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Photograph: Silent Era image collection.
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The White Terror
Also known as Every Town in the USA
(1915) United States of America
B&W : Four reels
Directed by Stuart Paton
Cast: Hobart Henley [Matthew Brand], Frances Nelson [Eleanor Boyd], William Welsh [David Duncan], Howard Crampton [Emerson Boyd], Allen Holubar [Clifford Cole], Otto Hoffman [Mayor Alrich], Fred Sullivan [David Doyle]
The Universal Film Manufacturing Company, Incorporated, production; distributed by The Universal Film Manufacturing Company, Incorporated [Imp]. / Scenario by Raymond L. Schrock. Cinematography by Eugene Gaudio. / © 10 June 1915 by The Universal Film Manufacturing Company, Incorporated [LP5522]. Released 18 June 1915. / Standard 35mm spherical 1.33:1 format. / The production was made in conjunction with the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis. Universal release number 0587. The film was marketed in the USA with three-sheet and six-sheet posters, and two versions of one-sheet posters. The film was released in Canada on 25 June 1915.
Drama: Social.
Synopsis: [The Universal Weekly, Volume VI, Number 24, 12 June 1915, pages 25 and 30] The evils of child labor, of vile housing and factory conditions, of crooked politics and graft and the excesses of the idle rich, are all flayed in the smashing four-reel Imp feature, “The White Terror,” which will be released on June 18. The feature production is one of Universal’s masterpieces and was written by Raymond L. Schrock. Stuart Paton, the producer, has featured Hobart Henley, Frances Nelson and Allen Holubar in the leading roles. The story of the drama introduces Emerson Boyd, the owner of the Great Boyd Mills, a relentless scheming, grinding corporation, which employs child labor and disregards all laws of health and sanitation. He is also in control of the Boyd Chemical Company, another large corporation with the same greedy and heartless policy which turns out upon the public certain harmful and toxic medicines, among which is Saco-Ozone, a widely advertised cure for tuberculosis and pulmonary diseases. / Back of the powerful arm of Emerson Boyd is David Duncan, general manager of the Boyd Mills. Duncan is also a ward-wheeler and crooked politician and holds a graft-controlled city in the hollow of his palm. He is in love with Eleanor, Boyd’s daughter, who, however, is secretly engaged to Matthew Brand, one of the idle rich, whose comfortable income has been built up by the labor of others. / Emerson Boyd reads a newspaper attack upon te Boyd conrporation and, in a great rage, calls Duncan to see what influence he can use as a political boss to muzzle the paper. / Eleanor goes away and Brand runs across the newspaper article against her father. Alarmed by the facts set forth in the paper, Brand determines to investigate, and, calling upon Cole, the editor of the “Clarion,” hears a story that makes him sick at heart. Then he learns that Boyd’s political machine has muzzled the paper. / Brand pays a visit to Boyd’s factories. Among the things that Brand sees are the overcrowded condition of the rooms and lack of ventilation, coupled with dust and smoke from the various machines; the employment of child labor, where the children learn the vicious habits from men of smoking and taking nips of whiskey; the employment of sickly and consumptive laborers; improper chairs and benches for women laborers; the unsanitary dipper and drinking bucket; the dirty sink and roller-towels for washing up, and the enormous usage of patent medicines, principally Saco-Ozone and Multikurol among the poor laborers. Brand visits the “Clarion” office and decides to buy the paper, since he is not afraid of Boyd or of his political machine, intending to use it in fighting Boyd. Accordingly, he makes his offer to Cole, who accepts readily, and then Brand retains the nervy editor to help him. They start at once on an article that drives Boyd wild with rage when the paper comes from the press. Brand goes to call on Eleanor. At the same time Duncan and the detective are closeted with Boyd. While Brand is telling Eleanor of his campaign with the Tuberculosis Society to wipe out the dread disease the detective is telling Boyd that the man who is so bitterly opposing him and printing the vitriolic stories is none other than the quiet Matthew Brand, who has been courting his daughter. Boyd jumps out of his chair in surprise. It is hard for him to believe that such a thing is possible. / Meanwhile, Eleanor has become so enthusiastic that she determines that her father must hear the story and