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| ~The Patriot~ 1916 |
| Directed by: William S. Hart Written by: Monte M. Katterjohn (screenplay & story) |
| ~Cast~ William S. Hart ... Bob Wiley Georgie Stone ... Little Bobs Francis Carpenter ... Billy Allen Joe Goodboy ... Himself Roy Laidlaw ... Pancho Zapilla Milton Ross ... Denman Hammond P. Dempsey Tabler ... Jordan Mason Charles K. French ... Colonel Bracken |
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SilentHollywood.com Discussion Group on Facebook Internet Movie Database Allmovie.com Turner Classic Movies American Film Institute |
| ~Remaining Credits~ Production Companies: Kay-Bee Pictures Triangle Film Corporation Distribution Company: Triangle Distributing Produced by: Thomas H. Ince Cinematography by: Joseph H. August Art Direction by: Robert Brunton Length: 5 Reels Runtime: 50 Minutes Released: September 3, 1916 |
| ~Plot Synopsis~ |
A veteran of the Spanish-American War and a proud patriot, Bob Wiley (William S. Hart) finds
himself swindled out of a fortune by a corrupt local politician. Hart's Wiley goes to Washington to
complain but proves unsuccessful. Returning to the homestead, he finds his little son (Georgie, later
George E. Stone) murdered and his heart fills with bitterness towards the country he once loved.
Joining up with Mexican General Zapilla's forces, Wiley becomes a spy and misdirects the American
forces into an ambush. The enormity of his betrayal slowly dawning on him, Wiley manages to save
the local town from the Mexican usurpers, pledges allegiance to the flag and becomes once again a
patriotic American. Only William S. Hart could get away with an overbaked plot like this, and only
this early in his career. Most reviewers, however, bought the story. "It is probably the best thing Hart
has done, and the entire production is of high quality," opined Louis Reeves Harrison in the
influential Moving Picture World. A couple of names in the supporting cast stand out: Francis
Carpenter, a blond child star very popular at the time, here playing a child who reminds the hero of
what he has lost, and, further down the list, British-born character actor Percy Dempsey Tabler, who
later played a rather unlikely Tarzan in the serial The Son of Tarzan (1920).
Plot Synopsis by Hans J. Wollstein, AllMovie.com
himself swindled out of a fortune by a corrupt local politician. Hart's Wiley goes to Washington to
complain but proves unsuccessful. Returning to the homestead, he finds his little son (Georgie, later
George E. Stone) murdered and his heart fills with bitterness towards the country he once loved.
Joining up with Mexican General Zapilla's forces, Wiley becomes a spy and misdirects the American
forces into an ambush. The enormity of his betrayal slowly dawning on him, Wiley manages to save
the local town from the Mexican usurpers, pledges allegiance to the flag and becomes once again a
patriotic American. Only William S. Hart could get away with an overbaked plot like this, and only
this early in his career. Most reviewers, however, bought the story. "It is probably the best thing Hart
has done, and the entire production is of high quality," opined Louis Reeves Harrison in the
influential Moving Picture World. A couple of names in the supporting cast stand out: Francis
Carpenter, a blond child star very popular at the time, here playing a child who reminds the hero of
what he has lost, and, further down the list, British-born character actor Percy Dempsey Tabler, who
later played a rather unlikely Tarzan in the serial The Son of Tarzan (1920).
Plot Synopsis by Hans J. Wollstein, AllMovie.com
