DeWolf Hopper Sr.

DeWolf Hopper thinks he is on the verge of death and a couple of newspapers are bidding for the story rights. One of the newspapers is willing to pay a big sum if Hopper will kick off in time for its last edition of the day. Hopper plays the whole role in bed.

In this through-the-years saga about a show business family, the fame of husband and wife vaudeville headliners of the 1880s is eclipsed by their son.

In his career, De Wolf Hopper recited Ernest Lawrence Thayer's "Casey at the Bat" thousands of times. Here, wearing a tuxedo, he emerges from behind a curtain as if at a theater, gives a short introduction, and launches into the poem. The camera is stationary, and although Hopper stands in one place, his hands and arms, his face, and his voice are animated throughout. In delivery, it's a minstrel performance.

The story of a poor young woman, separated by prejudice from her husband and baby, is interwoven with tales of intolerance from throughout history.

The theft of a sacred diamond band from a Hindoo shrine starts the action.

Released in June of 1914.

H. Ulysses Watts is a traveling Shakespearean actor whose career is on the decline, as his audiences are more interested in cinema and vaudeville. When the troupe is robbed by Stoner, Watts cares for an injured young trapeze artist.

Casey, a baseball hero in Mudville, is revered for his game-winning abilities but struggles with personal relationships, except for his love for his niece and a few children. When his niece gets injured, he's distracted during a crucial game, causing him to lose, and after being shunned by the town, he leaves his lifelong home.

Elderly hidalgo, Alonso Quijano (played by DeWolf Hopper Sr.), becomes obsessed with tales of knights and chivalry to the point of losing his sanity. He renames himself "Don Quixote de la Mancha" and decides to become a knight-errant to right the wrongs of the world and defend the helpless. He designates a local peasant girl (Fay Tincher) as his noble lady "Dulcinea" and convinces a simple farmer, Sancho Panza (Max Davidson), to be his loyal squire with promises of an island governorship.

A modern story of Commedia dell'Arte's Pierrot and Columbine.