''A Nine O'Clock Town'' is a 1918 American

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

written and directed by

Victor Schertzinger Victor L. Schertzinger (April 8, 1888 – October 26, 1941) was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include ''Paramount on Parade'' (co-director, 1930 in film, 1930), ''Something to Sing About (1937 fil ...

. The film stars Charles Ray,

Jane Novak Jane Novak (born Johana Barbara Novak; January 12, 1896 – February 3, 1990) was an American actress of the silent film era. Background Jane Novak was born Johana Barbara Novak in St. Louis, Missouri to Bohemian immigrant Joseph Jerome Novak a ...

Otto Hoffman Otto F. Hoffman (May 2, 1879 – June 23, 1944) was an American film actor. He appeared in almost 200 films between 1915 and 1944. He was born in New York City and died in Los Angeles, California, from lung cancer. Hoffman's Broadway credit ...

Gertrude Claire Gertrude Claire (July 16, 1852 – April 28, 1928) was an actress of the American stage and Hollywood silent motion pictures. Biography Claire was born in Chicago, Illinois, and began appearing onstage at the age of 16. She played minor roles ...

, Catherine Young, and

Dorcas Matthews Dorcas Neville Matthews (5 November 1890 – 24 January 1969) was an English actress in silent films in the U.S. She had numerous roles as a supporting actress and was well known. Biography Dorcas Neville Matthews was born in Lancashire, Englan ...

. The film was released on July 28, 1918, by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

. It is not known whether the film currently survives, and it may 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 ...

Plot

As described in a

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 ...

, David Clary has big ideas on how to run a store, but John Clary, his crusty old dad, lets his business run downhill. David goes to the big city and while working as a clerk in a department store absorbs a few more pointers. He is also fleeced by a cabaret habitué (Young). Finally, his father sends for him to rejuvenate the "Emporium." By employing the town band and advertising, he fills the store with customers. The cabaret girl comes to town on the pretext of returning his watch and lures him to her hotel room. Here her fake husband (Ross) blackmails the young manager, but is exposed when he comes to collect $5000 from David by the corset model (Matthews), who swears that he is her husband. Selling out the store to a syndicate for a large sum saves David from

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

and he takes his chief

clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...

and constant adviser Katherine Farrell (Novak) as his life partner.

Cast

* Charles Ray as David Clary *

as Katherine Farrell *

as John Clary *

as Mrs. Clary *Catherine Young as The Dame *

as The Model *

Milton Ross Milton Ross (December 2, 1876 – September 6, 1941) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 60 films between 1914 and 1948. Selected filmography * ''The Green Swamp'' (1916) * ''The Gunfighter'' (1917) * ''The Desert Man'' (1 ...

as The Dame's Partner *

Melbourne MacDowell Willet Melbourne MacDowell (November 22, 1856 – February 18, 1941) was an American stage and screen actor. He began on the legitimate stage in the 1870s and first appeared on the silent screen in 1917. He used the stage name Virginia Drew Pres ...

as Mr. Adler *Caroline Rankin as Saleslady (credited as Caroline 'Spike' Rankin)

References

External links

* 1918 films 1910s English-language films Silent American comedy films 1918 comedy films Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Victor Schertzinger American black-and-white films American silent feature films 1910s American films {{1910s-comedy-film-stub