Douglas Fairbanks Double Feature: A Modern Musketeer (1917) / Manhattan Madness (1916)

Only eighteen months after his debut in D.W. Griffith's The Lamb (1916), handsome, athletic, charismatic Douglas Fairbanks had established himself as Hollywood's third highest paid actor, behind only Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford. The mighty triumvirate of friends went on to found United Artists in 1919, and the studio's financial success was fueled to a great extent by Fairbanks' films. As the first president of the Motion Picture Academy Of Arts and Sciences, Doug presented the very first Oscars in 1927. He is best known for his lavish swashbuckling adventures, most notably The Mark Of Zorro (1920), The Three Musketeers (1921), Robin Hood (1922) and The Thief of Bagdad (1924). These two early comedies highlight the incredible acrobatic and comedic prowess that made him a star.

A MODERN MUSKETEER (1917): The course of Ned Thacker's life was dictated to him in the womb…literally. His mother often read the Three Musketeers stories of Alexandre Dumas out loud while she was pregnant…causing the adult Ned to fancy himself a modern-day D'Artagnan. His displays of old-fashioned chivalry usually alienate and confuse the modern-day women he encounters, however. Things start looking up when he meets Elsie Dodge, an innocent sixteen-year-old flapper traveling with her mother and millionaire Forrest Vandeteer. Ned is instantly smitten with the girl, and becomes protective when he learns that Vandeteer intends to make her his fourth wife. He agrees to accompany the trio down the Grand Canyon trail, where Elsie is promptly kidnapped by Najvajo Indians. Now Ned must summon all the courage of his legendary inspiration to save the girl he loves and prove he is the better man….the opening sequence of A Modern Musketeer, in which Fairbanks imagines himself as D'Artagnan, was so popular that Doug ended up playing the real thing in Fred Niblo's big-budget adaptation of The Three Musketeers (1921). He would play D'Artagnan again in the sequel, The Iron Mask (1929), which wound up being Fairbanks' final silent feature and somewhat of a last hurrah for his career.

MANHATTAN MADNESS (1916): Steve O'Dare escaped the hustle and bustle of New York to go west and become a cowboy years ago. Returning to the East Coast for a visit, his old friends assure him that the Big Apple has thrills to spare. As if on cue, a door opens and in walks the most beautiful girl Steve has ever seen. She turns out to be the ward of wealthy Count Marinoff, and he journeys to the Count's opulent mansion to inquire about her eligibility status. There he is jumped by several men who turn out to be the very friends who promised him some excitement for his visit. Thus begins a wild adventure that will prove to the former city slicker that Manhattan has a lot going for it…including the hand of a beautiful princess-in-waiting.