Frisco Kid

In the 1850s San Francisco, Bat Morgan is robbed and nearly shanghaied aboard another ship. He escapes and decides to stay in town, not only to repay those who wronged him but to cash in on the Barbary Coast vice economy. This marks the start of his rise within the illicit world.

Bat organizes the Barbary Coast gambling houses into a single enterprise and aligns with corrupt city boss Jim Daley. The move consolidates power and opens doors to bigger profits and greater influence. This brings him into direct conflict with reformist voices nearby.

Bat's rise brings him into conflict with Jean Barrat and the crusading newspaper run by the idealistic editor Charles Ford. Jean, daughter of a murdered publisher, embodies conscience against Bat's world. The clash sets the personal and political tensions at the heart of the story.

Solly Green takes a bullet for Bat, sparing him from a hit and deepening Bat's sense of loyalty to his friends. Bat mourns the loss, while Jean points out that Solly’s fate might have been different if Bat hadn’t dragged him into this life. The event hardens Bat’s wavering morality.

Riled by a judge’s snub, Bat decides to bring his Barbary Coast crowd to the Opera House opening. The event signals a clash between law, culture, and vice, with the audience as a stage for influence and power. The decision sets the stage for dramatic conflict to come.

Gambler Paul Morra pushes into the judge’s box and murders him under a flimsy pretext. The act provokes outrage and mobilizes public sentiment against the Barbary Coast. Morra is soon arrested and jailed as the city reacts.

Bat arranges Morra’s release from jail, not out of affection but because Morra helped propel Bat upward. The release deepens Bat’s reliance on his underworld allies and fuels the tension between his ambitions and public morality.

In a bar-room fight, Jim Daley murders Charles Ford, the editor who once clashed with Bat and championed reform. Jean blames Bat for the evil actions of those who work with him, underscoring the personal cost of his alliance with the city’s underworld.

A vigilant movement cleans up the town, rounding up Morra and Daley and hanging them both. The city erupts in public justice and samples the volatility of Bat’s world. The power vacuum threatens Bat’s empire and sanity.

As Barbary Coast lowlifes vow revenge by wrecking the press and burning the city, Bat tries to keep them from violent retaliation. He appeals to restraint and to law, trying to prevent a total collapse of order. The moment tests his influence over both criminals and reformers.

Bat Morgan is shot in the back by an underworld thug and is captured by the vigilantes. Jean saves him from hanging, keeping him alive long enough for due process. He goes free on Jean’s parole, softened but not redeemed by love.

Jean’s parole allows Bat to walk free, but their romance remains impossible due to his lifestyle and priorities. The city’s balance between vice and virtue remains fragile, and Bat’s future is left unsettled. The ending emphasizes the cost of Bat’s world on those around him.