome voice teacher. She runs off to Paris with the teacher, leaving her daughter in Bender's care. Soon afterward, Julia's paramour deserts her, leaving her to fend for herself. Luckily, she makes all the right contacts, and before long she is the reigning opera diva of Paris. Eighteen years later, Julia returns to America, hoping for a reconciliation with her now-grown daughter Cora. Our heroine discovers that her social-climbing mother is still up to her old tricks, trying to marry off Cora to a mercenary European nobleman. It so happens, however, that Julia has herself had an "experience" with Cora's smarmy fiance, and she uses this leverage to break up the engagement, thereby ensuring her daughter the happiness that she herself has never truly enjoyed. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Ramon Novarro and Barbara LaMarr, the featured players who made such an impression in The Prisoner of Zenda, reunite in this drama as stars. Juan Ricardo (Novarro) is a soldier in the Spanish army. He is offered a promotion to sergeant if he will seduce Guerrita (LaMarr), the young wife of Pedro, an old smuggler (William V. Mong), and get his hands on the illicit goods. It gets complicated, however, when Ricardo and Guerrita fall in love. Guerrita tries to convince him to desert the army, but her husband Pedro discovers the affair, and informs the Commandante (Robert Edeson). Pedro then kills his wife and dies of heart failure. Ricardo is about to be court-martialed, but the Commandante's daughter, Dolores (Edith Roberts) saves him. She argues that he should not have been forced to be a traitor to a woman, and the fact that he refused makes him chivalrous. This film was based on Benjamin Glazer's version of the play by Karl Schoenherr. Bess Meredyth wrote the screenplay. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

One of the final films bearing the Vitagraph stamp before that company was completely absorbed by Warner Bros., this silent melodrama starred debonair Canadian actor Huntley Gordon as a newlywed almost losing his wife to a bounder. Desiring both Rex Westmore's money, and his new wife Betty (Ruth Clifford), crooked financial advisor Ward Ralston (John Roche) conspires with a phony doctor to ruin Rex's health. After the doc has pumped Rex full of drugs, Ralston cons Betty into divorcing her husband and marry him. But Ralston's scheme is exposed and Rex and Betty are reunited. Willard Louis and Louise Fazenda added a bit of comic relief to an overly melodramatic tale. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

