Secrets (1924)

After 40 years of struggle on the Wyoming frontier, a woman reflects on her hardscrabble life with her unfaithful husband.

Director:

Frank Borzage

Writers:

Rudolph Besier, May Edginton (play),

Stars:

Norma Talmadge, Eugene O'Brien, Patterson Dial

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Norma Talmadge	...	Mary Carlton
Eugene O'Brien	...	John Carlton
Patterson Dial	...	Susan
Emily Fitzroy	...	Mrs. Marlowe
Claire McDowell	...	Elizabeth Channing
George Nichols	...	William Marlowe
Harvey Clark	...	Bob
Charles Ogle	...	Dr. McGovern
Donald Keith	...	John Carlton Jr. (1888) (as Francis Feeney)
Alice Day	...	Blanche Carlton (1888)
Winston Miller	...	Robert Carlton (1888)
Mae Giraci	...	Audrey Carlton (1888) (as May Giraci)
Gertrude Astor	...	Mrs. Manwaring
Winter Hall	...	Dr. Arbuthnot
Frank Elliott	...	Robert Carlton (1923)

Storyline

An old woman's memories are rekindled as she rereads her diary. She recalls her youth in England when she married a suitor over the objections of her parents and moved with him to the Wyoming frontier. They live a hardscrabble life there and suffered deprivation, hunger, Indian attacks, and the death of her baby. Although they eventually make a go of it, her husband becomes involved with another woman. Now that he is on his deathbed, will she forgive her husband after 40 years.

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Plot Keywords:

england | melodrama | old age | dream | saga | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 March 1924 (USA)

Also Known As:

Secretos

Company Credits

Production Co:

Joseph M. Schenck Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Power of Women in Hollywood (2000)

User Reviews

A Norma Talmadge Hit

This 1924 film exists, although about a third of it is lost. Still, the story is coherent. This was remade by Mary Pickford in 1933 and was her final film appearance. The story is basically the same but the locales are all different with Talmadge starting out in England and ending up in Scotland. Talmadge was one of the biggest stars of the silent era and is more famous now for her failure in talkies, although her NEW YORK NIGHTS is quite good.

Talmadge marries and heads off for the "wilderness" with her husband but loses a baby during an attack. Still she survives and raises a family. This films boasts some good silent actors like Eugene O'Brien, Patterson Dial (the sister in law in TOL'ABLE David), Emily Fitzroy, George Nichols, Claire McDowell, Gertrude Astor, and Alice Day.

In the 1920s, Talmadge rivaled Pickford, Swanson, and Gish in popularity; audiences loved to see her play patrician characters who suffered so nobly. What a shame so few of Talmadge's silent dramas have survived.