| The Secret Man | |
|---|---|
 Newspaper advertisement | |
| Directed by | John Ford |
| Written by | John Ford George Hively |
| Starring | Harry Carey |
| Cinematography | Ben F. Reynolds |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 50 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Languages | Silent English intertitles |
The Secret Man is a 1917 American silent Western film, directed by John Ford and featuring Harry Carey. Two of the five reels of the film survive at the Library of Congress film archive. [1]
As described in a film magazine, [2] Cheyenne Harry (Carey) escapes from prison and while escaping comes upon the body of a young girl (Janes) that was thrown by a runaway horse. He picks her up and is proceeding on his way when his horse is frightened and bolts down a steep hillside. Harry, realizing the danger the girl is in, gives himself up so that she can receive care. Her mother Molly (Sterling) has secretly married Harry Beaufort (Foster) and it is her mother's brother who arrests Harry. The mother has been told that her little girl is dead and she loses her reason. At a church bazaar the girl is to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Mother and daughter recognize each other and the mother's mind is restored. Through the assistance of Harry, the mother and her husband are reunited. The sheriff is happy to find that the girl Annabelle is his niece and in appreciation of Harry's kindness allows him to go free.
Filming took place under the working titles The Round Up and Up Against It. The film was released by Universal Studios through a subsidiary, Universal-Butterfly, in October 1917. It was a silent film on five reels, part of the "Cheyenne Harry" series of film featurettes. [3]
Like many American films of the time, The Secret Man was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. The Chicago Board of Censors required a cut of the scene of the jailer dropping the keys before the prisoner's cell. [4]
Bucking Broadway is a 1917 American silent Western film directed by John Ford, probably his sixth feature film. Long thought to be lost, along with about 60 of Ford's 70 silent films, it was found in 2002 in the archives of the CNC. It was subsequently restored and digitized and is available on the Criterion Blu-Ray of John Ford's Stagecoach.
The Goat is a 1917 American silent comedy film featuring Oliver Hardy. Like many American films of the time, The Goat was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. The Chicago Board of Censors cut, in reel 2, the man raising the girl's leg to strike a match on her shoe, all scenes of Billy West in the wrong bed, and the holding of hands across twin beds.
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The Mystery Ship is a 1917 American adventure film serial directed by Harry Harvey and Henry MacRae. The film is considered to be lost.