''The Scarlet Car'' is a

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

1923 American silent

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 ...

directed by

Stuart Paton Stuart Paton (23 July 1883 – 16 December 1944) was a British director, screenwriter and actor of the silent era. Paton mostly worked with Universal, and is accredited with directing 67 films between 1915 and 1938. He also wrote for 24 fil ...

and starring

Herbert Rawlinson Herbert Banemann Rawlinson (15 November 1885 – 12 July 1953) was an English-born stage, film, radio, and television actor. A leading man during Hollywood's silent film era, Rawlinson transitioned to character roles after the advent of sound f ...

Claire Adams Claire Adams (; 24 September 1898 – 25 September 1978) was a silent film actress and benefactor. She was born in Canada, studied there and in England, and developed a movie career in Hollywood. She spent the second half of her life in Austra ...

, and

Edward Cecil Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon (29 February 1572 – 16 November 1638) was an English military commander and a politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1601 and 1624. Life Cecil was the third son of Thomas Ceci ...

.Palmer p. 654 It is based on a novel by

Richard Harding Davis Richard Harding Davis (April 18, 1864 – April 11, 1916) was an American journalist and writer of fiction and drama, known foremost as the first American war correspondent to cover the Spanish–American War, the Second Boer War, and the First ...

, which had previously been turned into a 1917

Lon Chaney Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...

film of the same title.

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 ...

, Billy (Rawlinson) is fired after being arrested for speeding thirty times in thirty days, and is shipped home to his father Jim Winthrop (Tom McGuire). His father has backed Ernest Peabody (Cecil) for mayor. Ernest has betrayed Violet Gaynor (Johnson), Jim's secretary. Beatrice Forbes (Adams), whom Billy likes and would like Billy if she only knew it, has fallen for Ernest's grandiloquent line of bunk and promised to marry him. Violet has learned that Ernest has double-crossed Jim in politics about the time her father Jerry Gaynor (Robbins) has discovered her condition (pregnancy) and, believing Billy guilty of being the father, attempts to blackmail him and "queers" his relationship with Beatrice. Mitt Deagon (O'Brien), who loves Violet, also discovers her secret and attempts to expose Ernest, but is prevented by Billy, who is completely unaware of the facts. While campaigning, Ernest's car strikes Violet's father and, believing the man is dead, Ernest flees in a cowardly fashion. The election of Ernest Peabody seems certain and he announces his engagement to Beatrice. When Violet reads this, she does what any woman betrayed in love would do, and in a climax of fast events clears up the triangle. When Billy understands the character of Ernest, he decides to see to it that Ernest is neither elected mayor nor married to Beatrice.

Cast

as Billy Winthrop *

as Beatrice Forbes *

as Ernest Peabody *

Norris Johnson ''For the publisher and activist see Buzz Johnson'' Norris Johnson (1898 - 1971) was an actress in silent films in the U.S. She had supporting roles in various films and also had lead roles in Thomas H. Ince and Samuel Goldwyn productions. Filmog ...

as Violet Gaynor * Tom McGuire as Jim Winthrop * Marc B. Robbins as Jerry Gaynor * Tom O'Brien as Mitt Deagon

References

Bibliography

* Palmer, Scott. ''British Film Actors' Credits, 1895 - 1987''. McFarland, 1988.

External links

* * 1923 films 1923 drama films Silent American drama films Films directed by Stuart Paton American silent feature films 1920s English-language films Universal Pictures films Remakes of American films American black-and-white films 1920s American films {{1920s-silent-drama-film-stub