Raymond Schrock Movies

Directed by James Cruze, this silent drama stars William Haines as Duke, a wealthy young heir who takes up prizefighting in order to prove that he doesn't need his father's money to make it in life. However, when he meets a beautiful college co-ed named Susie (Joan Crawford), he decides to halt his boxing plans and enroll in college. Most of the co-eds' curiosities are piqued by their new student's chauffeur and house full of servants, but Duke (Haines) is only interested in Susie. Despite her initial dislike, the feeling eventually becomes mutual. Unfortunately for the both of them, Duke's trainer falsely informs Susie that Duke is dating a New York chorus girl. Things come to a head when Duke emerges victorious from a highly-anticipated San Francisco fight, and Susie learns that the student Duke is actually the boxer Duke--and that there is no chorus girl. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Silent screen cowboy Hoot Gibson handled situation comedy better than any of his rivals, with the possible exception of Tom Mix. Many of Gibson's film's were rural farces rather than outright westerns and usually highlighted the star's bumbling attempts to woo a pretty girl. That is exactly what happens in The Hurricane Kid. "The Hooter" loves blond Marian Nixon but the lady has eyes only for slick foreman William A. Steele. That is, until the foreman is unmasked as a crook, and Gibson wins the Big Race. In typical Gibson style, the villain is defeated without a single shot being fired, or any other kind of violence, and a good time was had by all. Leading lady Marian Nixon later signed a contract with Fox and was marketed as that studio's possible replacement for an often recalcitrant Janet Gaynor. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Lon Chaney stars as Erik, the Phantom, in what is probably his most famous and certainly his most horrifying role. Produced by Universal, the film shot in 1923 and shelved for nearly two years, and was subjected to intensive studio tinkering. While many expected a disaster, the film turned out to be a rousing success. It was both the stepping off point for Chaney's run as a superstar at MGM and the prototype for the horror film cycle at Universal in the 1930s. The story concerns Erik, a much-feared fiend who haunts the Paris Opera House. Lurking around the damp, dank passages deep in the cellars of the theater, he secretly coaches understudy Christine Daae (Mary Philbin) to be an opera star. Through a startling sequence of terrors, including sending a giant chandelier crashing down on the opera patrons, the Phantom forces the lead soprano to withdraw from the opera, permitting Christine to step in. Luring Christine into his subterranean lair below the opera house, the Phantom confesses his love. But Christine is in love with Raoul de Chagny (Norman Kerry). The Phantom demands that Christine break off her relationship with Raoul before he'll allow her to return to the opera house stage. She agrees, but immediately upon her release from the Phantom's lair, she runs into the arms of Raoul and they plan to flee to England after her performance that night. The Phantom overhears their conversation and, during her performance, the Phantom kidnaps Christine, taking her to the depths of his dungeon. It is left to Raoul and Simon Buquet (Gibson Gowland), a secret service agent, to track down the Phantom and rescue Christine. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Sidney Page (Virginia Valli) is studying to be a nurse. All the young men are in love with her in the small town where she lives, but she becomes fascinated with K. LeMoyne (Percy Marmont), the mysterious stranger who moves into the boarding house belonging to her Aunt Harriet (Myrtle Vane). Sidney's attention is distracted by yet another handsome stranger who comes to her town -- Dr. Max Wilson (John Roche). Although he wins Sidney, Wilson is also seeing his nurse, Carlotta Harrison (Margarita Fisher). When Wilson and Carlotta head for a nearby inn, one of Sidney's other beaus, George Benson (Francis Feeney), shoots him. LeMoyne, it turns out, is Dr. Edwardes, noted surgeon who is in hiding after being accused of manslaughter. Carlotta convinces him to operate on Wilson to save his life. Sidney is impressed by LeMoyne's sacrifice -- he is arrested for the old charge after revealing his identity. When Carlotta confesses on the stand that she was responsible for the deaths, not Edwardes, he is acquitted and he marries Sidney. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Although Clara Bow was not yet a full-fledged star, she had already made a mark by mid-'20s. In this melodrama, said trade paper Motion Picture News, "Clara Bow is cast as the flapper, a role for which she has become quite famous on the screen." For once she is nearly upstaged by experienced character actor and perennial villain Walter Long, who plays a bootlegger. On the evening that society deb Angela Warriner (Bow) debuts, her mother (Myrtle Steadman) discovers that the family is bankrupt. To keep the Warriners afloat financially -- and to keep Angela's parties and social status intact -- Mrs. Warriner convinces her husband, John (Huntly Gordon), to become partners with Benedict (Long), a bootlegger posing as a count. Meanwhile, Angela is being courted by Carl Graham (Forrest Stanley), but Harry Van Alstyne (Robert Agnew) tempts her away with a fun, jazzy lifestyle. Everything falls down with a crash for the Warriner family; John is arrested and sent to prison, and his wife temporarily goes blind from the bootleg booze. This wakes up Angela, however, and she returns to the more sedate romancing of Graham. The story to this picture came from the Saturday Evening Post tale by William MacHarg. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Universal's top western ace Hoot Gibson enjoyed fine support from another of the studio's sagebrush stars -- cowgirl Josie Sedgwick -- in this average silent oater. He is a college boy from the East who joins a Wild West show, she the man-hating Calamity Jane, victim of a series of practical jokes. Played for laughs despite the participation of veteran bad guy G. Raymond Nye, Sawdust Trail was typical Gibson fare and vastly popular with less-discriminating audiences. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Herbert Rawlinson starred in this silent, action melodrama based on Gerald Beaumont's Red Book Magazine serial. A tough neighborhood cop, John Francis Foley loses his nerve when he believes that he almost killed Tillie Miller (Ruth Dwyer), the girl he loves. In reality, Tillie's injuries were inflicted by gangster Spike Kennedy (Eddie Gribbon), and the film culminates in a thrilling gunfight between the two. Esther Ralston, on the verge of becoming a major star, appeared as one of Dwyer's girlfriends in this low-budget Universal release. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

