The Master Cracksman
Cast & Crew
Harry Carey
Harry Carey
E. A. Locke
Rexford Burnett
Fern Foster
Herbert Russell
Film Details
Synopsis
Retired gem merchant Peter J. Martin hires detective Dan McRae to guard a large diamond which he plans to present to his daughter Ruth on her twenty-first birthday. Notorious jewel thief Gentleman Joe overpowers McRae, however, and takes his place at Ruth's party. Meanwhile, Martin's nephew, Robert Kendall, who plans to steal the diamond to repay heavy debts, enlists Ruth's brother Harold as an unwitting accomplice. The plans go awry, however, resulting in Martin's murder by Kendall, secretly witnessed by Joe. Harold is found next to the body and later confesses to patricide to stop an intense police interrogation. When Joe hears that Harold has been charged with murder as well as the theft of the diamond, he determines to help him. Joe confronts Kendall, offers him a gun and gives him the choice of arrest or suicide. After writing a full confession, Kendall kills himself, thereby exonerating Harold. In his apartment, Joe entertains McRae and presents him with a jar of tobacco in which the diamond is hidden.
Director
Harry Carey
Cast
Harry Carey
E. A. Locke
Rexford Burnett
Fern Foster
Herbert Russell
Marjorie Bonner
Juliette Day
Louis Morrell
William H. Power
Gregory Allen
Roland De Castro
Hayward Mack
Film Details
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
This was the first production of the Progressive Motion Picture Corporation. Contemporary sources indicate that this film was based on a play, written by Harry Carey, of the same title, but no production information on the play has been found. Some sources list Carey as Harry D. Carey. The film was re-issued by Alliance in early 1915 under the title The Martin Mystery, and in 1920 under the title The Square Shooter by Excel Pictures.
