''The Cheerful Fraud'' is a 1927 American
silent comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
directed by
William A. Seiter
William Alfred Seiter (June 10, 1890 – July 26, 1964) was an American film director.
Life and career
Seiter was born in New York City. After attending Hudson River Military Academy, Seiter broke into films in 1915 as a bit player at Mack Senne ...
and starring
Reginald Denny,
Gertrude Olmstead
Gertrude Olmstead (November 13, 1897 – January 18, 1975) was an American actress of the silent era. She appeared in 56 films between 1920 and 1929. Her last name was sometimes seen as Olmsted.
Career
Olmstead was born in Chicago, Illinoi ...
, and
Otis Harlan
Otis Harlan (December 29, 1865 – January 21, 1940) was an American actor and comedian. He voiced Happy, one of the Seven Dwarfs in the Disney animated film ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs''.
Early years
Harlan was born in Zanesville, Ohio ...
. It was produced and distributed by
Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
. It is based on a 1925 novel of the same title by British writer Kenneth Robert Gordon Browne.
Synopsis
After encountering her in a
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
rainstorm, Sir Michael Fairlie pretends to be the new employee at the residence owned by the Bytheways in order to spend time with their social secretary. Meanwhile, a notorious crook turns up at the house pretending to be Sir Michael, with an eye on stealing family jewels. The confusion is compounded when a female
blackmailer also arrives.
Cast
Preservation status
The film is preserved at the
UCLA Film and Television Archive
The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the archiv ...
.
The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: ''The Cheerful Fraud''
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References
Bibliography
* Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999.
External links
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1927 films
American silent feature films
Films directed by William A. Seiter
Universal Pictures films
American black-and-white films
1920s English-language films
1927 drama films
1927 comedy films
Films set in London
Films based on British novels
1920s American films
Silent American comedy films
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