Plot
In early 20th century New York, Father, Mother and Younger Brother reside in a house in New Rochelle. Younger Brother becomes smitten with coquettish showgirl Evelyn Nesbit, whose wealthy husband, Harry Kendall Thaw, murders architect Stanford White in a jealous rage.
An abandoned baby is found by Mother in her garden. She takes it into her home, and eventually the baby's mother, Sarah, to work for the family as well. A ragtime musician, Coalhouse Walker Jr., has become prosperous with his expertise at the piano. He is the baby's father and drives in his new Model T to the New Rochelle home, presenting himself to Father with a desire to marry Sarah.
Outside their firehouse, a group of bigots headed by fire chief, Willie Conklin, refuse to let Walker's automobile pass. After he leaves to find a policeman, Walker returns to find his car damaged and defecated in. His objections result in the law placing him under arrest, rather than Conklin and the firemen.
Walker wishes to sue, but can find no lawyer willing to represent him. He decides to exact revenge by planting a bomb in the firehouse. He then does the same in the J.P. Morgan Library, assisted by a group of disguised followers that include Younger Brother. He demands that the Model T and the fire chief, Conklin, be delivered to him or the library will be destroyed.
Booker T. Washington fails to persuade Walker to surrender, as does Father in a visit to the library. Conklin is summoned by Police Commissioner Rheinlander Waldo, who cites the fire chief's reputation as "a piece of slime" yet cannot submit to Walker's terrorist demands. Walker ultimately agrees to give up if Waldo will first permit the other men to safely depart. They do, but when Walker surrenders, he is shot.
Read more about this topic: Ragtime (film)
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