Peacock Alley

When Mary and Fannie Graham, daughters of a good mother but a father with criminal instincts, are left motherless, Mary flees from her unhappy surroundings while Fannie, inheriting her father's disposition, remains and is raised as a thief.

From a Montana mining camp, a young man progresses to the society heights of New York, making his mark publicly as a dancer, but secretly as a gentleman burglar.

Mr. Williams, a stern father and man of wealth, disinherits his son Hugh, for marrying Rose, a seamstress. Twenty years later, although Sose is practically supporting her sick husband, their little store is taken from them and they are obliged to move, with Martha, their daughter, to the tenement district.

Inconsiderate millionaire John Benson, philanthropist Oliver North, courageous Langdon Crane, wealthy idler Robert Curtis and Lydia Benson are among the passengers on an ocean liner that is sunk by a German submarine. Carried away by the currents to a tropical island, the castaways endure hardships which bring out their true natures.

Mrs. Standing, an old-fashioned country mother, sacrifices to put her son John through college so that he might have a better life. Upon completing school, John goes to the city where his financial success blinds him to the basic values taught to him by his mother.

Nancy Glenn is a pupil in Pop Hogland's school for crooks. When, attired as a boy named "Spider", Nancy fails at her lessons as a pickpocket, Pop decides to pair her with Pliny Drew, a graduate thief and swindler.

During a raging storm, a baby is washed up on shore on an island in Greece and is adopted by the wealthy Stanhopes, who name her Lorelei. Eighteen years later, Lorelei, now a woman, invites her school friends to spend their vacation at her villa. One of her guests, Julie, is insanely jealous of Lorelei. One day Gerald Waldron, a disenchanted society fop, sails by on his yacht, accompanied by his social-climbing friend, Hartley Royce. Seeing Lorelei and her friends swimming, they decide to go ashore. Both Gerald and Hartley fall in love with Lorelei, and Julie rages, finding herself relegated to Hartley. Together Hartley and Julie plot to separate the lovers.

Nick Carraway, a young Midwesterner now living on Long Island, finds himself fascinated by the mysterious past and lavish lifestyle of his neighbor, the nouveau riche Jay Gatsby. He is drawn into Gatsby's circle, becoming a witness to obsession and tragedy.

Mysterious World

Marion Clark, a manicurist, is unimpressed by the wealthy but dissipated men who frequent her shop, preferring city editor Dick Strong, who lives in her boardinghouse. Dick's sister Gladys, however, is intrigued by the wilder side of life in New York and allows one of the boarders to take her to a lively party.

A man breaks into a flat, startling the occupant. They argue about the new girlfriend of the 'burglar', who's come to get her stuff. Then a third man bursts out of the cupboard...

Captain of the Yale football team, Paul Potter becomes engaged to his small-town Indiana sweetheart Sylvia Castle but once in the big city he becomes involved with married society girl Muriel Evers and finds Sylvia too provincial, ending their engagement. In time Sylvia meets alcoholic actor, Henry Leamington, who encourages her to become an actress while she helps him get sober. In New York she finds success and becomes reacquainted with Paul for whom she still has feelings, but comes to realize he is a lout and returns to Henry.

Thinking that he has lost both his money and his beloved Nora's in a bad investment young New Yorker Ted Ewing arranges for his own murder. Suddenly he discovers the money is safe and has in fact doubled and sets out to cancel the contract on his life. But will he be able to do so in time?

The Talbots, formerly one of the Eastern Shore's first families, have gone to seed: Pap is a drunk, soddenly decaying in his ruined ancestral home, and three of his sons (William, Carol, and Ezra) are lazy, shiftless young men. Mulligan, Pap's second son who supports the entire family by oyster fishing, falls in love with wealthy Anna Lee, but when he first kisses her, she calls him "white trash."

Harriet Field, living the Bohemian life in Greenwich Village, is tricked into a mock marriage with the unscrupulous Royal Blondin. She leaves him, taking a job as companion to the wealthy Nina Carter. Blondin reappears during a masquerade ball thrown by the Carters, makes advances to Nina but Harriet intervenes, bringing threats from Blondin to expose her past. When Nina’s faithless mother is killed in a car crash as she elopes with another man Richard Carter persuades Harriet to marry him for the sake of the children. She reveals all to her husband and Richard offers Blondin a hefty sum of money to stay out of Nina's life.

Coddled by his maiden aunts and apparently unable to make decisions, Oliver Wendell Blaine signs up for a mail-order course in "Success." Oliver follows the instructions step by step, builds his self-confidence, and proves himself a hero when a log jam threatens the town. He is made river boss and marries Phyllis Thorpe, daughter of the owner of the lumber-mill.

Broad-minded rector Stephen Carey is ousted from his church by his vestrymen and befriends Claudia Bigelow, a young divorcée who defended his position in the church. Claudia's carelessness in leaving a cigarette burning causes Jimsy, the housekeeper's son, to go blind. Stephen's prayers restore the boy's sight, and a happy future is predicted for all.

When a casino-owning dog named Charlie is murdered by his rival Carface, he finds himself in Heaven basically by default since all dogs go to heaven. However, since he wants to get back at his killer, he cons his way back to the living with the warning that doing that damns him to Hell. Once back, he teams with his old partner, Itchy, to prep his retaliation. He also stumbles onto an orphan girl who can talk to the animals, thus allowing him to get the inside info on the races to ensure his wins to finance his plans. However, all the while, he is still haunted by nightmares of what's waiting for him on the other side unless he can prove that he is worthy of Heaven again.

Thinking that her husband is paying more attention to his work and to their little daughter, Nina, than to her, Cleo Morin runs away with Henri Mordan. On the afternoon of their elopement, Morin, who is a ballet master, is seriously injured on the stage, and the doctor tells him that his spine is so affected that he will never be able to walk again.

A young woman of humble origins hides her family's lack of wealth and prestige from her boarding school friends.