| The Million Dollar Mystery | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Howell Hansel |
| Produced by | Edwin Thanhouser |
| Written by | Lloyd Lonergan Harold McGrath |
| Starring | Florence La Badie Marguerite Snow James Cruze Frank Farrington Sidney Bracey Lila Chester |
| Cinematography | George Webber |
| Distributed by | Thanhouser Film Corporation |
| Release date(s) | June 22, 1914 |
| Running time | 23 chapters |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $125,000 approx.[1] |
| Box office | $1,500,000[1] |
The Million Dollar Mystery is a twenty three chapter film serial. It was directed by Howell Hansel, and starred Florence La Badie. It was produced by Thanhouser Film Corporation, and was their biggest success, largely due to the popularity of La Badie. During the filming, La Badie performed her owns stunts. Publicity gimmicks, including a prize for the member of the public who sent in the best idea for a conclusion to the serial, were used to boost the serial's success. The film is presumed to be lost.[2]
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The serial follows a secret society called "The Black Hundred" as they go on a trek in an attempt to obtain a lost one million dollars.
The Million Dollar Mystery was the new serial project from the Chicago Tribune following the success of The Adventures of Kathlyn.[1]
The serial was released with the gimmick that the last chapter was unwritten. Twenty two chapters were written based only on the title, while the serial was left purposefully unfinished with no final chapter. A prize of $10,000 was offered for the best suggestion (advertised as "$10,000 for 100 words").[2] Thousands of letters were received in response to this and Ida Damon, a secretary from St. Louis, won the prize.[1][3] In a further publicity stunt, the character Florence Hargreaves was actually reported missing. Details of the plot were fed to newspapers and the police as if they were real events. It took seven days before this was exposed as fiction.[1]
The serial was highly successful and the stockholders received a return of 700% on their investment, receiving $1.5M at the box office for a cost of $125,000 "or so." As a result, another serial already in production was changed to become a sequel to The Million Dollar Mystery. Zudora was renamed The Twenty Million Dollar Mystery and changes were made to the plot half way through its release. It was not, however, as successful as its predecessor.[1] In June 1918, The Million Dollar Mystery was re-edited to six reels and released as a feature film through Arrow Film Corporation.
SOURCE:[2]