Scarlet Trail (1919)

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Synopsis by Hal Erickson

This uninhibited slice of anti-VD propaganda was inspired by the for-men-only medical pamphlet Don't Take a Chance. The marriage of the hero and heroine is called off by the heroine's father when it is revealed that the hero's dad has been manufacturing and distributing phony patent medicines. One of the "miracle drugs" hawked by the boy's father is a supposed cure for syphilis. The crooked drug manufacturer's perfidy results in tragedy when the hero contacts VD while serving in the army during WWI. Unable to purge himself of the dread social disease, the young man kills himself -- and, as the film's coda spells out in no uncertain terms, this COULD happen to YOU!