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The First Degree is a silent film from 1923 directed by Edward Sedgwick. The film is a rural melodrama starring Frank Mayo, Sylvia Breamer, and Philo McCullough. A Universal Pictures production, it is one of the Carl Laemmle-endorsed “The Laemmle Nine,” nine films released from Christmas 1922 to February 19, 1923.[1] The screenplay by George Randolph Chester is based on the short story “The Summons” by George Pattullo (published in The Saturday Evening Post in 1914). The cinematography is by Benjamin H. Kline.

The First Degree
Ad for The First Degree on page 30 of the December 2, 1922 Universal Weekly
Directed by	Edward Sedgwick
Screenplay by	George Randolph Chester Lillian Josephine Chester
Based on	The Summons 1914 story in Saturday Evening Post by George Pattullo
Starring	Frank Mayo Sylvia Breamer Philo McCullough
Cinematography	Benjamin H. Kline
Production company	Universal Pictures
Release date	February 5, 1923
Running time	5 reels 50 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English intertitles

Long thought to be a lost film, a complete, partially-tinted 35mm domestic distribution print of the film was discovered at Chicago Film Archives in June 2020 in the Charles E. Krosse Collection, a collection of mostly agricultural and sponsored films produced and distributed by C.L. Venard Productions of Peoria, Illinois.[2][3][4] CFA has since digitally preserved the film.

Cast

• Frank Mayo as Sam Purdy
• Sylvia Breamer as Mary
• Philo McCullough as Will
• George A. Williams as Sheriff
• Harry Carter as District Attorney

Plot

Sam Purdy receives a call from the Grand Jury of Lincoln County. He is wanted to give testimony in a case involving the theft of his sheep, but before he learns this, he makes a confession regarding the murder of his half-brother, Will, the night before. Purdy goes on to tell the jury of the myriad ways his brother has wronged him over the last several years, motivated out of a mutual affection for a woman named Mary. Via flashback, Sam tells the room of how Will had him sent to jail for a year for a bank robbery he did not commit. While in jail, Sam studied law and starts life afresh when released. Sam runs for County Prosecutor and all is going well with him until Will turns up, threatens blackmail, and exposes his past and forces him to again leave town. Sam gets another start and is successful as a sheep farmer in a rural town when Will again appears and blackmails him. A fight takes place and Sam supposes that he has killed his brother in the scuffle. But as he finishes his testimony before the Grand Jury, much to the surprise of the members, in comes the sheriff conveying the prisoner in the sheep-stealing case is Will.[5]

See also

• List of rediscovered films

References

External links

• The First Degree at IMDb
• The First Degree at the TCM Movie Database
• The First Degree at AllMovie
• The First Degree at the American Film Institute Catalog
• Charles E. Krosse Collection at Chicago Film Archives

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