What's His Name (1914) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

A family's stability collapses under ambition, social humiliation, and Fairfax's influence before Nellie chooses family responsibility over divorce.

Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases

A Hometown Marriage

Nellie marries Harvey and enjoys several happy years with him. A passing chorus girl then offers Nellie a paid opportunity that could transform her life.

Key Events

• Nellie Marries Harvey — Nellie, a baker's daughter, marries soda fountain operator Harvey. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Their tiny hometown
• Happy Married Years — The couple enjoys several happy years of marriage. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Their tiny hometown
• Chorus Girl Arrives — Nellie befriends a passing chorus girl. Characters: Nellie Location: Their tiny town
• Chorus Offer — The chorus girl offers Nellie a position paying twenty dollars weekly. Characters: Nellie Location: Their tiny town
• Nellie Accepts Work — Nellie accepts the chorus opportunity but does not want to leave her family. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Their tiny hometown

New York Ambition

Nellie accepts the chorus position and moves to New York with Harvey and their daughter. Her rapid popularity begins pulling her away from domestic life.

Key Events

• Family Moves East — Harvey moves with Nellie and their daughter to support her career. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: New York
• Nellie Gains Popularity — Nellie's popularity rises rapidly after she joins the chorus. Characters: Nellie Location: Manhattan theater
• Fairfax Notices Nellie — Millionaire Fairfax becomes interested in the increasingly popular Nellie. Characters: Nellie, Fairfax Location: Manhattan
• Family Distance Advised — The theater manager advises Nellie to distance herself from Harvey and her daughter. Characters: Nellie Location: Manhattan theater

Fame And Separation

Fairfax notices Nellie, while the theater manager urges her to distance herself from her family. Nellie places Harvey and their daughter in Tarrytown and limits her visits.

Key Events

• Tarrytown Relocation — Nellie moves Harvey and their daughter into a staffed house in Tarrytown. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Tarrytown home
• Sunday-Only Family Life — Nellie remains in Manhattan and visits her family mainly on Sundays. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Tarrytown home
• Harvey Is Humiliated — Repeated humiliation causes Harvey to be known as "What's His Name." Characters: Harvey Location: New York social settings
• Pistol At Dressing Room — Frustrated and embarrassed, Harvey appears at Nellie's party with a pistol. Characters: Harvey, Nellie Location: Nellie's dressing room

Humiliation And Ruin

Harvey is publicly humiliated and confronts Nellie with a pistol. Fairfax attempts to buy him off, and the resulting violence is followed by the family's expulsion.

Key Events

• Fairfax Offers Money — Fairfax offers Harvey a large sum to let Nellie go. Characters: Fairfax, Harvey Location: Tarrytown home
• Harvey Strikes Fairfax — Harvey punches Fairfax, who responds by having Harvey beaten. Characters: Harvey, Fairfax Location: Tarrytown home
• Family Evicted — Nellie stops paying rent and throws Harvey and their daughter out. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Tarrytown home
• The Walk Home Begins — Harvey and his daughter begin walking home with only a wall plaque. Characters: Harvey Location: Road from Tarrytown

The Family Returns

Harvey and his daughter undertake a month-long walk home while Nellie goes to Reno for a divorce. When the child becomes dangerously ill, Nellie abandons the divorce and returns to her family.

Key Events

• Month-Long Trek — Harvey and his daughter endure a month-long trek toward their hometown. Characters: Harvey Location: Road to their hometown
• Divorce Filed In Reno — Nellie travels to Reno, Nevada, to file for divorce. Characters: Nellie Location: Reno, Nevada
• Child Becomes Dangerously Ill — Harvey faces a life-threatening illness affecting their daughter. Characters: Harvey Location: Road to their hometown
• Harvey Contacts Nellie — Harvey contacts Nellie and tells her about their daughter's critical condition. Characters: Harvey, Nellie Location: A long-distance contact
• Nellie Rejects Divorce — Nellie sees through Fairfax's charm and abandons the divorce plan. Characters: Nellie Location: Reno, Nevada
• Nellie Returns Home — Nellie returns to her family to care for her ill daughter. Characters: Nellie, Harvey Location: Their hometown

Story Breakdown

• Hometown Marriage — Nellie and Harvey begin with a happy married life in their tiny hometown.
  • Wedding Begins — Nellie, the baker's daughter, marries soda fountain operator Harvey.
  • Domestic Happiness — The couple experiences several happy years of marriage.
• Chorus Opportunity — A chance meeting introduces Nellie to a paid theatrical career.
  • New Friendship — Nellie befriends a chorus girl passing through town.
  • Paid Position — The chorus girl offers Nellie twenty dollars a week.
• New York Rise — Nellie's career expands after the family relocates to New York.
  • Family Relocates — Harvey moves with Nellie and their daughter to support her.
  • Popularity Grows — Nellie rapidly gains popularity in the chorus.
• Fairfax Influence — Fairfax's interest and the theater world encourage Nellie's separation from her family.
  • Millionaire Pursues — Fairfax becomes interested in the popular Nellie.
  • Family Is Hidden — Nellie places Harvey and their daughter in Tarrytown.
• Harvey's Humiliation — Harvey loses social dignity as Nellie's public identity eclipses his own.
  • New Nickname — Repeated humiliation makes Harvey known as "What's His Name."
  • Dressing Room Threat — Harvey arrives at Nellie's dressing room carrying a pistol.
• Fairfax Versus Harvey — Fairfax attempts to remove Harvey through money and intimidation.
  • Money Offered — Fairfax offers Harvey a large sum to let Nellie go.
  • Violent Retaliation — Harvey punches Fairfax and is subsequently beaten.
• Expulsion And Trek — Nellie's abandonment leaves Harvey and their daughter without a home.
  • Tarrytown Eviction — Nellie stops paying rent and throws them out.
  • Plaque Carried Home — They walk home carrying only a God Bless Our Home plaque.
• Divorce Reversed — A family emergency breaks Fairfax's hold and redirects Nellie's final decision.
  • Reno Filing — Nellie travels to Reno to file for divorce.
  • Illness Reported — Harvey contacts Nellie when their daughter becomes dangerously ill.
  • Family Chosen — Nellie abandons divorce and returns to care for her daughter.

Directed by

Cecil B. DeMille

Key Cast

• Max Figman — Harvey
• Lolita Robertson — Nellie
• Sydney Deane — Uncle Peter
• Richard L'Estrange — Best Man
• Merta Carpenter — Friend Of Nellie's