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Earle Williams, who in 1914 was voted the best actor in films, stars in 1918s An American Live Wire. Williams plays a brash young go-getter (has there ever been a sedate young go-getter?) who loses his girlfriend Grace Darmond because he hasn't made a success of himself. Just as Woody Allen would do 53 years later in Bananas, Williams heads to South America to prove himself. He does, and wins the girl as icing on the cake. The plot isn't really quite that simple of course; after all, it was based on a story by "twist-ending" maestro O. Henry.