Writing

Adrian Johnson

Born — Died

1883-01-13 — 1964-09-14

Place of birth

Knoxville, Tennessee, USA

Known for

Writing

Credits

25 titles

Known for

Behind the camera

The Soul of Buddha poster
NR

Theda Bara plays a Javanese priestess who elopes with an English military officer (Hugh Thompson). Bara's Bavahari becomes a celebrated dancer but is murdered onstage by a vengeful Buddhist priest (Victor Kennard).

The Soul of Buddha

1918

Romance of a Rogue poster
10.0

A low-key silent drama of a man seeking vengeance on the villain whose lies sent him to prison on the night of his wedding.

Romance of a Rogue

1928

The Lady from Nowhere poster
10.0

A young couple pose as criminals in order to get the goods on their crooked bosses.

The Lady from Nowhere

1931

Checkers poster
9.0

Edward Campbell, known as Checkers, is a racetrack tout. Determined to reform himself, he foreswears gambling, but must take it up once more in order to save someone he loves from disaster.

Checkers

1919

The Liberty Boys of '76 poster
NR

The serialized story of a group of young Colonial patriots battling in the Revolutionary War against the hated British and their murderous American Indian allies. Based on the popular pulp publication of the same name. Surviving episodes include 'The Blue Riders', 'In the Hands of the Enemy' and 'The Night Raiders'.

The Liberty Boys of '76

1924

The Caillaux Case poster
NR

Based on an international scandal that hit prewar France, when the editor of the Paris daily LE FIGARO, Gaston Calmette was shot to death by Madame Caillaux, wife of the Minister of Finance for his exposè of her husband's traitorous activities on behalf of Germany.

The Caillaux Case

1918

The Darling of Paris poster
NR

This film is a very loose film adaptation of the 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo and presumed lost: The wealthy girl Esmeralda is kidnapped by gypsies at birth and becomes, as one might assume, the darling of Paris. She is loved by the bell ringer and former hunchback Quasimodo, Frollo, the wicked surgeon who cares him, and an equally wicked Captain Phoebus.

The Darling of Paris

1917

Madame du Barry poster
7.0

After Jeanette becomes the mistress of the ambitious Jean du Barry, he marries her off to one of his cousins so that she has an entre to the royal court. She soon becomes the favorite of the King and Jean du Barry becomes a regular around the court too. But all this is disturbed when Madame du Barry falls for Conte Brissac of the King's Guard. Jean du Barry's attempts to expose her affair only get him banished from the court.

Madame du Barry

1917

The Darling of New York poster
8.0

Santussa, an orphan who becomes separated from her nurse en route to America to live with her grandfather, is cared for by gangsters who hide their stolen jewels in her ragdoll. In New York, Big Mike, finding Santussa a nuisance, dumps her and the doll in a trash can, where a newsboy finds her. After several adventures, Santussa finds her grandfather, the jewels are handed over to customs officials, and the gang of crooks is reformed.

The Darling of New York

1923

Conscience poster
NR

Serama, the consort of Lucifer, is driven from Paradise by the Archangel Michael, who commands Conscience to enter human souls to judge and punish them. In the main story, society girl Ruth Somers, a reincarnation of Serama, prepares to marry Cecil Brooke, the wealthiest man of her set. Her guardian, Dr. Norton, an incarnation of Lucifer, constantly accompanies her. Ruth is summoned to the Court of Conscience, where the witnesses, Lust, Avarice, Hate, Revenge and Vanity, testify about Ruth's history of seducing and abandoning men. This behavior resulted in the suicide of Madge, the lover of Ned Langley, whom Ruth enthralled and promised to marry, and also the deaths of two rivals for her love. Ruth is ordered back to earth to learn her sentence. When Ned interrupts the wedding, Ruth scorns him and he shoots himself. After Brooke leaves her, the Court dooms Ruth to live with the torment of remembrance. Ruth sends Norton away, and then kneels and repents.

Conscience

1917

The Queen of Hearts poster
NR

Pauline Cheraud risks her reputation to expose the man who killed her father.

The Queen of Hearts

1918

Tell It to the Marines poster
NR

After a busy day of playing pranks on their father's servants and guests, Harry Williams' daughters Jane and Katherine tumble into bed and fall asleep. Having seen a film depicting World War I fighting in Europe, little Jane dreams that two armies, consisting entirely of mechanical dolls, are advancing against each other in battle. While Trik leads the German troops, who are guilty of committing a score of atrocities, Trak heads the Allied army, which ultimately wins the war. In the end, Jane awakens with a start to find that it has all been a dream.

Tell It to the Marines

1918

A Daughter of France poster
NR

During World War I, Louise, a French girl, refuses to leave her château after the invading Germans take it over for use as their headquarters. A German officer, Col. von Knorr, makes repeated advances on her, but she rebuffs him.

