The Wise Guy

1926 film by Frank Lloyd

  • May 23, 1926 (1926-05-23)
Running time
8 reels (7,775 feet)CountryUnited StatesLanguageSilent (English intertitles)

The Wise Guy is a 1926 American silent crime drama film produced and directed by Frank Lloyd and distributed through First National Pictures. Jules Furthman provided a screen story with scenario by Adela Rogers St. Johns. Mary Astor, James Kirkwood, and Betty Compson star.[1]

Plot

Cast

  • James Kirkwood as Guy Watson
  • Mary Astor as Mary
  • Betty Compson as Hula Kate
  • George F. Marion as Horace Palmer
  • Mary Carr as Ma Palmer
  • George Cooper as The Bozo

Reception

Because the Kirkwood character was a criminal posing as an evangelistic minister who performs marriage and burial ceremonies, the film was found by the New York Board of Censors to be sacrilegious and banned from distribution unless remade. The Board was also concerned by the number of times the name of the Deity appeared in subtitles spoken by the fake minister. First National estimated the cost of resolving the Board's issues to be an additional $50,000 above the initial cost of $175,000.[2]

Preservation

Previously considered lost, a print of The Wise Guy is preserved at the National Archives of Canada.[3][4]

References

  1. ^ Progressive Silent Film List: The Wise Guy at silentera.com
  2. ^ "1st Nat'l's Wise Guy Ordered Off by N.Y. State Censors - Cost $175,000", Variety, 83 (5): 4, June 2, 1926, retrieved April 29, 2022
  3. ^ The Wise Guy at Arne Andersen's Lost Film Files: First National Pictures - 1926 Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: The Wise Guy

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Wise Guy.
  • The Wise Guy at IMDb Edit this at Wikidata
  • Synopsis at AllMovie
  • Lobby card at gettyimages.com
  • Still at silentfilmstillarchive.com
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The films of Frank Lloyd
1910s
1920s
1930s
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