Volume I: Narrative History

Chapter 9: 1916 The First Pathé Releases

On August 13, 1916 The Fugitive was released in five reels. Billed as a Gold Rooster Play, the film was the first Thanhouser picture to be distributed through the Pathé Exchange. Produced as a Thanhouser Classic earlier in the year it had been originally scheduled for release through Mutual on March 16, 1916, after which it was postponed until June 15th, a date which was also cancelled.

Agnes Smith reviewed the film for The Morning Telegraph:

This is the first of the Thanhouser productions to go on the market via the Pathé program. It features Florence LaBadie in the role of a girl, who to save her sister takes upon herself the suspicion of a murder she did not commit. She succeeds in eluding the police for five years but is eventually trapped. As her sister has been killed and as she has no way of proving her innocence, things look black for the heroine when a faithful suitor steps in and takes the blame for the crime. The picture belongs to that class of entertainment which holds our attention largely because both author and director have seen to it that there is always something happening on the screen. Such happenings aren't always new and aren't always plausible, but they will satisfy audiences who demand action first and artistic presentation afterward.

At the very end the story jumps over the boundary line that separates the possible from the foolish. This is when the faithful suitor suddenly confesses to the crime, explaining his rash act to the heroine by the fact that the doctors have told him that he has only a month to live. This twist in the plot, coming well on in the last reel, may strike the spectator as only the author's ruse to extricate his heroine from a bad predicament and pave the way for a happy ending. When the workings of the author become apparent the story loses its power to interest. The murder of the villain and the girl's escape are ingeniously handled and presented with no or little suspense. A fire scene with a panic in a factory provides some spectacular interest. Florence LaBadie's sincere, straightforward acting makes her a likeable heroine, and the supporting cast gives her adequate assistance. The settings and photography are satisfactory. The Fugitive is not a finished product, but it is not a dull one.

The next Thanhouser film on the Pathé program was The Shine Girl, issued on August 27th. The picture was a resounding success. Agnes Smith reviewed it for The Morning Telegraph:

A story of a tenement child, who, adopted by a judge of a juvenile court, eventually saves her benefactor from taking a serious misstep, The Shine Girl is an attractive offering which contains many human incidents of life on the East Side and a fair amount of pleasing sentiment. Gladys Hulette plays the role of the little slum philosopher, and her work is a joy. Free from affectations and blessed with a likeable personality, her presence in this picture is a big point in its favor. There is a genuineness and a sincerity about Miss Hulette's acting that makes it ring true.

The plot set forth in The Shine Girl is a simple one, but William Parke, the director, has brightened it up with many effective touches. Some of the best bits have been filmed in a children's court, where the "Shine Girl" first meets the judge whom she afterward marries. Most audiences will find the workings of the court for youthful delinquents exceptionally interesting. The "Shine Girl" is brought before the judge for stealing a loaf of bread to give to a starving family. The judge, convinced of her good intentions, discharges her and takes her to his country home to pay a visit to his mother. It is there that the "Shine Girl" learns that her benefactor is in love with another man's wife and that they are planning to run away together. The little waif, remembering the lecture that the judge gave her when she was brought into court for stealing, points out to him that to steal another man's wife is even a graver offence than taking bread. A year later we find the "Shine Girl" grown up, receiving a proposal from the judge. As we have said, the picture depends for its appeal largely on its little scenes which are handled with delicacy and humor and beautifully played by Gladys Hulette. The settings are good, and the camera work in many places is very effective. Wayne Arey and Kathryn Adams are seen in Miss Hulette's support and do excellent work. Most people will like The Shine Girl.

Margaret I. MacDonald wrote this commentary for The Moving Picture World:

One of the interesting points about this production from the Thanhouser studios is that its scenario was written by Agnes C. Johnston, who is not only the youngest, but one of the few scenario writers exhibiting this spark of genius. Miss Johnston is but 18 years old, and she first attracted the notice of the writer through an artistic three-reel production entitled The Window of Dreams. While The Shine Girl could not be termed a powerful play, it represents an idea of great beauty. The character of the "Shine Girl" is of the positive, individual sort that has sometimes met with in the most unexpected places. Although this little girl's vocation was that of a bootblack, she was not content with the mere shining of shoes. She was of a philosophical turn of mind and believed among other things that sorrow had the same effect on people that shoeblacking had on shoes: it made them dark at first, but they polished up brighter after it had been rubbed on.

She was also the very embodiment of the spirit of love as learned by her only pal Sally; and Sally, by the way, was a poor, sickly geranium who consented to live only because the "Shine Girl" carried her out of her dark corner into the sunshine whenever she ventured forth herself, and considered it a privilege to clamber up fire escapes that Sally might drink in larger draughts in the light-giving element. This is an index to the nature of "Shine Girl," and early in life she found opportunities to shine human hearts as well as shoes. She also found her way, along with Sally, into the country where she believed the sun always shone, through the kind heart of the judge of the Children's Court, whom she afterward rescues from committing a folly, and later marries. Gladys Hulette has given a beautiful portrayal of the character of the "Shine Girl," with A. Wayne [sic; Wayne Arey was intended] playing opposite her as the judge. There are a few points at which the picture might be brushed into more professional shape, but there is no denying that the central idea has been clearly defined. Some offshoots of this theme might have been strengthened in detail, and there may be a feeling that the character of the judge is not a well-balanced one and has been somewhat victimized in bringing about a dramatic climax. Nevertheless the production is distinctly human, clean and beautiful.