The Road to Ruin (1934) - Turner Classic Movies

Brief Synopsis

An innocent girl falls in with a crowd devoted to pot and free love.

Cast & Crew

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Mrs. Wallace Reid

Helen Foster

Nell O'day

Glen Boles

Bobby Quirk

Paul Page

Photos & Videos

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Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Snap Out of it!

Road to Ruin, The (1934) --(Movie Clip) Sex Delinquent

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Please Don't Hate Me!

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) I Could Go for Her!

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Strip Dice

Film Details

Genre

Drama

Release Date

May 15, 1934

Premiere Information

New York opening: 17 Feb 1934

Production Company

Willis Kent Productions

Distribution Company

State Rights; True Life Photoplays

Country

United States

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 4m

Synopsis

Innocent teenager Ann Dixon becomes friendly with the more worldy Eve Monroe, whose mother indulges in alcohol and extra-marital affairs, and is wooed by her schoolmate Tommy. After Eve introduces Ann to the pleasures of alcohol and steamy romance novels, Tommy invites her for a drive and kisses her in a secluded wooded area. Later, while picnicking at a lake resort, Tommy teaches Ann how to smoke and, once alone with her, seduces her with declarations of love. Although Ann cries over her loss of virginity, she continues to see Tommy and, with Eve and her boyfriend Ed, goes drinking at a lodge. There Ann meets Ralph Bennett, a seasoned womanizer, who draws her away from the drunken Tommy. In spite of Tommy's warnings about the playboy, Ann begins to date Ralph and spends a long evening alone with him. The next day, Ann, whose parents are oblivious to her activities, joins Ralph, Eve and Ed at a friend's party, the climax of which is a strip crap game and a semi-nude dip in the host's swimming pool. Alerted by angry neighbors, the police raid the party and take Ann and Eve to the station's juvenile division. After a medical examination, Eve learns that she has contracted veneral disease and is held for treatment. Soon after Ann discovers that she is pregnant and, at Ralph's insistence, has an illegal abortion. Ralph then enlists Ann to "entertain" a client of his company, and the shock of his casual betrayal causes Ann to succumb to the effects of the crudely executed abortion. As her remorseful, grief-stricken parents watch, Ann asks for forgiveness and dies.

Directors

Mrs. Wallace Reid

Melville Shyer

Cast

Helen Foster

Nell O'day

Glen Boles

Bobby Quirk

Paul Page

Richard Hemingway

Virginia True Boardman

Richard Tucker

Donald Kerr

Eleanor Thatcher

Neal Pratt

Jimmy Tolson

Mae Busch

Mrs. Wallace Reid

Crew

Homer Ackerman

Lee Crawford

Assistant Camera

George Curtner

Assistant Director

James Diamond

Willis Kent

Madison Lacey

Still Photographer

Al Lavck

Sound Assistant

S. Roy Luby

Red Miller

Mrs. Wallace Reid

Al Romero

Jack Wallace

Chief Electrician

Videos

Road to Ruin, The (1934) --(Movie Clip) Sex Delinquent Writer and director Mrs. Wallace Reid appears as "Mrs. Merrill" of the Crime Prevention Division breaking bad news to Ann (Helen Foster) and her mother (Virginia True Boardman) in The Road to Ruin, 1934.

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Strip Dice Party host Brad (Neal Pratt) encourages an impromptu game of strip-dice, in which his date Eve (Nell O'Day) loses, shocking the neighbors in The Road to Ruin, 1934.

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Snap Out of it! High-living Eve (Nell O'Day) introduces her reluctant new friend Ann (Helen Foster) to adult behaviors in The Road to Ruin, 1934.

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Please Don't Hate Me! The scene jumps from Ann (Helen Foster) and Tommy (Glen Boles) at the lake, to Ann's unworried parents at home, back to the remorseful teens in The Road to Ruin, 1934.

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) I Could Go for Her! Innocent Ann Dixon (Helen Foster) gets a lift from Eve (Nell O'Day), Ed (Bobby Quirk) and Tommy (Glen Boles) after school lets out in Mrs. Wallace Reid's addiction polemic The Road to Ruin, 1934.

Road to Ruin, The (1934) -- (Movie Clip) Cupid's Brew Slick Ralph (Paul Page) intoxicates young Ann (Helen Foster) in Road to Ruin, 1934, directed by actress-turned anti-drug activist Mrs. Wallace Reid.

Film Details

Genre

Drama

Release Date

May 15, 1934

Premiere Information

New York opening: 17 Feb 1934

Production Company

Willis Kent Productions

Distribution Company

State Rights; True Life Photoplays

Country

United States

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 4m

Articles

The Gist (Road to Ruin) - THE GIST

August 20, 2008

In the 1930s, while the Hollywood studios gagged in the clutches of the Production Code Administration (the regulatory authority that they themselves created), rogue filmmakers outside the system brazenly delved beyond the boundaries of good taste. These early indie filmmakers exploited the public's appetite for all things taboo. It was their philosophy that any display of vice could be depicted as long as it was packaged as a treatise on society's burning issues: venereal disease, polygamy, birth control, child marriage, drug abuse, prostitution, etc. This semi-underground movement -- now known as the exploitation film -- yielded such low-budget classics as Reefer Madness (1936), Sex Madness (1938), and Marihuana: Weed with Roots in Hell (1936).

The quality of these bottom-feeding films was generally well beneath the standards of Hollywood's so-called Poverty Row studios, but a few films stood out from the rest. One such film was producer Willis Kent's The Road to Ruin (1934). Compared to the jalopies that typified the genre, The Road to Ruin was a cinematic Cadillac.

Exploitation films seldom lived up to their salacious titles, but The Road to Ruin delivered what it promised: a sordid drive down the path of moral and physical degradation, capped off with just enough of a moral lesson to alleviate any guilt the viewer might feel for watching such a decadent display.

A devastating attack on teen promiscuity, The Road to Ruin begins on an idyllic spring day, as a trio of high schoolers gather at the home of Eve Monroe (Nell O'Day), where they steal a few sips of alcohol and experiment in light petting. Since Tommy (Glen Boles) is stuck being the third wheel, they plot a way for the likable Ann Dixon (Helen Foster) to join their clique.

Eve invites Ann to a sleepover at her house and, while the decadent Mrs. Monroe presides over a cocktail party, the girls engage in a bit of innocent experimentation: reading passages of a risqué novel, puffing a cigarette, sipping leftover spirits. Every subsequent episode finds Ann wandering further and further from the straight and narrow. She allows Tommy to steal a kiss, and then take her for a walk in the woods, after which she is shown sobbing on the ground in shame. "Please don't blame me for... what happened," he pleads, professing his love.

Before long, the teen couples are dining at a roadhouse known as "The Lodge." While the jazz band serenades the crowd (and Tommy drowses from too much alcohol), Ann falls under the gaze of slick seducer Ralph Bennett (Paul Page). Under Ralph's tutelage, Ann graduates to the mature pleasures of wine, cigarettes and upscale cocktail parties (where he introduces her to a magic elixir he calls "Cupid's Brew").

Ann reaches her moral low point at a wild party highlighted by strip craps, a woman "shake" dancing, and a moonlight swim in the nude. The police raid the party and Ann is taken to the Girls Detail of the Crime Prevention Division. There, a stern but understanding Mrs. Merrill (Dorothy Davenport) orders physical evaluations. Both Ann and Eve are labeled "Sex Delinquents." Ann gets a clean bill of health, but Eve's "Wasserman" test comes back positive (indicating syphilis).

Though Ann dodges the bullet of disease, she is hit head-on by pregnancy. When she tells Ralph, he takes her to a backstreet abortionist. Once Ann's "trouble" is taken care of, Ralph moves on to other matters: arranging young women to attend a wild party to help seal a shady business deal. Meanwhile, Ann returns to the proper path, but is haunted by her wayward past, developing a fever that threatens to destroy the tentative health and happiness she has found.

The most shocking element of The Road to Ruin is not its scenes of skinny-dipping, Depression-era alcohol abuse, or its thinly-veiled references to unwed pregnancy and abortion. No, the real shocker is that The Road to Ruin delivers an unexpected emotional impact. Even those camp enthusiasts who view the film with ironic detachment may be surprised to find a lump in the throat during the film's graceful and tragic denouement.

Director: Mrs. Wallace Reid, Melville Shyer
Producer: Willis Kent
Screenplay: Mrs. Wallace Reid
Cinematography: James Diamond
Cast: Helen Foster (Ann Dixon), Nell O'Day (Eve Monroe), Glen Boles (Tommy), Bobby Quirk (Ed), Paul Page (Ralph Bennett), Virginia True Boardman (Mrs. Dixon), Richard Hemingway (Mr. Dixon), Mae Busch (Mrs. Monroe), Dorothy Davenport (Mrs. Merrill), Fern Emmett (nosy neighbor).
BW-62m.

by Bret Wood

The Gist (Road To Ruin) - The Gist

The Gist (Road to Ruin) - THE GIST

In the 1930s, while the Hollywood studios gagged in the clutches of the Production Code Administration (the regulatory authority that they themselves created), rogue filmmakers outside the system brazenly delved beyond the boundaries of good taste. These early indie filmmakers exploited the public's appetite for all things taboo. It was their philosophy that any display of vice could be depicted as long as it was packaged as a treatise on society's burning issues: venereal disease, polygamy, birth control, child marriage, drug abuse, prostitution, etc. This semi-underground movement -- now known as the exploitation film -- yielded such low-budget classics as Reefer Madness (1936), Sex Madness (1938), and Marihuana: Weed with Roots in Hell (1936). The quality of these bottom-feeding films was generally well beneath the standards of Hollywood's so-called Poverty Row studios, but a few films stood out from the rest. One such film was producer Willis Kent's The Road to Ruin (1934). Compared to the jalopies that typified the genre, The Road to Ruin was a cinematic Cadillac. Exploitation films seldom lived up to their salacious titles, but The Road to Ruin delivered what it promised: a sordid drive down the path of moral and physical degradation, capped off with just enough of a moral lesson to alleviate any guilt the viewer might feel for watching such a decadent display. A devastating attack on teen promiscuity, The Road to Ruin begins on an idyllic spring day, as a trio of high schoolers gather at the home of Eve Monroe (Nell O'Day), where they steal a few sips of alcohol and experiment in light petting. Since Tommy (Glen Boles) is stuck being the third wheel, they plot a way for the likable Ann Dixon (Helen Foster) to join their clique. Eve invites Ann to a sleepover at her house and, while the decadent Mrs. Monroe presides over a cocktail party, the girls engage in a bit of innocent experimentation: reading passages of a risqué novel, puffing a cigarette, sipping leftover spirits. Every subsequent episode finds Ann wandering further and further from the straight and narrow. She allows Tommy to steal a kiss, and then take her for a walk in the woods, after which she is shown sobbing on the ground in shame. "Please don't blame me for... what happened," he pleads, professing his love. Before long, the teen couples are dining at a roadhouse known as "The Lodge." While the jazz band serenades the crowd (and Tommy drowses from too much alcohol), Ann falls under the gaze of slick seducer Ralph Bennett (Paul Page). Under Ralph's tutelage, Ann graduates to the mature pleasures of wine, cigarettes and upscale cocktail parties (where he introduces her to a magic elixir he calls "Cupid's Brew"). Ann reaches her moral low point at a wild party highlighted by strip craps, a woman "shake" dancing, and a moonlight swim in the nude. The police raid the party and Ann is taken to the Girls Detail of the Crime Prevention Division. There, a stern but understanding Mrs. Merrill (Dorothy Davenport) orders physical evaluations. Both Ann and Eve are labeled "Sex Delinquents." Ann gets a clean bill of health, but Eve's "Wasserman" test comes back positive (indicating syphilis). Though Ann dodges the bullet of disease, she is hit head-on by pregnancy. When she tells Ralph, he takes her to a backstreet abortionist. Once Ann's "trouble" is taken care of, Ralph moves on to other matters: arranging young women to attend a wild party to help seal a shady business deal. Meanwhile, Ann returns to the proper path, but is haunted by her wayward past, developing a fever that threatens to destroy the tentative health and happiness she has found. The most shocking element of The Road to Ruin is not its scenes of skinny-dipping, Depression-era alcohol abuse, or its thinly-veiled references to unwed pregnancy and abortion. No, the real shocker is that The Road to Ruin delivers an unexpected emotional impact. Even those camp enthusiasts who view the film with ironic detachment may be surprised to find a lump in the throat during the film's graceful and tragic denouement. Director: Mrs. Wallace Reid, Melville Shyer Producer: Willis Kent Screenplay: Mrs. Wallace Reid Cinematography: James Diamond Cast: Helen Foster (Ann Dixon), Nell O'Day (Eve Monroe), Glen Boles (Tommy), Bobby Quirk (Ed), Paul Page (Ralph Bennett), Virginia True Boardman (Mrs. Dixon), Richard Hemingway (Mr. Dixon), Mae Busch (Mrs. Monroe), Dorothy Davenport (Mrs. Merrill), Fern Emmett (nosy neighbor). BW-62m. by Bret Wood

Insider Info (Road to Ruin) - BEHIND THE SCENES

August 20, 2008

Though the exploitation cinema reached its peak in the 1930s and '40s, its roots reach deep into the silent era. In fact, The Road to Ruin is a faithful, almost shot-for-shot remake of producer Willis Kent's 1928 film of the same title. Directed by Norton S. Parker, the silent Road to Ruin also starred Helen Foster as the wayward teen, with Virginia Roye in the role of Eve the enabler.

The silent film version of The Road to Ruin had been so widely circulated that critics frequently made reference to it in their reviews of the talkie. This casual familiarity with the original testifies to just how thoroughly exploitation films had managed to penetrate the mainstream marketplace.

Remaking silent films at the dawn of sound was a common practice of the major studios, which were always eager to capitalize on name recognition. In addition to The Road to Ruin, Kent also shot silent and talkie versions of The Pace That Kills (1928 and 1935). During the 1970s, the heyday of the midnight movie, the talkie version was revived under the title Cocaine Fiends. Though he wasn't associated with the original, Kent's 1931 anti-alcohol treatise Ten Nights in a Barroom (starring cowboy star William Farnum) had been filmed at least five times during the silent era.

Only a portion of Kent's career was devoted to exploitation films. He produced a steady stream of Westerns and B-grade crime pictures during the early 1930s but, by 1935, came to realize the smart money was on smut. He returned to the controversies of abortion (Race Suicide [1937]) and promiscuity (Mad Youth [1940]), while devoting three films to the all-encompassing topic of vice (Smashing the Vice Trust [1937], Souls in Pawn [1940], and Confessions of a Vice Baron [1943]). The 1950s brought somewhat relaxed standards of what defined screen indecency, so Kent plunged into the world of burlesque, with such pasties-and-g string titles as Love Moods (1952) and Lili's Wedding Night (1952). His last film was an almost documentary-like filming of a burlesque show: Dreamland Capers (1958). Kent died in Los Angeles in 1966, at the age of 87.

The Road to Ruin had its Los Angeles premiere at the Tally Theater (aka Tally's Criterion) on January 12, 1934, accompanied by a newsreel, the Ernest Truex comedy Mr. Adam (1934), and Robert Haines in Fast Fingers (1934).

The New York debut of The Road to Ruin occurred at the Cameo Theatre on February 17, 1934.

Because there was no ratings system during the 1930s, producer Willis Kent encouraged theatres to abide by the rules of the "Adults-Only" show. In its review, Variety reported, "It's up for general showing but with the self-imposed proviso that it is not to be shown to those under 18; following the one-time Chicago custom of voluntarily 'pinking' pictures the police did not restrict to adult showing to convey the suggestion that it's hot, hot stuff."

The Motion Picture Herald devoted a column to exhibitors' reactions to recent releases. If these are any indication of a film's nationwide success, then The Road to Ruin must have been extraordinarily profitable for Kent. C.H. Sartorius, of the Capitol Theatre in Hartley, Iowa, wrote, "Played to capacity shows and broke all midweek records in my theatre. People liked the picture and received many favorable comments. Enuf said." In Bricelyn, Minnesota, H.M. Johnson of the Unique Theatre boasted, "Broke all house records for Sunday and Monday. Advertised "No Children Under 16 Allowed" and it brought the S.R.O. sign, which hasn't been used for a long time."

Because exploitation films were circulated under the radar of the mainstream trade publications, it is impossible to know exactly how much money they earned, but the more successful releases grossed well into the six-figure range. A film like Kroger Babb's Mom and Dad (1945) grossed millions. Some clue to The Road to Ruin's success might be found in its silent predecessor. In his book Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!, Eric Schaefer reports that the 1928 version earned $14,000 during its run in Minneapolis's Strand Theater. "Compare this with an $18,500 take for Charlie Chaplin's The Circus (1928) at another local theatre during the same stretch."

by Bret Wood

Insider Info (Road to Ruin) - BEHIND THE SCENES

Though the exploitation cinema reached its peak in the 1930s and '40s, its roots reach deep into the silent era. In fact, The Road to Ruin is a faithful, almost shot-for-shot remake of producer Willis Kent's 1928 film of the same title. Directed by Norton S. Parker, the silent Road to Ruin also starred Helen Foster as the wayward teen, with Virginia Roye in the role of Eve the enabler. The silent film version of The Road to Ruin had been so widely circulated that critics frequently made reference to it in their reviews of the talkie. This casual familiarity with the original testifies to just how thoroughly exploitation films had managed to penetrate the mainstream marketplace. Remaking silent films at the dawn of sound was a common practice of the major studios, which were always eager to capitalize on name recognition. In addition to The Road to Ruin, Kent also shot silent and talkie versions of The Pace That Kills (1928 and 1935). During the 1970s, the heyday of the midnight movie, the talkie version was revived under the title Cocaine Fiends. Though he wasn't associated with the original, Kent's 1931 anti-alcohol treatise Ten Nights in a Barroom (starring cowboy star William Farnum) had been filmed at least five times during the silent era. Only a portion of Kent's career was devoted to exploitation films. He produced a steady stream of Westerns and B-grade crime pictures during the early 1930s but, by 1935, came to realize the smart money was on smut. He returned to the controversies of abortion (Race Suicide [1937]) and promiscuity (Mad Youth [1940]), while devoting three films to the all-encompassing topic of vice (Smashing the Vice Trust [1937], Souls in Pawn [1940], and Confessions of a Vice Baron [1943]). The 1950s brought somewhat relaxed standards of what defined screen indecency, so Kent plunged into the world of burlesque, with such pasties-and-g string titles as Love Moods (1952) and Lili's Wedding Night (1952). His last film was an almost documentary-like filming of a burlesque show: Dreamland Capers (1958). Kent died in Los Angeles in 1966, at the age of 87. The Road to Ruin had its Los Angeles premiere at the Tally Theater (aka Tally's Criterion) on January 12, 1934, accompanied by a newsreel, the Ernest Truex comedy Mr. Adam (1934), and Robert Haines in Fast Fingers (1934). The New York debut of The Road to Ruin occurred at the Cameo Theatre on February 17, 1934. Because there was no ratings system during the 1930s, producer Willis Kent encouraged theatres to abide by the rules of the "Adults-Only" show. In its review, Variety reported, "It's up for general showing but with the self-imposed proviso that it is not to be shown to those under 18; following the one-time Chicago custom of voluntarily 'pinking' pictures the police did not restrict to adult showing to convey the suggestion that it's hot, hot stuff." The Motion Picture Herald devoted a column to exhibitors' reactions to recent releases. If these are any indication of a film's nationwide success, then The Road to Ruin must have been extraordinarily profitable for Kent. C.H. Sartorius, of the Capitol Theatre in Hartley, Iowa, wrote, "Played to capacity shows and broke all midweek records in my theatre. People liked the picture and received many favorable comments. Enuf said." In Bricelyn, Minnesota, H.M. Johnson of the Unique Theatre boasted, "Broke all house records for Sunday and Monday. Advertised "No Children Under 16 Allowed" and it brought the S.R.O. sign, which hasn't been used for a long time." Because exploitation films were circulated under the radar of the mainstream trade publications, it is impossible to know exactly how much money they earned, but the more successful releases grossed well into the six-figure range. A film like Kroger Babb's Mom and Dad (1945) grossed millions. Some clue to The Road to Ruin's success might be found in its silent predecessor. In his book Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!, Eric Schaefer reports that the 1928 version earned $14,000 during its run in Minneapolis's Strand Theater. "Compare this with an $18,500 take for Charlie Chaplin's The Circus (1928) at another local theatre during the same stretch." by Bret Wood

In the Know (Road to Ruin) - TRIVIA

August 20, 2008

Though The Road to Ruin is commonly referred to as a Willis Kent film, directorial duties were credited to Melville Shyer and Mrs. Wallace Reid. Memphis-born Shyer frequently worked for Kent, helming such hot-topic films as Mad Youth (1940), Souls in Pawn (1940) and Confessions of a Vice Baron (1943). More of his career was spent as assistant director on about 150 films, most of them low-budget Westerns.

Direction is co-credited to Mrs. Wallace Reid, whose late husband had been, shoulder-to-shoulder with Douglas Fairbanks, one of Hollywood's most likable adventure heroes. After an injury on the set of The Valley of the Giants (1919), Reid was prescribed (and later became addicted to) morphine. Reid died on January 18, 1923, sending shockwaves through the industry.

One would be tempted to surmise that Mrs. Reid had little to do with the direction of The Road to Ruin other than the publicity value of her late husband's name -- but, if so, one would be mistaken. While Mrs. Reid was in fact a crusader against drug abuse, she was also an accomplished filmmaker with a life-long career in film. Under the name Dorothy Davenport, she had begun as an actress at the Biograph Studios in 1910, where she was a member of director D.W. Griffith's troupe. Marrying Wallace Reid in 1913, Davenport continued to work steadily as an actress for years, until giving birth to Wallace Reid, Jr. in 1917, at which point she left the business to raise her child. Reid's death prompted her return to film, producing the anti-drug film Human Wreckage (1923). Among Davenport's few directorial credits is the remarkably poignant 1929 melodrama Linda, which stars The Road to Ruin's Helen Foster.

In exploitation films, it was common to put the moral lesson in the mouths of an on-screen character, usually a doctor, school teacher, policeman or judge. In The Road to Ruin, the wise figure of authority is the director of the Girl's Detail of the Crime Prevention Division. She is portrayed by Davenport herself, though she is not credited among the cast. Davenport had also served as a moral mouthpiece in the controversial The Red Kimona (1925), which explored the topics of promiscuity, drug addiction, and prostitution.

One can find several veterans of the silent era in The Road to Ruin. The role of Mrs. Monroe, Eve's fast-living mother, is played by silent movie veteran Mae Busch, who is best remembered as Princess Vera Petchnikoff in Erich von Stroheim's Foolish Wives (1922). Ann's mom was another silent cinema veteran: Virginia True Boardman, who devoted more than twenty five years to film acting, appearing mostly in low-budget westerns.

An additional source of income for exploitation distributors was the sale of booklets, generally sex-education pamphlets that promised the unvarnished truth of human reproduction, but delivered dry medical text. At screenings of The Road to Ruin (both the silent and sound versions), moviegoers were given the opportunity to purchase a 32-page booklet on "The Most Talked About Picture in Screen History." It was comprised of a 21-page novelization of the story, photographs, and a ten-page essay on juvenile delinquency. The essay concludes, "Sex attraction, when properly controlled and directed is the most beautiful thing in life; when allowed to degenerate into mere lust and sensuality [it is] the most terrible and most pregnant with danger. How infinitely important that the health and strength and morals of the nation's youth be most zealously safeguarded and preserved!"

It was common practice for exploitation distributors to change the titles of their films and sell them multiple times to the gullible public. In 1936, The Road to Ruin was re-released as Call Me Co-ed.

Following the footsteps of Reefer Madness (1936), The Road to Ruin enjoyed a postmodern resurrection when it was adapted as a stage musical by William Zeffiro in Fall 2008, as part of the New York Music Theater Festival. According to the program notes, "The story begins as narrator, Willis Kent, welcomes the audience to his 'Traveling Tent Show' and introduces the cast who proceed to tell the story of fifteen-year-old 'Little Sally Canfield' -- the nicest girl at Central High." The musical uses the character name Sally because it is inspired more by the 1928 Road to Ruin than the 1934 remake.

by Bret Wood

In the Know (Road to Ruin) - TRIVIA

Though The Road to Ruin is commonly referred to as a Willis Kent film, directorial duties were credited to Melville Shyer and Mrs. Wallace Reid. Memphis-born Shyer frequently worked for Kent, helming such hot-topic films as Mad Youth (1940), Souls in Pawn (1940) and Confessions of a Vice Baron (1943). More of his career was spent as assistant director on about 150 films, most of them low-budget Westerns. Direction is co-credited to Mrs. Wallace Reid, whose late husband had been, shoulder-to-shoulder with Douglas Fairbanks, one of Hollywood's most likable adventure heroes. After an injury on the set of The Valley of the Giants (1919), Reid was prescribed (and later became addicted to) morphine. Reid died on January 18, 1923, sending shockwaves through the industry. One would be tempted to surmise that Mrs. Reid had little to do with the direction of The Road to Ruin other than the publicity value of her late husband's name -- but, if so, one would be mistaken. While Mrs. Reid was in fact a crusader against drug abuse, she was also an accomplished filmmaker with a life-long career in film. Under the name Dorothy Davenport, she had begun as an actress at the Biograph Studios in 1910, where she was a member of director D.W. Griffith's troupe. Marrying Wallace Reid in 1913, Davenport continued to work steadily as an actress for years, until giving birth to Wallace Reid, Jr. in 1917, at which point she left the business to raise her child. Reid's death prompted her return to film, producing the anti-drug film Human Wreckage (1923). Among Davenport's few directorial credits is the remarkably poignant 1929 melodrama Linda, which stars The Road to Ruin's Helen Foster. In exploitation films, it was common to put the moral lesson in the mouths of an on-screen character, usually a doctor, school teacher, policeman or judge. In The Road to Ruin, the wise figure of authority is the director of the Girl's Detail of the Crime Prevention Division. She is portrayed by Davenport herself, though she is not credited among the cast. Davenport had also served as a moral mouthpiece in the controversial The Red Kimona (1925), which explored the topics of promiscuity, drug addiction, and prostitution. One can find several veterans of the silent era in The Road to Ruin. The role of Mrs. Monroe, Eve's fast-living mother, is played by silent movie veteran Mae Busch, who is best remembered as Princess Vera Petchnikoff in Erich von Stroheim's Foolish Wives (1922). Ann's mom was another silent cinema veteran: Virginia True Boardman, who devoted more than twenty five years to film acting, appearing mostly in low-budget westerns. An additional source of income for exploitation distributors was the sale of booklets, generally sex-education pamphlets that promised the unvarnished truth of human reproduction, but delivered dry medical text. At screenings of The Road to Ruin (both the silent and sound versions), moviegoers were given the opportunity to purchase a 32-page booklet on "The Most Talked About Picture in Screen History." It was comprised of a 21-page novelization of the story, photographs, and a ten-page essay on juvenile delinquency. The essay concludes, "Sex attraction, when properly controlled and directed is the most beautiful thing in life; when allowed to degenerate into mere lust and sensuality [it is] the most terrible and most pregnant with danger. How infinitely important that the health and strength and morals of the nation's youth be most zealously safeguarded and preserved!" It was common practice for exploitation distributors to change the titles of their films and sell them multiple times to the gullible public. In 1936, The Road to Ruin was re-released as Call Me Co-ed. Following the footsteps of Reefer Madness (1936), The Road to Ruin enjoyed a postmodern resurrection when it was adapted as a stage musical by William Zeffiro in Fall 2008, as part of the New York Music Theater Festival. According to the program notes, "The story begins as narrator, Willis Kent, welcomes the audience to his 'Traveling Tent Show' and introduces the cast who proceed to tell the story of fifteen-year-old 'Little Sally Canfield' -- the nicest girl at Central High." The musical uses the character name Sally because it is inspired more by the 1928 Road to Ruin than the 1934 remake. by Bret Wood

Yea or Nay (Road to Ruin) - CRITIC REVIEWS OF "THE ROAD TO RUIN"

August 20, 2008

"A morose investigation of a high school girl's downfall, and is intended, apparently, as a dramatized lecture to the mothers of adolescent girls rather than as a general entertainment... The deficiencies of The Road to Ruin lie not so much in its amateurish composition as in its dull and unnecessary preoccupation with subject-matter which belongs in a sociological case history."
-- The New York Times

"About 1928, Willis Kent made a silent version of this picture following a number of similar productions most of which, like this, were states-righted and toured for showing to men and women in separate audiences. The picture had a vicarious career with plenty of censor trouble. Not always convincing the arbiters that the picture taught a great moral lesson. In the original production the action was crude and hotly sexed. For some reason the same producer has seen fit to spend considerable coin in a talking version of the story, denatured and with the action greatly restrained...The photography is an unusually good job for an independent producer and the sound is equally good. Several songs are introduced in a road house sequence. Technically, except for the development of the story, this is an unusually good indie job from all angles."
-- Variety

"One of those pseudo sensational exposés of flaming youth as it blazed in the beginning of the dollar gin and hip flask era limps on the Cameo screen pretty well ham-strung by the censors...In a word, The Road to Ruin is scarcely art, but there is some suspicion that it is good commercial property for the side streets. The title is self-explanatory, the story being of the thorns that beset the far end of the primrose path, and of the mental, moral and physical hangover attendant upon dalliance with synthetic rum and synthetic romance. The difficulty is that the film is presented in a manner to create more interest in the whoopee than in the morning after."
-- New York American

"Once again the screen takes it upon itself to indicate to young people the dangers that lurk in the path of young girls, and to point out to parents the necessity of telling their growing daughters the facts of life. This time it is an independent production by Willis Kent, with Mrs. Wallace Reid credited with the story and a share in the direction. The film points its moral without any pretense at evasion. There it is, and let that be a lesson, it declares emphatically. What the exhibitor might be able to do with the picture is rather best left to his own judgment. He should know his patronage and their probable reactions to such films as these."
-- Motion Picture Herald

"In The Road to Ruin at the Cameo [Theater], the cinema broods bitterly over the irresponsible younger generation and for good measure takes some well-rounded whacks at their parents whose reticence in matters of sex and love where their offspring is concerned is responsible for many youthful tragedies. In as scathing a treatise upon the pitfalls of youthful indiscretion and lack of parental concern as I have ever seen upon the screen -- I must admit I haven't seen many -- this Road to Ruin parades the young folks in all their folly. I shouldn't be accurate if I told you that the film is any great shakes either as entertainment or as an indictment, since among the many complaints that might be made against it are that it really doesn't teach any lesson, that it is amateurishly acted and directed, that its narrative is loosely strung together and that it is altogether uninteresting."
-- New York World Telegram

"The Cameo [Theater] has a dingy little case history as its current feature. The Road to Ruin is about as unnecessarily sordid a tale as the movies have ever taken the trouble to film. Unrelieved by comedy or any note of sweetness or hope, it relates the downfall of one Ann Dixon, this week's least amiable heroine."
-- New York Herald Tribune

"May well be described as 'strong stuff' for the average amusement seeker. The picture becomes a preachment, before its close, against parents keeping their daughters in ignorance of life and its complications, and to accentuate the point, situations arise which might be better explained by the family physician than by the public screen."
-- John Scott, [unidentified Los Angeles news clipping, 1934]

Compiled by Bret Wood

Yea or Nay (Road to Ruin) - CRITIC REVIEWS OF "THE ROAD TO RUIN"

