The Eagle's Eye

The Eagle's Eye is a 1918 American serial film consisting of 20 episodes that dramatizes German espionage in the United States during World War I.[2] The stories are based on the experiences of William J. Flynn during his career as chief of the United States Secret Service from 1912–1917.[1]

The Eagle's Eye
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Directed byGeorge Lessey
Wellington A. Playter
Leopold Wharton
Theodore Wharton
Written byCourtney Ryley Cooper (scenario)
Based onWilliam J. Flynn[1]
StarringKing Baggot
Marguerite Snow
William Bailey
CinematographyLevi Bacon
John K. Holbrook
Ray June
Production
company
The Whartons Studio
Distributed byFoursquare Pictures
Release date
  • March 27, 1918 (1918-03-27)
Running time
20 2 reel episodes
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

It features King Baggot as the president of the Criminology Club and Marguerite Snow as a Secret Service agent who investigate spies.[3] Among the events depicted are the sending of the Zimmermann Telegram, Franz von Rintelen's attempts to sabotage cargo loading in San Francisco Harbor, and the capture of the German espionage plans. It was directed by George Lessey, Wellington A. Playter, Leopold Wharton, and Theodore Wharton, and produced by the Whartons Studio. The serial is now considered lost.[4] Because this serial was a commercial failure, it was the last one made by Whartons due to the studio being forced to declare bankruptcy.

Background

After Flynn's retirement from the Secret Service his work investigating sabotage during the war were interwoven with fictitious characters and events by Courtney Ryley Cooper into a 20-part spy thriller.[3] These were also published as weekly installments in The Atlanta Constitution's magazine section during 1918 under the title The Eagle's Eye: A True Story of the Imperial German Government's Spies and Intrigues in America.[5] Fifteen of the episodes were republished as chapters in a book the following year.[6]

Cast

Chapter titles
Still from episode 17 of the serial with Fred C. Jones, Marguerite Snow, and William Bailey.
  1. Hidden Death
  2. The Naval Ball Conspiracy
  3. The Plot Against the Fleet
  4. Von Rintelen, the Destroyer
  5. The Strike Breeders
  6. The Plot Against Organized Labor
  7. Brown Port Folio
  8. The Kaiser's Death Messenger
  9. The Munitions Campaign
  10. The Invasion of Canada
  11. The Burning of Hopewell
  12. The Canal Conspirators
  13. The Reign of Terror
  14. The Infantile Paralysis Epidemic
  15. The Campaign Against Cotton
  16. The Raid of the U-53
  17. Germany's U-Base in America
  18. The Great Hindu Conspiracy
  19. The Menace of the I.W.W.
  20. The Great Decision

References
  1. "Serials and Series". Exhibitors Herald and Motography. Vol. VII no. 5. Chicago. July 27, 1918. p. 41. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  2. Tucker, Spencer C., ed. (2014). "F". World War I: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection. 2. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 562. ISBN 9781851099658. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  3. Rainey, Buck (1999). Serials and Series: A World Filmography, 1912 1956. Jefferson, NC: McFarland. p. 67. ISBN 9781476604480. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  4. "The Eagle's Eye". Silent Era. 17 November 2018. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  5. Flynn, William J. (April 21, 1918). "The Eagle's Eye: True Story of the Imperial German Government's Spies and Intrigues in America". The Atlanta Constitution (1). p. 18.
  6. Cooper, Courtney Ryley & Flynn, William James (1919). The Eagle's Eye: A True Story of the Imperial German Government's Spies and Intrigues in America from Facts Furnished by William J. Flynn, Recently Retired Chief of the U.S. Secret Service. New York: McCann. ASIN B009QJTQCO.


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