hurries to the library, where Boyd is closeted with his hirelings, and begs him to come and listen to Matthew Brand. Boyd nearly explodes with rage when he hears of Brand’s presence in his home, but, controlling himself, takes Duncan and the detective along to hear the story. When Brand sees Boyd, the latter attacks him unsparingly and, refusing to grant him a hearing, orders him to leave the house and never return. Eleanor looks on in horror and tries to stem her father’s anger, but, for once, Boyd is brutal, and, waving his daughter aside, pursues Brand to the door, hurling threats after him. / The National Tuberculosis Society meets with failure, for, when Boyd learns of the proposed sanitorium, he orders the mayor to prevent it, fearing that it might hurt his patent medicine business. [missing text due to torn page in reference copy] . . . proposed sanitorium, he realizes more . . . the capitalistic-controlled machine, and . . . plan to defeat it. / Meanwhile, Boyd becomes interested in . . . upon the horrible system of the great . . . Duncan as to the truth of the stories . . . / In the meantime, Eleanor, despite . . . to the “Clarion” office to see her . . . stand by him until the finish. . . . Eleanor into an adjoining room, that she may hear what is said. Duncan threatens Brand to induce him to stop the damaging articles, but Brand defies him to do his worst. / Boyd down in his heart is beginning to admire Brand, but Duncan, who believes that might makes right, plans to dynamite the “Clarion,” and thus cripple Brand’s campaign organ. / Then comes to night of horrors. Eleanor, becoming very ill, the old family physician is sent for, and, making a thorough examination, tells Boyd the crushing news that his daughter has symptoms of tuberculosis. / Duncan arrives at the rendezvous where he learns that the police had become suspicious of the gangsters and they had retired to await his orders. Duncan is angered to the utmost over the hitch in his well-laid plans, and, calling them all the utmost cowards, takes the bomb himself and bids then follow. In the darkness of the rear of the “Clarion” office, Duncan sets the bomb and lights it, while on the inside, Brand and a helper are working over some copy. As Fate would have it, the bomb has a defective fuse, and a premature explosion takes place, blowing Duncan to atoms, while the falling bricks and masonry seriously injure Brand. / Boyd’s family physician, a learned man, tells the money king that there are no places in Every-town for the proper treatment of tuberculosis, as Boyd and other corporation owners have persistently fought to keep out all sanitariums. The bitter lesson sinks deep into the man’s heart, and, left alone, Boyd falls on his knees in prayer, the first in many years. / Boyd thinks of his own remedy, the product of the famous Boyd Chemical Company, and sends for a case of Saco-Ozone. He reads from the testimonials of its wonderful cures, but the family physician appears, and hurls it all from the window, telling him that he would not be guilty of giving the medicine to a dog, and telling him further, that it is harmful and poisonous. He then tells Boyd that Eleanor, to get well, must be sent to an open air sanitorium. / When Boyd tells Eleanor of the doctor’s suggestion, and offers her anything her heart desires, if she will only try to get well, he is told that her one wish is that he will send for Brand and listen to him. / Boyd leads Brand to the library, where he listens to the other’s talk on the existing evil conditions and of his efforts to prevent the spreading of tuberculosis. Finished with his task of convincing Boyd, Brand takes leave, feeling within himself that he has accomplished the greatest victory in his career. / Boyd thereupon plans to reconstruct Every-town. / Miracle upon miracle is accomplished by the enthusiastic money king, who sends his daughter to sanitarium, where she ultimately recovers after receiving good care, fresh air, rest and wholesome food. / Everything that Brand suggests, Boyd adopts, and, with the powerful articles that Cole publishes in the “Clarion” about the reform movement headed by Emerson Boyd himself, Every-town awakens from its lethargy, and all the people become interested in public safety. / The story ends one year later with a big banquet to celebrate a new and clean Every-town and, incidentally, the engagement of Eleanor and Brant.
Survival status: The film is presumed lost.
Current rights holder: Public domain [USA].
Listing updated: 28 November 2023.
References: UnivWeekly-19150612 pp. 25, 30, 34 : Website-AFI; Website-ASFFDb.
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