The advertising tag "four years in the making" is usually so much press-agent puffery. In the case of the 1926 silent version of Ben Hur, it was the unvarnished truth--and the filmmakers had the scars to prove it. The story behind the film is now part of Hollywood folklore: the cast and production crew changes (star George Walsh summarily dumped in favor of Roman Novarro, director Charles J. Brabin replaced by Fred Niblo, writer-supervisor June Mathis-who'd spearheaded the project in the first place-abruptly fired); the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on the troublesome location shooting in Italy--money that was lost when most of the footage proved unusable; the extra expenditure of refilming in Hollywood; and the huge chunk of the film's profits eaten up by the 50% royalty deal set up with theatrical producers Klaw and Erlanger, who controlled the rights to General Lew Wallace's novel. The end result reflected the turbulent production conditions: Ben Hur is an extraordinarily uneven experience, with moments of cinematic brilliance and pulse-pounding thrills alternating with long stretches of stagey boredom. The film follows the original Wallace story to the letter: Judah Ben-Hur (Novarro), a wealthy Jew living under the reign of the Caesars, is betrayed by his best friend, ambitious Roman centurion Messala (Francis X. Bushman). Ben-Hur's family is sent to prison, while he himself is condemned to the galleys. During a violent sea battle, Ben-Hur saves the life of galleon commander Quintus Arrius (Frank Currier). The grateful commander adopts Ben-Hur as his son and bankrolls his desire to become a champion charioteer. Thirsting for revenge, Ben-Hur agrees to race against his old nemesis Messala. The latter is fatally injured during the race; with his dying breath, Messala reveals that Ben-Hur's family, previously reported dead, are actually alive--but living as lepers. The story is subtitled A Tale of the Christ because, at various junctures in his life, Ben-Hur has been touched by the hand of Jesus. Ben-Hur must totally embrace Christ's edict of love and forgiveness before he can be reunited with his family. As Jesus is crucified in Jerusalem, Ben-Hur's mother (Claire McDowell) and sister (Kathleen Key), having also embraced the Christian philosophy, are miraculously cured of their leprosy. Most of these plot elements, together with the romance between Ben-Hur and the lovely Esther (May McAvoy), reappeared in the 1959 remake of Ben-Hur--which, fortunately, did not include the ridiculous subplot involving the alluring Iras (Carmel Myers), who attempts to seduce Ben-Hur just before the big race. The film's highlights--the sea battle, the now-legendary chariot race--were produced on a far grander scale than in the 1959 version; unfortunately, both highlights took place in the first half of the picture, leaving the viewers with a rather dreary, drawn out denouement (the remake wisely placed the sea battle in part one, and the race in part two). The Technicolor Nativity sequences were condemned in 1926 as being in poor taste, but when seen today are beautifully handled and restful on the eye (oddly, no one complained about the nude female revellers during a later Technicolor pageant scene!) Ben Hur cost $4 million and grossed $9 million on its first release. The aforementioned royalty arrangement left MGM with only a $1 million take. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This silent screen adaptation of "Moby Dick" features John Barrymore in action as Captain Ahab Cooley, played against one of the most famous denizens of the deep, Herman Melville's great white whale. At the beginning of the story, Ahab and his step brother Dererk (George O'Hara) compete for the affections of a winsome minister's daughter, Esther Wiscasset (Dolores Costello). Meanwhile, the albino whale has been eluding harpooners, and bears the scars of many failed attacks against him. His fame has reached epic proportions. One day, Ahab and Derek are on the same whaler as the whale hovers into view. With the visual drama enhanced by the water and pitching boat, Ahab raises his harpoon to kill the beast. At that moment, Derek pushes him overboard and Ahab loses a right leg to the whale. In this scene, Barrymore's portrayal of agonizing pain as an antiseptic is poured over what remains of his leg contributed to his fame as a silents actor. Not long after this incident, the shallow Esther rebuffs Ahab as her suitor once she catches sight of his peg leg. Heartbroken at this turn of events, Ahab blames neither Esther nor his brother - instead he transfers blame and an undying hatred onto the whale. The following saga of Ahab's pursuit of the whale takes on the aura of a super-human quest, far beyond the proportions of its first motivation. One of the most popular of Barrymore's films, this version extends the story beyond the final battle of man versus whale in a variation on Melville's book. Adding publicity to the film was a bit of early Hollywood hype, unintentional though it may seem. The actress Priscella Bonner was fired by Barrymore from the role of Wiscasset, and in a curious parallel to Ahab and the mighty whale, she successfully sued the studio and won a considerable out-of-court settlement. Doubtless due to the popularity of this film, another was released in 1930 under Melville's original book title, with Barrymore again in the role of Captain Ahab. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

The winning combination of star May McAvoy and director Byron Haskin was reteamed in Warner Bros.' Irish Hearts. McAvoy stars as Sheila, an Irish immigrant who lands a job as a short-order cook in New York. Scrimping and saving, Sheila gives all her money to fellow immigrant Emmett (Warner Richmond), on the assumption that he plans to marry her. But when the ungrateful Emmett throws her over for another colleen, Sheila finds solace in the arms of handsome Rory (Jason Robards Sr.). But Emmett isn't let off the hook for his duplicity: in the final scene, a fiery Sheila pelts her ex-sweetie's wedding party with rotten vegetables! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This tale of California's Spanish days is gorgeous fiction, from the sumptuous settings to the stars -- the leads are lovely, doe-eyed Mary Astor and the impossibly handsome Gilbert Roland. Juan (Roland) is about to elope with the convent-bred Elena (Astor), when he is chosen to assassinate the governor (Montagu Love), who is about to hand California over to the Russians. Since the governor also happens to be Elena's father, this puts him in quite a fix. Elena discovers the scheme, and, in order to save her father, blows the whistle on Juan. Then, to save Juan, she calls on the United States Marines, who come to everybody's rescue. The plot of the Russian prince (Andre Cheron) is foiled, Juan is saved, and California goes to the United States. In spite of his association with the Russians, the governor proves not to be a bad sort after all, and Elena winds up with Juan. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi