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On the Minute
(1914) United States of America
B&W : Two reels
Directed by E.A. Martin
Cast: Joseph Hazelton [Henry Biddle], Adele Lane [Marion Biddle], Cecil Holland [William Tripple], Edwin Wallock [Mayor John Weaver], William Stowell [Thomas Regan], Roy Watson [Jimmie Nolan, the convict]
The Selig Polyscope Company, Incorporated, production; distributed by [?] The General Film Company, Incorporated, or The Selig Polyscope Company, Incorporated? / Produced by William N. Selig. From a story by Wallace Clifton. / Released 11 May 1914. / Standard 35mm spherical 1.33:1 format. / Website-IMDb notes that the second reel was a split-reel release with the cartoon Doc Yak’s Temperance Lecture (1914).
Drama.
Synopsis: [?] [From The Moving Picture World]? Marion Biddle, the daughter of an author of note, Henry Biddle, acts as his amanuensis. He is in ill-health and when he is notified by his lawyer of the failure of a big investment, and the shock proves fatal. Marion is out riding in her auto when she gets wind of this news and throws on full speed, but is arrested by a flat tire. The chauffeur attempts to open his tool box and make quick repairs, but finds he has lost the key. A guard in charge of a gang of convicts working the road, observing their plight, calls to Jimmie Nolan, who has earned his spurs and is serving time as an expert burglar and lock-pick. Marion loans the fellow in stripes a hairpin, and he deftly picks the lock, the tire is repaired, and they proceed on their way. Arriving at home, she finds she has come too late; her father is already dead. Then she learns that his affairs are in a desperate state, and she is penniless. She is far from helpless, however, and her father’s solicitor secures her employment, and she is appointed secretary to the newly elected Mayor. A year later, Nolan, the burglar, is released from prison on probation, and immediately seeks out Thomas Regan, an influential “Ward Boss,” whom he has known in the past. Regan and some of his companions are rushing through a big gas franchise bill, which is a menace to the people. He, however, is sure of Mayor Weaver’s co-operation, and sends Nolan with a note reminding him that he is expecting him to sanction the bill, and unwisely adding: “Then WE will shake the plum tree.” Nolan visits the Mayor’s office, and in his attempt to see that functionary, gets a fair look at the secretary, and she looks at him in return, and vainly tries to remember where she has seen him before. Although “the cards have been stacked,” Regan is furious when he sees an article in the newspaper stating that the Mayor is determined to veto the bill. She goes to the mayoralty office; he threatens Weaver with political ruin and the loss of the prospective nomination for Governor, but the Mayor stands firm, and Marion, who overhears the interview, has her admiration firmly fixed for this righteous Mayor with the backbone. Regan is desperate, and he knows that if the letter he has written to the Mayor is used against him, it will be “goodnight.” So he determines to secure it at all hazards. When the Mayor leaves for his home in the suburbs in the early evening, Regan’s mercenaries waylay him on the road. His car is stopped; his chauffeur overpowered, and they are both taken by force to a lonely roadhouse to be held prisoners until the franchise is granted. The Mayor and his chauffeur chafe under the restraint of ropes tied to the chairs as prisoners, while their watchers make merry and pass “the flowing bowl” until the late hours in the morning, and finally, in spite of themselves, sink into drunken slumber. The Mayor is almost overwrought with anxiety, because he has realized from the talk that the great Gas Steal will become a law by default if he is not in the Council Chamber by noon to repeal it with veto. Finally, the chauffeur, who has twisted himself free from his bonds, leans over and frees his employer. They make a break, locking the doors after them, and succeed in jumping into their own car, and speed toward the city, shaking off some of the gang, who have climbed upon the running boards, for the Mayor is a man of power and fights with desperation. It is after 11 o’clock in the morning, and they have only until noon to get to the city hall, and miles away. Marion is worried and anxious over the continued absence of the Mayor. She opens the safe and tidies up the office. Regan, the “Ward Boss,” and his accomplice, the slick-fingered Nolan, go to the Mayor’s office on pretext of business. As Marion enters the room, Nolan slips behind a screen, and Regan, pretending anxiety at the Mayor’s absence, leaves shortly. She follows him out to see that he is safely away. Nolan, who has examined the safe finds that the incriminating documents have probably been transferred from it to the Mayor’s desk. So the instant he is left alone, he begins his old handiwork on the lock of the drawer. Marion returns quickly. In a flash she recognizes him, reaches into another drawer, seizes the Mayor’s revolver, and covers Nolan before he realizes what has happened. Knowing his cleverness, she forces him at the point of the pistol to open the private compartment in the safe. This he is obliged to do, and Marion comes into possession of the Gas Bill with the Mayor’s veto attached, something which he could not previously procure. The clerk of the office comes in at this moment. She gives him the gun to guard Nolan as a prisoner, and rushes to the Council Chamber, reaching there just in time to prevent the passage of the iniquitous measure by default. The Mayor arrives a few moments later, but finds the situation has been saved by a clever young woman’s wit “On the Minute.”
Reviews: [The Moving Picture World, 23 May 1914, page ?] There’s a real thrill every minute throughout the time occupied by this two-part picture which tells the story of the thwarting of a gang of unscrupulous politicians through the bravery and ingenuity of a girl stenographer in the office of a city mayor. There are a number of novel twists in the plot.
Survival status: (unknown)
Current rights holder: Public domain [USA].
Listing updated: 17 April 2024.
References: Sloan-Loud pp. 31, 150 : Website-IMDb.
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