The Wise Guy
Cast & Crew
Frank Lloyd
Mary Astor
James Kirkwood
Betty Compson
George F. Marion
Mary Carr
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Guy Watson, because of his magnetic personality, is able to persuade people to purchase fake medicines while his cohorts--Bozo, Hula Kate, and Ma--pick the onlookers' pockets; later, posing as a minister, he delivers a sermon at a country funeral. The decedent's daughter, Mary, joins the traveling mission, convinced by Guy's preaching although she incurs the jealousy of Hula Kate. Guy soon attains a great hold on the public, but gradually Ma and her husband, the professor, get "hooked" on religion, and Bozo leaves the group when he is reunited with his long-lost mother. Later, he is shot by a policeman who mistakes him for a burglar. When Ma dies in spite of Guy's prayers, he confesses to his congregation that he is a fraud and hypocrite, and they forgive him. Mary is discovered to be a crook, and though she and Guy are sent to separate prisons, they await eventual happiness together.
Director
Frank Lloyd
Cast
Mary Astor
James Kirkwood
Betty Compson
George F. Marion
Mary Carr
George Cooper
Crew
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The film was considerably shortened for release in New York State to meet licensing requirements.