A Daughter of France

1918

Why I Would Not Marry poster
NR

Adele Moore pressured by her father to choose a husband among four men consults a fortune teller for advice. The crystal ball warns none are suitable so Adele does a flit. Settling in Vermont she opens a store. Business is slow but one day a passing salesman walks in and things begin to look up!

Why I Would Not Marry

1918

Cleopatra poster
4.2

The story of Cleopatra, the fabulous queen of Egypt, and the epic romances between her and the greatest men of Rome, Julius Caesar and Antony. Only a small fragment of this film survives.

Cleopatra

1917

Under the Yoke poster
NR

As described in a film magazine, when Maria Valverda (Bara) refuses the attentions of Diablo Ramirez (Nye), he starts an insurrection among the native Filipinos. Maria's father Don Ramon is killed and Maria is held hostage. She gets word to Capt. Paul Winter (Roscoe) of the American troops in Manila and he comes to her assistance, but his troops are outnumbered and they are made prisoners by the revolting revolutionists. Maria and Paul attempt to escape, but they are caught and brought back. At the Manila headquarters, trouble is suspected and reinforcements are sent. Before long, the revolt is subdued and peace reigns over Maria's home, and happiness over the betrothal of Maria and Paul. This film is lost.

Under the Yoke

1918

Blue-Eyed Mary poster
NR

When her son has married beneath the family, Mrs. Van Twiller Du Bois disowns him and decides to leave her fortune to her nephew, Cecil Harrington. She does, however, agree to educate her granddaughter Mary, who comes to live with Mrs. Du Bois in hopes of reconciling her father and the old woman. Cecil, actually a local robber whose identity has just been discovered by the police, plans to rob his aunt and leave town. Just as he is emptying the safe, Mary enters the room, and when Mrs. Du Bois comes in, Cecil tries to blame Mary for the robbery. The police soon arrive to clear Mary's name and arrest Cecil, and Mrs. Du Bois is reconciled to her family.

Blue-Eyed Mary

1918

Salome poster
7.0

Palestine, under the rule of Rome. Salome, daughter of Herodias and both niece and stepdaughter of King Herod, becomes infatuated with the prophet John the Baptist, who publicly denounces the depravity of the royal family and proclaims the arrival of a new messiah. (Film presumed lost.)

Salome

1918

Crooked Alley poster
10.0

Reformed criminal Boston Blackie is outraged when a judge refuses to grant a pardon for a dying friend. He hires Norine, his now-dead friend's daughter, to get to the judge through his son Rudy. However, things don't work out quite as Blackie had planned.

Crooked Alley

1923

Camille poster
NR

Camille is a courtesan in Paris. She falls deeply in love with a young man of promise, Armand Duval. When Armand's father begs her not to ruin his hopes of a career and position by marrying Armand, she acquiesces and leaves her lover. However, when poverty and terminal illness overwhelm her, Camille discovers that Armand has not lost his love for her.

Camille

1917

April Folly poster
8.0

April Poole (Davies), a young writer in love with publisher Kerry Sarle (Tearle), visits the office of Mr. Sarle and his partner Ronald Kenna (Frank) and reads her latest story to them. She has made Sarle the hero, Kenna the villain, and herself the heroine. In the story, April changes places with Lady Diana Mannister (Marshall), who is being sent to South Africa to separate her from her lover, a young artist. A famous diamond that Lady Diana is to deliver at the end of her journey is given to April. Thieves trail her during her journey. With efforts by Kenna to steal the diamond prevented by the intervention of Sarle, the story comes to a close.

April Folly

1920

Romeo and Juliet poster
NR

Shakespeare's tragedy of two young people who fall desperately in love despite the ancient feud between their two families. A lost film.

Romeo and Juliet

1916

Carnival poster
7.0

An actor playing Othello in a stage production of Shakespeare's play becomes jealous of his wife's supposed infidelity and seems bound to kill her in the scene in which she, enacting Othello's falsely accused wife Desdemona, is murdered by her jealous husband.

Carnival

1921

Buchanan's Wife poster
NR

Beatrix marries Herbert Buchanan while under his hypnotic trance, although she really loves Harry Faring. When Herbert learns of his wife's love for Harry, he disappears with Kansas, a tramp. Soon after, Beatrix falsely identifies a body at the morgue as her husband's and marries Harry, but when Herbert, still alive though ill and demented, appears at her door with Kansas, she confesses her lie to her new husband. Kansas' plans to blackmail Beatrix are ruined when Harry visits the two tramps, and Herbert, now dying of tuberculosis, pleads with Kansas to leave the couple in peace. Kansas agrees, and after Herbert's death, Beatrix and Harry return to a normal life. - From AFI

Buchanan's Wife

1918

The Love Brand poster
9.0

Frances Collier sets a love trap for landowner Don José O'Neil to help her father acquire his potentially oil-rich land, then falls genuinely in love with her victim.

The Love Brand

1923