''George Washington Cohen'' is a 1928 American silent

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 ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

George Archainbaud George Archainbaud (May 7, 1890 – February 20, 1959) was a French-American film and television director. Biography In the beginning of his career he worked on stage as an actor and manager. He came to the United States in January 1914, and s ...

and starring George Jessel,

Robert Edeson Robert Edeson (June 3, 1868 – March 24, 1931) was an American film and stage actor of the silent era and a vaudeville performer. Life and career Edeson was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of manager and actor George R. Edeson. Afte ...

and

Corliss Palmer Corliss Palmer (July 25, 1899 – August 27, 1952) was an American silent film actress and model. She first came to public attention after winning ''Motion Picture Magazine''s Fame and Fortune Contest in 1920, upon which she was deemed the "m ...

. It was based on a

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

sketch ''The Cherry Tree'' by

Aaron Hoffman Aaron Hoffman (October 30, 1880, in St. Louis, Missouri – May 27, 1924) was an American writer and lyricist, whose work was in wide use among vaudeville comedians. He wrote material for numerous performers, including Lew Dockstader and Weber and ...

.Goble p.225 It was produced and released by

Tiffany Pictures Tiffany Pictures, which also became Tiffany-Stahl Productions for a time, was a Hollywood motion picture studio in operation from 1921 until 1932. It is considered a Poverty Row studio, whose films had lower budgets, lesser-known stars, and overal ...

during

John M. Stahl John Malcolm Stahl (January 21, 1886 – January 12, 1950) was an American film director and producer. Life and work He was born Jacob Morris Strelitsky in Baku (Azerbaijan) to a Russian Jewish family. When he was a child, his family le ...

's period as head of production for the studio. survives in Cinematheque Francais.

Synopsis

A naïve young man discovers a

wallet A wallet is a flat case or pouch often used to carry small personal items such as paper currency, credit cards; identification documents such as driver's license, identification card, club card; photographs, transit pass, business cards and oth ...

in the street and returns it to its owner, wealthy

Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

Gorman. Gorman is so impressed with his honesty that he gives the man, George Washington Cohen, a well-paid job. However, due to his inherent honesty Cohen feels duty bound to inform Gorman when he discovers his wife is having an affair. Gorman sues for divorce, and calls Cohen as the lead witness. However he has a change of heart and at last is able to tell a lie so that the Gormans will stay together for the sake of their children.

Cast

* George Jessel as George Washington Cohen *

as Mr. Gorman *

as Mrs. Gorman *

Lawford Davidson Lawford Davidson (1 January 1890 –1964) was a British film actor.Lawford Davidson
at BFI He was born Cha ...

as Mr. Connolly * Florence Allen as Marian *

Jane La Verne Jane may refer to: * Jane (given name), a feminine given name * Jane (surname), related to the given name Film and television * ''Jane'' (1915 film), a silent comedy film directed by Frank Lloyd * ''Jane'' (2016 film), a South Korean drama fi ...

as Child *

Paul Panzer Paul Wolfgang Panzerbeiter (November 3, 1872 – August 16, 1958), known professionally as Paul Panzer, was a German-American silent film actor. He appeared in more than 330 films between 1905 and 1952. Biography Panzer was born in Würzburg. ...

Edna Mae Cooper Edna Mae Cooper (July 19, 1900 – June 27, 1986) was an American actress of the silent era. She appeared in 79 films between 1911 and 1927. Early life On July 19, 1900, Cooper was born in Baltimore, Maryland. Career Cooper is known f ...

References

Bibliography

* Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999. * Munden, Kenneth White. ''The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States, Part 1''. University of California Press, 1997.

External links

* 1928 films 1928 comedy films 1920s English-language films American silent feature films Silent American comedy films American black-and-white films Films directed by George Archainbaud Tiffany Pictures films Films set in New York City 1920s American films {{1920s-US-film-stub