{{short description|1924 film}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}} {{Infobox film | name = The Law Forbids | image = The Law Forbids (1924) poster.jpg | alt = | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = Jess Robbins | producer = | screenplay = Lois Zellner<br>Ford Beebe | story = Bernard McConville | starring = Baby Peggy<br>Robert Ellis<br>Elinor Fair<br>Winifred Bryson<br>James Corrigan<br>Anna Dodge | music = | cinematography = Charles E. Kaufman<br>Jack Stevens | editing = | studio = Universal Pictures | distributor = Universal Pictures | released = {{Film date|1924|4|7}} | runtime = 60 minutes | country = United States | language = Silent (English intertitles) | budget = | gross = }}
'''''The Law Forbids''''' is a 1924 American drama film directed by Jess Robbins and written by Lois Zellner and Ford Beebe. The film stars Baby Peggy, Robert Ellis, Elinor Fair, Winifred Bryson, James Corrigan, and Anna Dodge. The film was released on April 7, 1924, by Universal Pictures.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/497496/the-law-forbids |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141221213846/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/497496/The-Law-Forbids/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 21, 2014 |title=The Law Forbids (1924) - Overview |publisher=Turner Classic Movies |date= |access-date=June 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Hal Erickson |url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-law-forbids-v98887 |title=The Law Forbids (1924) - Jesse Robbins |publisher=AllMovie |date= |accessdate=June 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://catalog.afi.com/Film/10196-THE-LAW-FORBIDS |title=The Law Forbids |publisher=Catalog.afi.com |date= |accessdate=June 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>[http://www.silentera.com/PSFL/data/L/LawForbids1924.html Progressive Silent Film List: ''The Law Forbids''] at silentera.com</ref>
==Plot== As described in a film magazine review,<ref name="ETR">{{cite journal |last=Pardy |first=George T. |title=Box Office Reviews: ''The Law Forbids'' |journal=Exhibitors Trade Review |volume= |issue= |pages=26 |publisher=Exhibitors Review Publishing Corporation |date=15 March 1924 |location=New York |url=https://archive.org/details/exhibi00newy/page/n177/mode/1up |accessdate=30 September 2022}} {{Source-attribution}}</ref> playwright Paul Remsen and his wife Rhoda separate. Rhoda takes their daughter Peggy with her to live in the country, where Peggy has a pet rooster named Alexander. Peggy makes her way to New York City in search of her father. He has become entangled with a vamp actress Inez Lamont, who is in a new play he has written. The child wanders first backstage and then onto the stage on the opening night of the production. Through her a reconciliation occurs between the parents.
==Cast== {{Cast listing| *Baby Peggy as Peggy Remsen *Robert Ellis as Paul Remsen *Elinor Fair as Rhoda Remsen *Winifred Bryson as Inez Lamont *James Corrigan as John Martin *Anna Dodge as Martha Martin (credited as Anna Hernandez) *Joseph J. Dowling as Judge *Ned Sparks as Clyde Vernon *Eva Thatcher as Mrs. Grimes *Victor Potel as Joel Andrews *W. E. Lawrence as Monte Hanley (credited as William E. Lawrence) *Hayden Stevenson as Lawyer for the Defense *William Welsh as Lawyer for the Plaintiff (credited as William Welch) *Bobby Bowes as Theatrical Producer * Billy Butts as Boy in car (uncredited) }}
A Universal Pictures publication showing the cast for the film includes Robert Bolder, Merta Sterling, and Vola Vale, who may all have had uncredited roles, possibly in the stage production.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/universal1820univ/page/n626/mode/1up Cover of ''Universal Weekly''] (Feb. 16, 1924), "''The Law Forbids'', A Universal-Jewel de luxe with Baby Peggy and a Great Cast"</ref>
==Preservation== An incomplete copy of ''The Law Forbids'' is held in a film collection in the Netherlands.<ref>[http://lcweb2.loc.gov:8081/diglib/ihas/loc.mbrs.sfdb.3020/default.html Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Database: ''The Law Forbids'']</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{commons category|The Law Forbids}} *{{IMDb title|0015056|The Law Forbids}} *[https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-the-law-forbids-publicity-flyer-for-the-1924-movie-on-divorce-and-10287711.html Lobby card] at www.alamy.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Law Forbids}} Category:1924 films Category:1924 English-language films Category:American silent drama films Category:1924 drama films Category:Universal Pictures films Category:Films directed by Jess Robbins Category:American silent feature films Category:American black-and-white films Category:1924 American films Category:English-language drama films