"A morose investigation of a high school girl's downfall, and is intended, apparently, as a dramatized lecture to the mothers of adolescent girls rather than as a general entertainment... The deficiencies of The Road to Ruin lie not so much in its amateurish composition as in its dull and unnecessary preoccupation with subject-matter which belongs in a sociological case history." -- The New York Times "About 1928, Willis Kent made a silent version of this picture following a number of similar productions most of which, like this, were states-righted and toured for showing to men and women in separate audiences. The picture had a vicarious career with plenty of censor trouble. Not always convincing the arbiters that the picture taught a great moral lesson. In the original production the action was crude and hotly sexed. For some reason the same producer has seen fit to spend considerable coin in a talking version of the story, denatured and with the action greatly restrained...The photography is an unusually good job for an independent producer and the sound is equally good. Several songs are introduced in a road house sequence. Technically, except for the development of the story, this is an unusually good indie job from all angles." -- Variety "One of those pseudo sensational exposés of flaming youth as it blazed in the beginning of the dollar gin and hip flask era limps on the Cameo screen pretty well ham-strung by the censors...In a word, The Road to Ruin is scarcely art, but there is some suspicion that it is good commercial property for the side streets. The title is self-explanatory, the story being of the thorns that beset the far end of the primrose path, and of the mental, moral and physical hangover attendant upon dalliance with synthetic rum and synthetic romance. The difficulty is that the film is presented in a manner to create more interest in the whoopee than in the morning after." -- New York American "Once again the screen takes it upon itself to indicate to young people the dangers that lurk in the path of young girls, and to point out to parents the necessity of telling their growing daughters the facts of life. This time it is an independent production by Willis Kent, with Mrs. Wallace Reid credited with the story and a share in the direction. The film points its moral without any pretense at evasion. There it is, and let that be a lesson, it declares emphatically. What the exhibitor might be able to do with the picture is rather best left to his own judgment. He should know his patronage and their probable reactions to such films as these." -- Motion Picture Herald "In The Road to Ruin at the Cameo [Theater], the cinema broods bitterly over the irresponsible younger generation and for good measure takes some well-rounded whacks at their parents whose reticence in matters of sex and love where their offspring is concerned is responsible for many youthful tragedies. In as scathing a treatise upon the pitfalls of youthful indiscretion and lack of parental concern as I have ever seen upon the screen -- I must admit I haven't seen many -- this Road to Ruin parades the young folks in all their folly. I shouldn't be accurate if I told you that the film is any great shakes either as entertainment or as an indictment, since among the many complaints that might be made against it are that it really doesn't teach any lesson, that it is amateurishly acted and directed, that its narrative is loosely strung together and that it is altogether uninteresting." -- New York World Telegram "The Cameo [Theater] has a dingy little case history as its current feature. The Road to Ruin is about as unnecessarily sordid a tale as the movies have ever taken the trouble to film. Unrelieved by comedy or any note of sweetness or hope, it relates the downfall of one Ann Dixon, this week's least amiable heroine." -- New York Herald Tribune "May well be described as 'strong stuff' for the average amusement seeker. The picture becomes a preachment, before its close, against parents keeping their daughters in ignorance of life and its complications, and to accentuate the point, situations arise which might be better explained by the family physician than by the public screen." -- John Scott, [unidentified Los Angeles news clipping, 1934] Compiled by Bret Wood

Quote It (Road to Ruin) - QUOTES FROM "THE ROAD TO RUIN"

August 20, 2008

Tommy (after a kiss): Whew... what technique!

Mrs. Monroe: Am I blushing?
Party Gent: Can you?

Eve: Did that lad know his stuff! When he kissed you, you stayed kissed!
Ann: Eve, do you let boys kiss you?
Eve: Are you kidding me?
Ann: No.
Eve: Nobody could get that dumb in forty years.

Ann: Is your mother going to marry that Mr. Wheeler?
Eve: Marry him? What for? Why, dad hasn't even agreed to a divorce yet.

Eve: Say, did you know that Tommy's all hot and bothered about you?
Ann: I kind of like him too.

Roadhouse patron: I crave entertainment! Where's that guy with his hand organ?

Ralph: Fred, look over there in the first booth, the little brunette. What a dish! Hey, would I like to put her in the book!
Fred: I didn't know you had any empty pages.
Ralph: Brother, loose-leaf system.

Mrs. Dixon: I can't imagine what's keeping Ann, so late.
Mr. Dixon: You ought to be used to it now. I certainly don't approve of the way these youngsters chase all the time.
Mrs. Dixon: Who's being old-fashioned now? I like to have her with young people. It's good for her.
Mr. Dixon: Don't you think it also might be good for her to come home to meals once in a while?
Mrs. Dixon: I'll put dinner on the table right away. We won't wait any longer for her.

Snoopy Neighbor: Well, why don't you phone the police? Are you going to phone the police or not?
Homer (enjoying the spectacle): Just a minute dear.

Mrs. Merrill: We're not here to punish. Our only hope, in fact our only aim in this juvenile department, is to help you youngsters, to set your feet again on the right road, to stop you before it's too late.
Ann: But, if it is too late.
Mrs. Merrill: But it isn't, if you put all this behind you. You can still make something fine and worthwhile of your life.
Ann: But mother and daddy will never forgive me.
Mrs. Merrill: I'm afraid they're going to have a harder time forgiving themselves.
Eve: Can we go now?
Mrs. Merrill: Not yet dear. I've sent for both your mothers, and of course you'll have to be examined first.
Ann and Eve: Examined?!

Mrs. Dixon: I can't believe it. I can't believe it. I always trusted Ann so.
Mrs. Merrill: Blindly, I'm afraid, Mrs. Dixon, like too many mothers. Our boys and girls today need more than trust. They need the armor of knowledge, of intelligent sex instruction, to protect them.

