''The Barker'' is a 1928

part-talkie A part-talkie is a partly, and most often primarily, silent film which includes one or more synchronous sound sequences with audible dialog or singing. During the silent portions, lines of dialog are presented as "titles"—printed text briefly ...

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

romantic drama film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

produced and released by

First National Pictures First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the count ...

, a subsidiary of Warner Bros., acquired in September 1928. The film was directed by George Fitzmaurice and stars Milton Sills, Dorothy Mackaill,

Betty Compson Betty Compson (born Eleanor Luicime Compson; March 19, 1897 – April 18, 1974) was an American actress and film producer who got her start during Hollywood's silent era. She is best known for her performances in '' The Docks of New York'' an ...

, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. The film is based on the Broadway play of the same name which opened at the Biltmore Theatre January 18, 1927 and ran until July 1927 for 221 performances. In the stage production Walter Huston was "Nifty" and a still relatively unknown Claudette Colbert was "Lou", played in the film by Dorothy Mackaill. The film was adapted by Benjamin Glazer, Joseph Jackson and Herman J. Mankiewicz from the play by

Kenyon Nicholson Kenyon Nicholson (May 21, 1894 – December 19, 1986) was an American playwright and screenwriter. Early life John Kenyon Nicholson was born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on May 21, 1894, the oldest son of Thomas B. and Anne (Kenyon) Nichols ...

. ''The Barker'' is a

with talking sequences and sequences with synchronized musical scoring and sound effects.''The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films: 1921-30'' by The American Film Institute, (1971)

Plot

The film tells the story of a woman (Dorothy Mackaill) who comes between a man (Milton Sills) and his estranged son (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.). Sills is a carnival barker who is in love with a dancing girl and is ambitious to have his son, Fairbanks, become a lawyer. Fairbanks has other ideas and during his vacation he hops a freight, joins the carnival, and weds a dancing girl (Mackaill). Eventually, Fairbanks fulfills the ambition his father had for him.

Cast

as Carrie * Milton Sills as Nifty Miller * Dorothy Mackaill as Lou * Douglas Fairbanks Jr. as Chris Miller * Sylvia Ashton as Ma Benson * George Cooper as Hap Spissel *S. S. Simon as Col. Gowdy * Tom Dugan as Stuttering Spieker Uncredited: *

Bobby Dunn Robert P. Dunn (August 28, 1890 – March 24, 1937) was a comic actor who was one of the original Keystone Kops in '' Hoffmeyer's Legacy''. Early years Dunn was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Richard P. and Melissa Dunn, and attended S ...

as Hamburger concessionaire *

Pat Harmon Plummer Hull Harman (February 3, 1886 – November 26, 1958), known professionally as Pat Harmon, was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1920 and 1947. In 1935, Harmon was the victim of a violent assault whic ...

as Heckler *Bynunsky Hyman as Fire Eater *

Gladden James Gladden James (February 26, 1888 – August 28, 1948) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 180 films between 1911 and 1946. He was born in Zanesville, Ohio and died in Hollywood, California, from leukemia. Family In 1914 he ...

as Member of Hawaiian Trio * Charles Sullivan as Man in audience * Pat West as Bartender

Awards and honors

Preservation status

The film survives intact with its talking sequences and has been preserved by 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 a ...

and manufactured-on-demand DVD by the

Warner Archive Collection The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inten ...

Remakes

''The Barker'' was remade as '' Hoop-La'' (1933) with

Clara Bow Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to " talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...

and as '' Diamond Horseshoe'' (1945) with

Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million; for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she reign ...

. Japanese director Yasujirō Ozu remade this film (without crediting the original) as ''

A Story of Floating Weeds is a 1934 silent film directed by Yasujirō Ozu which he later remade as ''Floating Weeds'' in 1959 in color. It won the Kinema Junpo Award for best film. Plot The film starts with a travelling kabuki troupe arriving by train at a provincial s ...

'' (1934) and again as '' Floating Weeds'' (1959).

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, The 1928 films 1928 romantic drama films American black-and-white films American films based on plays American romantic drama films American silent feature films Early sound films Films directed by George Fitzmaurice First National Pictures films Films scored by Louis Silvers Films with screenplays by Herman J. Mankiewicz Transitional sound films 1920s English-language films 1920s American films Silent romantic drama films Silent American drama films