The White Raven

Ethel Barrymore is a saloon singer in an Alaska dive. Years ago, her once-wealthy father was ruined by speculation. His quondam partner, Walter Hitchcock, shrugged, gave him $5, and suggested he buy a gun and kill himself. Hitchcock's clerk, George Wright, gave him half his savings, and was fired for his trouble. The ruined man pulled his daughter out of a convent, moved to the gold fields, and died. Now Miss Barrymore has had enough. She has a voice. She needs to go east and get it trained. She offers herself for one night: a thousand dollars for each of the men willing to put it up, and the high poker hand to get her. Bearded Mysterious Stranger William B. Davidson wins her with a pair of red deuces. When she begs him not to take his prize, he tells her she may go, but when he summons her, she must come. He even makes her sign an IOU.

So Miss Barrymore heads east, and some time later becomes a prima donna under an Italian version of her name. Hitchcock courts her, but she plans her vengeance. Meanwhile Davidson also returns from Alaska, shaves off his beard so he is unrecognizable to her, and also courts her.

It's good to see Miss Barrymore at this stage of her career. At 37, she is grown too mature to play the ingenue; the famous Barrymore profile is evident in the first shot, and in several thereafter. Still, the acting is superb for the era. Despite the occasionally melodramatic touches to the story, her performance is restrained, as are those of most of the cast. If the print is a little dark, the sets a little cluttered, it's still a very clean print, and a rare glimpse at prestige film making outside of the usual production superstars of the era.