''A Bit of Jade'' is a

1918 This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide. Events Below, the events ...

silent

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film directed by

Edward Sloman Edward Sloman (19 July 1886, London - 29 September 1972, Woodland Hills, California) was an English silent film director, actor, screenwriter and radio broadcaster. He directed over 100 films and starred in over 30 films as an actor between ...

and starring

Mary Miles Minter Mary Miles Minter (born Juliet Reilly; April 25, 1902Louisiana Birth Certificate, Caddo Parish, No. 119, Book A, Page 97, Birth Date: April 25, 1902, Name: Mary M. Reilly ic – Original Caddo birth record was recorded as "J.H. Riley's Child" ...

. As with many of Minter’s features, it is thought to be a

lost film A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress. Conditions During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy o ...

.The Library of Congress/FIAF American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: ''A Bit of Jade''
/ref>

Plot

As described in various

film magazine Film periodicals combine discussion of individual films, genres and directors with in-depth considerations of the medium and the conditions of its production and reception. Their articles contrast with film reviewing in newspapers and magazines whi ...

reviews, Phyllis King (Minter) is at lunch in a café one day when her brother Cuthbert (Howard) comes in, and begs her to lend him her money and jewellery to pay a gambling debt. He promises that he will make it up to her with a gift, and as he leaves he accidentally takes an overcoat belonging to Grayson Blair (Forrest), which contains a valuable jade necklace in the pocket. When Phyllis is unable to pay for her lunch as Cuthbert has taken all her money, Blair comes to her rescue. Sometime later, at her aunt's country house, Phyllis and her friends are dressing up in boys' clothes for a lark. Phyllis finds the jade necklace in her brother's coat and, believing it to be the gift her promised her, she puts it on. She then sneaks into a neighbour's boathouse with the intention of borrowing their motorboat, but is caught by Blair. In the ensuing struggle Phyllis escapes but loses both her hat - causing Blair to recognise her as the girl from the café - and the necklace, which Blair retrieves. Phyllis is approached by Rhi (Ferguson), Blair's discharged Hindu manservant, who is trying to reclaim the jade necklace and return it to the temple whence it came. He offers to help Phyllis retrieve the necklace. When Phyllis gets home, she sees a newspaper article with a picture of the necklace, declaring that it has been stolen. Thinking that her brother has stolen it to pay his gambling debts, Phyllis decides that she needs to return it to its rightful owner before her brother can be accused of theft. With the help of Rhi, Phyllis sneaks into Blair's house and tries to take the necklace, but he catches her. However, before he can have her arrested, Rhi enters and attacks Blair. Phyllis and Blair together manage to overpower him, and when Cuthbert enters looking for his sister, Blair recognises his overcoat on Cuthbert, and understands how the necklace had, quite innocently, come to be in Phyllis' possession. The film ends with the promise of romance as Blair places the bit of jade around Phyllis' neck. The June 1918 issue of

Photoplay ''Photoplay'' was one of the first American film (another name for ''photoplay'') fan magazines. It was founded in 1911 in Chicago, the same year that J. Stuart Blackton founded '' Motion Picture Story,'' a magazine also directed at fans. For mo ...

features a detailed fiction adaptation of the film, complete with several stills from the picture.

Cast

as Phyllis King *

Allan Forrest Allan Forrest Fisher (September 1, 1885 – July 25, 1941) was an American silent film actor. Life and career Allan Forrest Fisher starred in 119 films, mostly silent, between 1913 and 1932. He appeared in films such as '' The Torch Bearer'', ...

as Grayson Blair * David Howard as Cuthbert King *

Vera Lewis Vera Lewis (June 10, 1873 – February 8, 1956) was an American film and stage actress, beginning in the silent film era. She appeared in more than 180 films between 1915 and 1947. She was married to actor Ralph Lewis. Biography She was b ...

as Mrs. Abigail King *

Al Ferguson Al Ferguson (19 April 1888 – 4 December 1971) was an Irish-born American film actor. Born in County Wexford, Ireland, he appeared in nearly 300 films between 1912 and 1956. Billed as Smoke Ferguson, by 1912 he was making Westerns for Selig ...

as Rhi *

Clarence Burton Clarence Forrest Burton (May 10, 1882 – December 2, 1933) was an American silent film actor. Biography Burton was born in Fort Lyon, in Benton County, Missouri and started in show business at the age of 5, playing stock and musical comedy ...

as Lantz

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bit of Jade 1918 comedy-drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films 1918 films American comedy-drama films Films directed by Edward Sloman 1910s American films Silent comedy-drama films Silent American drama films Silent American comedy films