Playing Dead (1915)

James Blagwin leads the life of the country-club sophisticate until his wife Jeanne succumbs to the influences of Proctor Maddox, a socialist agitator and self-proclaimed champion of women's rights. Jeanne turns away from her husband to follow Maddox, and James, recognizing her change of heart, but loving her no less, concocts a scheme whereby she can marry Maddox without the shame of a divorce. Faking the symptoms of glaucoma, he procures a doctor's diagnosis, then writes Jeanne a letter explaining his desire to end his life and leave her his estate. After devising a phony steamship drowning, James books passage to Germany under another identity only to discover that his will cannot be located. Remembering that he stuck it in a book, he disguises himself as a burglar, breaks into his own home and is "caught" by Jeanne. Full of remorse and new-found love, Jeanne reunites with James.