The Wise Guy

The Wise Guy
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Directed byFrank Lloyd
Written byAdela Rogers St. Johns (adaptation)
Ada McQuillan (scenario)
George Marion, Jr. (intertitles)
Story byJules Furthman
Produced byFrank Lloyd
StarringMary Astor
James Kirkwood
Betty Compson
CinematographyNorbert Brodine
Distributed byFirst National Pictures
Release date
  • May 23, 1926 (1926-05-23)
Running time
8 reels (7,775 feet)
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

The Wise Guy is a 1926 American silent crime drama film produced and directed by Frank Lloyd and distributed through First National Pictures. Jules Furthman provided a screen story with scenario by Adela Rogers St. Johns. Mary Astor, James Kirkwood, and Betty Compson star.[1][2]

Cast

Reception

Because the Kirkwood character was a criminal posing as an evangelistic minister who performs marriage and burial ceremonies, the film was found by the New York Board of Censors to be sacrilegious and banned from distribution unless remade. The Board was also concerned by the number of times the name of the Deity appeared in subtitles spoken by the fake minister. First National estimated the cost of resolving the Board's issues to be an additional $50,000 above the initial cost of $175,000.[3]

Preservation

A complete 35mm nitrate print of The Wise Guy is held by the National Archives of Canada.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Progressive Silent Film List: The Wise Guy at silentera.com
  2. ↑ "AFI Catalog of Feature Films: The Wise Guy". afi.com. Retrieved April 20, 2026.
  3. ↑ "1st Nat'l's Wise Guy Ordered Off by N.Y. State Censors - Cost $175,000", Variety, 83 (5): 4, June 2, 1926, retrieved April 29, 2022
  4. ↑ "The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Database: The Wise Guy". memory.loc.gov. Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2026. Cite error: Unknown parameter "loc" in <ref> tag; supported parameters are dir, follow, group, name (see the help page).
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