The novel We Are French by Percy Poore Sheehan and Robert Davis was filmed in 1916 as The Bugler of Algiers. Rupert Julian was both director and star. Here, eight years later, he directs it again, but Charles De Roche takes over the role he played, that of Pierre Dupont. Dupont and Anatole Picard (Wallace MacDonald) are residents of a little French village who join the war in Algiers in 1869, along with Jules Malincorne (Gibson Gowland). Left behind is Gabrielle Picard (Madge Bellamy), Anatole's sister and Pierre's sweetheart. Jules shoots himself in the foot so he can return to the village, where he falsely informs Gabrielle that both Pierre and Anatole are dead. Then, when the enemy shows up, he kidnaps the girl and takes her to Paris. Anatole, a bugler, is captured by the enemy, who order him to sound the retreat. Instead, he heroically sounds for the soldiers to charge. When he and Pierre finally return home, Gabrielle is nowhere to be found. All they know is that Jules was a war fatality. Fifty years pass, and Anatole is finally recognized for his action by the Legion of Honor. He and Pierre walk to Paris, but he dies along the way. Pierre pretends to be Anatole, so that his lifelong friend can be honored. Gabrielle turns up at the ceremony, and she tells Pierre that she had waited for him all these years. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Pulp writer Henry Herbert Knibb wrote the original story of this silent Hoot Gibson western, which enjoyed an above-average cast that included statuesque comedienne Gertrude Astor as a saloon belle, a devilish-looking Tully Marshall as a notorious outlaw named "The Spider," as well as future western series stars Fred Humes and Newton House. The last mentioned, a freckle-faced kid actor whose riding skills were highly admired at the time, played the hero as a child. Leading lady Gladys Hulette, a pioneering actress who had risen to fame as Princess Nicotine back in 1909, was suffering a career setback at the time despite having been Richard Barthelmess' leading lady in Tol'able David (1921). All that star power notwithstanding, Ridin' Kid from Powder River emerged as an average Gibson outing in which the cowboy star tracks down the villain who murdered his father. An enduring cliche, the story was remade by Gibson in 1930 as The Mounted Stranger. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Even though Universal Studios released this as a "Super-Jewel," it's really just the same old, tired South Seas tale with an expensive typhoon scene to dress it up. The business run by Standish (Winter Hall) and his son Jack (J. Warren Kerrigan) has always been known for its honesty. But because of the workings of a crooked lawyer, the firm becomes involved in a financial scandal. To save his father's name, Jack takes the blame and runs off to a South Seas island. There, in his loneliness, he succumbs to the advances of Lullaby Lou (Winifred Bryson) and becomes a derelict. Back home, Jack's fiancée Mary Rogers (Anna Q. Nilsson) becomes worried about him, and she comes to the island herself. Gordon Van Brock (Tom Santschi), the villainous planter who works in conjunction with Lou, decides he wants Mary for himself. But his plans come to naught and a typhoon blows away the village. After horsewhipping Van Brock, Mary takes care of Jack and restores him to sobriety and happiness. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

In this tale of the Northwest Mounted Police, William Desmond goes through his paces without a lot of enthusiasm (and, at the age of 45, he was getting a bit old for leading man roles -- "Desmond is getting heavy," Motion Picture News noted). Bob McGuire (Desmond) is a Mountie out to "get his man," in this case the leader of a band of opium smugglers. He has his eye on Big Bill Lusk (Willard Louis), proprietor of the local gambling house. But Lusk drugs him, and when he wakes up the next morning he finds himself wedded to dance hall girl Katie Peck (Vera James). McGuire is crushed by this turn of events because he is in love with Julie Montreau (Louise Lorraine), a pretty French-Canadian girl. Nevertheless he is determined to honor the marriage, even though Katie is in love with Lusk. Lusk shoots McGuire's superior and tries to lay the blame on the Mountie. But Katie, on her deathbed, reveals the whole plot. As a result, McGuire is able to close the case and reunite with Julie. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

This Universal Studios programmer features Roy Stewart as a Spanish nobleman with the unlikely name Don Jose O'Neil. O'Neil, the latest in a long line of Dons, owns valuable land out West. Easterner Peter Collier (Wilfred North) wants a strip of O'Neil's land because it is rich with oil, but O'Neil refuses to sell. So Collier sends his daughter Frances (Margaret Landis) to try to convince the Don. She goes to work on him and sure enough, he soon falls in love with her. Teresa, the foreman's daughter (Marie Wells), becomes jealous of Frances, and when she discovers Collier's plot, is more than happy to tell O'Neil about it. But Frances has come to love O'Neil and has renounced her father's scheme. O'Neil doesn't know this, however, and when the plot is exposed, he angrily threatens to brand her. Her father stops him, but Frances, to prove her love, brands herself. O'Neil realizes that she is sincere, and they marry. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide