Speed Madness (1932) / The Night Patrol (1926) (DVD)

Richard Talmadge (1892-1981) brought to early Hollywood the sort of daredevilry that comes from being born into a family of circus performers. Talmadge's stellar career saw him serve as stunt double for Douglas Fairbanks and Harold Lloyd, star in and produce many of his own vehicles, and coordinate stunts on some of cinema's great epics. Talmadge richly deserved his late-in-life title "The Father of Hollywood Stuntmen."

Speed Madness (1932, B&W): More mile-a-minute action with the stunt ace playing the loafer son of a shipbuilder facing financial ruin. Bob Stuart takes charge of the company's development of a new speedboat - unaware that gangsters and saboteurs want to thwart them and won't stop at murder. Filled with gymnastic action-packed fights, Speed Madness is "a knockout for fans who cheer the hero and hiss the villain." Starring Richard Talmadge,Charles Sellon, Lucien Littlefield, Mathew Betz, Walter Brennan; directed by George Crone.

The Night Patrol (1926, B&W, Silent): Police sergeant Tom Collins is determined to prevent his girlfriend's wayward brother from taking his first steps on the path of crime. When the brother is wrongly convicted of murder, Jim must infiltrate a criminal gang to find the real killer and then rush to the death house to prevent the lad from keeping his appointment with Old Sparky. Starring Richard Talmadge, Rose Blossom, Mary Carr, Gardner James, Josef Swickard; directed by Noel Mason Smith.

• drama