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Finding the “Last Chance” Mine
(1912) United States of America
B&W : One reel
Directed by [?] Gaston Méliès and/or Robert Goodman?
Cast: William Clifford [Jim]
G. Méliès production; distributed by The General Film Company, Incorporated. / Produced by Gaston Méliès. / Released 9 May 1912. / Standard 35mm spherical 1.33:1 format.
Drama: Western.
Synopsis: [From Méliès promotional materials] Old Jean, the Hermit, is the curiosity of Lonely Mountain. His only friend is his burro. Where he gets all his gold is a mystery to the villagers, so they appoint Jim, a genial cowboy, to investigate. He learns that Jean has a rich gold mine, but before he can find its location the old man dies. All the town goes a-hunting for the treasure, for “Findings is Keepings” in the West. Jim alone buries old Jean who is followed to the grave by the burro. That sets Jim thinking. He puts on the old man’s wooden leg, and sure enough, the animal is fooled, and leads him to the “Last Chance” mine. // [?] [From The Moving Picture World]? Jean Dyer, an old one-legged hermit who lives in a mean abode on Lonely Mountain, has the villagers all guessing as to where he gets his gold, for whenever he comes to town he spends freely. The villagers appoint Jimmie, a genial cowboy, to visit the old man, get him “full,” and pump him as to the location of the mine. Jimmie wins the old man’s confidence and liking, but in a terrific storm that comes up, a tree crashes through the roof and mortally wounds Dyer. His last words are an endeavor to locate the mine so that Jim might have the benefit. He dies before he finishes. The news of the death stirs all the villagers to an organized hunt for the gold mine, but their efforts are in vain. Jim buries the old man respectably, and when a few days later he visits the grave, finds there Dyer’s old burro which had been his only chum. An idea comes to Jim. He puts on the old hermit’s wooden leg, mounts the burro in the old man’s way, kicks him with the wooden leg, as was Dyer’s wont, and is led to the very entrance of the mine. The villagers would share it with him, but “Findings is keepings” is the unwritten law of the west.
Survival status: (unknown)
Current rights holder: Public domain [USA].
Listing updated: 28 July 2024.
References: Thompson-Star p. 231 : ClasIm-226 p. 55 : Website-IMDb.
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