Volume II: Filmography

FEAR

March 29, 1916 (Wednesday)

Length: 3 reels

Character: Drama; Than-O-Play

Scenario: Lloyd F. Lonergan

Cast: Robert Walker (a tradesman), Peggy Burke (his wife), Howard Mitchell (his friend), Justus D. Barnes (Jasper), Nellie Parker Spaulding

SYNOPSIS, Reel Life, March 25, 1916:

"Psychologists for nearly a century have tried to analyze the sensation known as fear. Opinions as to the cause of this dread feeling vary, but no matter what the scientific explanation is, the truth remains that we all invariably experience a form of fear some time in our life time. In our childhood the fears are trivial, and leave no lasting impression on our minds, but when they come late in life they may change our entire mode of existence. It was such a state of mind that furnished the theme for the Thanhouser-Mutual three-part psychological drama, Fear.

"The story revolves around an ungrateful man who robs his benefactor of his wife and his gold. A gypsy warns the interloper that the man he has wronged will take the woman, the gold and his life. He pays little heed to the words of the gypsy. The woman he ran away with soon tires of him, and plans a second elopement. He surprises his rival and the woman robbing his safe, and during an exchange of shots the woman is killed. It is then that he is overcome by fear and flees from place to place with the haunting dread of being accused of the murder of the woman. He scans each new face with a close scrutiny, fearful of encountering the man he had wronged. Finally he meets him under peculiar circumstances, and the fear that haunts him causes his death. The character development in this remarkable photoplay is the finest ever seen in a screen production. Howard M. Mitchell, as the man pursued by the nemesis of his past life, gives a splendid interpretation. His characterization takes a high rank in the field of motion picture acting. He is ably supported by Peggy Burke as the erring and fickle wife, while Robert Walker, as the wronged husband, is excellently cast, and lends dignity to his role."

REVIEW, The Moving Picture World, April 8, 1916:

"A three-reel number by Lloyd Lonergan, featuring H.M. Mitchell, Bob Walker, and Peggy Burke. This is somewhat gruesome, particularly in the latter scenes, yet splendidly handled. It shows how a young grocer's wife runs off with his assistant, also a fortune in money. The wife then proves untrue to the assistant and casts him off. The assistant, still possessing the money, becomes haunted by fear and keeps recalling an old gypsy's prophecy that he would die at the hands of the man he robs. The casket feature will bring shivers to some observers, but the moral of the piece gives it appeal. The conception has a touch of Poe in it."

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