Synthetic Sin is a 1929 American

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 o ...

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 ...

, based on a play of the same name. While filmed as a silent, it was released by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

accompanied with a

Vitaphone Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects made by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1931. Vitaphone was the last major analog sound-on-disc system and the only one ...

music soundtrack and sound effects. However most of the Vitaphone discs are still lost, apart from the final reel.

Plot

Famed playwright Donald Anthony returns home to Magnolia Gap, Virginia, and proposes to Betty Fairfax. She accepts and he offers her the lead part in his next play, but the play is a disaster. Donald tells her that she is unsuited for the role, that it requires someone with more life experience. Rather than return home defeated, Betty stays in New York, in a bad neighborhood where local gangsters adopt her as their own. When Donald comes to visit her, they eject him. There is a gunfight, and in the resulting confusion Donald sweeps in and rescues Betty. After the excitement, Betty gives up her dreams of the stage and devotes herself to Donald.

Cast

* Colleen Moore as Betty Fairfax *

Antonio Moreno Antonio Garrido Monteagudo (September 26, 1887 – February 15, 1967), better known as Antonio Moreno or Tony Moreno, was a Spanish-born American actor and film director of the silent film era and through the 1950s. Early life and silent f ...

as Donald Anthony *

Edythe Chapman Edythe Chapman (October 8, 1863 – October 15, 1948) was an American stage and silent film actress. Career Born in Rochester, New York, Chapman began her stage career as early as 1898 when she appeared in New York City in ''The Charity Bal ...

as Mrs. Fairfax * Kathryn McGuire as Margery Fairfax *

Gertrude Howard Gertrude Howard (October 13, 1892 – September 30, 1934) was an American actress of the silent and early sound film eras. Biography Born in 1892, Howard performed in the chorus of ''The Wife Hunters'' (1911) on Broadway. She broke into films ...

as Cassie *

Gertrude Astor Gertrude Astor (born Gertrude Irene Eyster; November 9, 1887 – November 9, 1977) was an American motion picture character actress, who began her career playing trombone in a woman's band. Early years Gertrude Irene Eyster was born in Lake ...

as Sheila Kelly *Ray Turner as Sam (credited as Raymond Turner) *

Montagu Love Montagu Love (15 March 1877 – 17 May 1943) was an English screen, stage and vaudeville actor. Early years Born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, Love was the son of Harry Love and Fanny Louisa Love, née Poad; his father was listed as accounta ...

as Brandy Mulane *Ben Hendricks Jr. as Frank *Philip Sleeman as Tony (credited as Phil Sleeman) *Jack Byron as Tony's Henchman *Fred Warren as Joe *

Jay Eaton Jay Eaton (March 17, 1899 – February 5, 1970) was an American character actor whose career spanned both the silent and sound film eras. Biography Born on March 17, 1899, in Union, New Jersey, Eaton entered the film industry with a featured ...

as Member of Frank's Gang *

Stanley Blystone William Stanley Blystone (August 1, 1894 – July 16, 1956) was an American film actor who made more than 500 films appearances between 1924 and 1956. He was sometimes billed as William Blystone or William Stanley. Early years Blystone was ...

as Member of Frank's Gang *Art Rowlands as Member of Frank's Gang *Dick Gordon as Member of Frank's Gang *

Julanne Johnston Julanne Johnston (May 1, 1900 – December 26, 1988) was an American silent film actress. Biography Johnston was born and educated in Indianapolis, Indiana, then her family moved to Hollywood. There she took dancing lessons at the Denishawn Sc ...

as Member of Frank's Gang *Hazel Howell as Member of Frank's Gang

Preservation status

A copy survives at the Cineteca Italiana archive in Milan. Previously it was considered to be a

lost film A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress. Conditions During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy ...

. Colleen Moore had deposited copies of several of her movies with the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

(MOMA), but it allowed the films to decompose before they could be restored.The Library of Congress/FIAF American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: ''Synthetic Sin''
/ref>

References

Notes Bibliography *Codori, Jeff (2012), ''Colleen Moore; A Biography of the Silent Film Star''
McFarland Publishing
(Print , EBook ).

External links

* *
Stills
at silentlondon.co.uk 1929 films 1929 comedy films 1920s rediscovered films American black-and-white films American comedy films American silent feature films Films directed by William A. Seiter Films set in Virginia First National Pictures films Rediscovered American films Transitional sound comedy films 1920s American films {{1920s-comedy-film-stub

Plot

Cast

Preservation status

See also

References

External links