Erstwhile childhood friends, Judah Ben-Hur and Messala meet again as adults, this time with Roman officer Messala as conqueror and Judah as a wealthy, though conquered, Israelite. A slip of a brick during a Roman parade causes Judah to be sent off as a galley slave, his property confiscated and his mother and sister imprisoned. Years later, as a result of his determination to stay alive and his willingness to aid his Roman master, Judah returns to his homeland an exalted and wealthy Roman athlete. Unable to find his mother and sister, and believing them dead, he can think of nothing else than revenge against Messala.

A mother tries to get her daughter to marry for money, but the daughter wants to marry for love.

When Richard Hudson receives a pair of silk pajamas from a friend in China, he is unaware that they are bewitched and that whoever wears them will be transformed into someone else.

Steve Cline returns to the U.S. after earning his fortune in South America. He reads in the paper that his brother Tom was arrested for safecracking. Tom escapes and runs to the home of Sadie McCall, whose father Reever heads a forgery ring. Steve rushes to meet his brother, but Tom is killed in a police raid. Reever gets away and Steve falls for Sadie, but Steve takes the blame for the murder and faces death by hanging. Reported by some to be Gary Cooper's first film as an extra. However this is not confirmed in any way.

Gambling boat operator Jenny Blake throws over her gambler beau Jack Morgan in order to marry into high society.

An Egyptian Princess is infatuated with Karmet, a Syrian prince who is disguised as a merchant. He, however, loves Arvia, a dancer. The Princess plots to sacrifice Arvia to the sacred crocodiles. Arvia is saved by her father and united to Karmet. The princess weds Prince Tut, who afterwards becomes King of Egypt.

Mary's kid brother needs an operation and, in order to pay for it, Mary goes to a Hollywood studio and applies for a job as an actress. Mary is given a job as a waitress in the commissary, and gets to meet 40 actors, actresses and directors, none of whom tip big enough to enable Mary to earn enough money to pay for an operation. Will Mary become an actress and make some big money?

Trouble begins when Madame Girard steps out on her husband, Criquette's father, to fool around with rakish Phillippe Levaux. When Monsieur Girard finds out, Criquette saves her stepmother from scandal by tricking Levaux into a hasty marriage.

When beautiful Mary returns to her "whistle stop" hometown, long-standing feelings of animosity between two of her old boyfriends leads to robbery and murder.

Margot Le Blanc loses her small fortune at Monte Carlo and makes the acquaintance of Hugh Kildair, an artist, who hires her as a housekeeper. A gang of thieves set a trap for Kildair when they find that he knows a mathematical system guaranteed to win at the gambling table.