Eve: Ann, I'm going away with my father. He's been wonderful. I'd die for him.
Ann: I wish I were dead.
Abortionist (rolling up sleeve): I'm ready for the little lady.

Evan: You're just the guy I wanted to see.
Ralph: What's the matter, another sucker refuses to fall?
Evan: I've got this one right on the edge. So I'm throwing a party for him tonight, and it's got to be good. So here, God's gift to women, is where I need your help.
Ralph: Mine? For business or pleasure?
Evan: I'll take care of the business, and I'll cut you in on it.
Ralph: I catch on, brother. What kind of stock does the gent fancy...preferred or common?
Evan: Preferred by all means. And, uh, I understand he falls hard when it's a fairly...new...issue.

Ann: It seemed like such a beautiful road. But it was only a...[insert the film's title].

Compiled by Bret Wood

Quote It (Road to Ruin) - QUOTES FROM "THE ROAD TO RUIN"

Tommy (after a kiss): Whew... what technique! Mrs. Monroe: Am I blushing? Party Gent: Can you? Eve: Did that lad know his stuff! When he kissed you, you stayed kissed! Ann: Eve, do you let boys kiss you? Eve: Are you kidding me? Ann: No. Eve: Nobody could get that dumb in forty years. Ann: Is your mother going to marry that Mr. Wheeler? Eve: Marry him? What for? Why, dad hasn't even agreed to a divorce yet. Eve: Say, did you know that Tommy's all hot and bothered about you? Ann: I kind of like him too. Roadhouse patron: I crave entertainment! Where's that guy with his hand organ? Ralph: Fred, look over there in the first booth, the little brunette. What a dish! Hey, would I like to put her in the book! Fred: I didn't know you had any empty pages. Ralph: Brother, loose-leaf system. Mrs. Dixon: I can't imagine what's keeping Ann, so late. Mr. Dixon: You ought to be used to it now. I certainly don't approve of the way these youngsters chase all the time. Mrs. Dixon: Who's being old-fashioned now? I like to have her with young people. It's good for her. Mr. Dixon: Don't you think it also might be good for her to come home to meals once in a while? Mrs. Dixon: I'll put dinner on the table right away. We won't wait any longer for her. Snoopy Neighbor: Well, why don't you phone the police? Are you going to phone the police or not? Homer (enjoying the spectacle): Just a minute dear. Mrs. Merrill: We're not here to punish. Our only hope, in fact our only aim in this juvenile department, is to help you youngsters, to set your feet again on the right road, to stop you before it's too late. Ann: But, if it is too late. Mrs. Merrill: But it isn't, if you put all this behind you. You can still make something fine and worthwhile of your life. Ann: But mother and daddy will never forgive me. Mrs. Merrill: I'm afraid they're going to have a harder time forgiving themselves. Eve: Can we go now? Mrs. Merrill: Not yet dear. I've sent for both your mothers, and of course you'll have to be examined first. Ann and Eve: Examined?! Mrs. Dixon: I can't believe it. I can't believe it. I always trusted Ann so. Mrs. Merrill: Blindly, I'm afraid, Mrs. Dixon, like too many mothers. Our boys and girls today need more than trust. They need the armor of knowledge, of intelligent sex instruction, to protect them. Eve: Ann, I'm going away with my father. He's been wonderful. I'd die for him. Ann: I wish I were dead. Abortionist (rolling up sleeve): I'm ready for the little lady. Evan: You're just the guy I wanted to see. Ralph: What's the matter, another sucker refuses to fall? Evan: I've got this one right on the edge. So I'm throwing a party for him tonight, and it's got to be good. So here, God's gift to women, is where I need your help. Ralph: Mine? For business or pleasure? Evan: I'll take care of the business, and I'll cut you in on it. Ralph: I catch on, brother. What kind of stock does the gent fancy...preferred or common? Evan: Preferred by all means. And, uh, I understand he falls hard when it's a fairly...new...issue. Ann: It seemed like such a beautiful road. But it was only a...[insert the film's title]. Compiled by Bret Wood

Quotes

Trivia

Notes

Although the film includes an onscreen copyright date (incorrectly listed as 1924), the title was not found in the copyright records. No script credits were seen on the viewed print, and only Mrs. Wallace Reid's story credit was found in contemporary sources. In 1928, Willis Kent wrote and produced the story for a silent version of this picture. The earlier version also starred Helen Foster and was directed by Norton S. Parker (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1921-30; F2.4649). True Life Photoplays was the distributor of the 1928 version as well as the sound version. The Variety reviewer complained about the tone of the sound version, stating that the story was "denatured" and "restrained" in comparison to the "hotly sexed" silent film. According to the same review, this film was released "with the self-imposed proviso" that it was not to be shown to those "under eighteen; following the one-time Chicago custom of voluntarily 'pinking' pictures the police did not restrict to adult showing," in order to suggest that the picture was "hot, hot stuff." In contrast, the The Exhibitor reviewer stated that the 1934 picture is "a vast improvement over its silent brother" and "lends itself to sensational exploitation." According to Film Daily, this film was passed by the Virginia censors only after a "record number" of cuts were made. Although the Catholic Church in Detroit included the film on its July 1934 list of "to be boycotted" releases, a May 1934 Film Daily news item announced that the film had been approved by Detroit censors with "revisions." Three songs are performed in the picture. However, their titles and composers have not been determined. A novelization of the film's script, which was included in records found in the AMPAS Library, was printed at the time of picture's release and appears to have been intended for use as a "discussion starter" in schools and/or community organizations.

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