- Title Card: A strange thing, the heart of a man - that loves, suffers, and despairs - yet has courage to hope, believe - and love - again.
- Opening Title Card: In the grim comedy of life, it has been wisely said that the last laugh is the best...
- Title Card: Laughter - the bitterest and most subtle death to hope...
- Title Card: Paul Beaumont lived - to laugh at life. He laughed at his wife and the Baron - and left them to the doubtful joy of each other's society.
- Title Card: Years had passed - Paul Beaumont was forgotten - but the laugh was still his. For the brilliant scientist had, with a supreme gesture of contempt, made himself a common clown - In a little circus near Paris, he amused the idle, the ignorant and vicious, with an act of his own fancy - under the expressive name of "HE - Who Gets Slapped" - Five years before, Tricaud had hired the strange clown who desired only to be slapped - and now each night he proudly counted his slaps - and the laughs...
- Paul Beaumont: He slapped me, Marie. I would have killed him, but they laughed - laughed as if I were a clown.
- Marie Beaumont: What have you given me - that I should love you? You with your silly face and stupid books!
- [Slaps her husband, Paul Beaumont]
- Marie Beaumont: Fool! Clown!
- Paul Beaumont: [In disbelief] Fool! Clown!
- [laughs hysterically]
- Title Card: What is it in human nature that makes people quick to laugh when someone else gets slapped - whether the slap be spiritual, mental - or physical - ?
- Title Card: What is Death - ? What is Life - -? What is Love - -?
- Tricaud: Over a hundred slaps last night, HE - you lucky fellow! Soon you'll be getting famous! But you know what they like - there's nothing makes people laugh so hard as seeing someone else get slapped!
- Title Card: Gather ye rosebuds while ye may...