A Romance of the Underworld
Cast & Crew
James Kirkwood
Catherine Calvert
David Powell
Eugene O'brien
Edwin Forsberg
Sybil Carmen
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Doris Elliott, who has grown up in a convent, moves to New York to live with her brother Richard, who belongs to a drug trafficking ring controlled by unscrupulous ward boss Michael O'Leary. Unaccustomed to life in the Lower East Side, Doris remains ignorant of the pervasiveness of crime and corruption in the area until her friend, Mamie Bronson, whose brother, "Dopey Benny," is addicted to drugs, confesses that O'Leary has raped her. Later O'Leary enters Doris' home and attempts to rape her, and in the struggle that ensues O'Leary is shot when her brother unexpectedly arrives. Finding O'Leary dead and Richard unconscious, the police arrest Doris, and she is tried for murder. Defense lawyer Thomas McDonald, who has been working to expose the politician, is losing his case when Dopey Benny testifies that he killed O'Leary to avenge his sister's assault. Doris, who had thought Richard the killer, is acquitted, after which she marries Thomas.
Director
James Kirkwood
Cast
Catherine Calvert
David Powell
Eugene O'brien
Edwin Forsberg
Sybil Carmen
Cecil Chichester
Harry Lee
Marcia Harris
Kid Broad
Kid Lewis
Crew
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Many of the scenes were filmed in New York's Lower East Side, while interior scenes were shot at the Biograph studios. Noted prize fighters Kid Broad and Kid Lewis appeared in the film. It was also reviewed at five reels. This was the first film produced by the Frank A. Keeney Pictures Corp. It had its premiere in Brooklyn on April 2, 1918, and although it is listed on state rights release charts in Apr, it appears that it was not released until the Sherry Service distributed it on 30 Jun.
