''Clothes Make the Pirate'' is a 1925 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 Maurice Tourneur and starring

Leon Errol Leon Errol (born Leonce Errol Sims, July 3, 1881 – October 12, 1951) was an Australian-American comedian and actor in the United States, popular in the first half of the 20th century for his appearances in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in film ...

and

Dorothy Gish Dorothy Elizabeth Gish (March 11, 1898June 4, 1968) was an American actress of the screen and stage, as well as a director and writer. Dorothy and her older sister Lillian Gish were major movie stars of the silent era. Dorothy also had great s ...

. The film was written by

Marion Fairfax Marion Fairfax (born Marion Neiswanger; October 24, 1875 – October 2, 1970) was an American screenwriter, playwright, actress, and producer. Early career Fairfax first started her career as a stage actress, just like many other women did in ...

from the novel of the same name by Holman Francis Day.

Synopsis

The film is a

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 ...

that centers on a disgruntled 18th-century

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

ian, played by Errol, who while wishing that he was a pirate, dons the clothes and play-acts the part. He is mistaken for the real pirate, Dixie Bull (played by Walter Law) whom Errol, of course, bumps into later in the film. More importantly, Errol "slays" the villain and puts his foot upon the pirate's head. This is more than enough and he heads back home to his unappreciated wife, played by

Cast

Reception

Contemporary reviewers of the time claimed Errol was miscast, perhaps for the comedic cowardice of the part. ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' gave the film a poor review, stating that the children would like it. However other reviews, such as that in the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' of January 10, 1926 gave the film, as a

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...

, generally good reviews. However, the camera work of Cronjager was critically acclaimed.

Preservation

With no prints of ''Clothes Make the Pirate'' located in any film archives,Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Database: ''Clothes Make the Pirate''
/ref> it is a

lost film A lost film is a feature Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature (CAD), could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (software design) is an intentional distinguishing char ...

. A one minute trailer, however, does survive.

References

External links

* *
Movie trailer (1:08) at Internet Archive
1925 films 1925 lost films 1925 adventure films 1920s historical comedy films American historical films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Films directed by Maurice Tourneur Films set in the 18th century Films set in Boston Films set in the Thirteen Colonies Films based on American novels First National Pictures films American comedy films Pirate films Lost American films Lost adventure films 1925 comedy films 1920s American films Silent American comedy films Silent adventure films {{1920s-comedy-film-stub