Little Old New York

When his stepfather dies, Harrison Ford expects to inherit a fortune of almost a million dollars. Imagine his surprise when the money is left to the old man's nephew, Stephen Carr, who has a year to show up in New York City to claim it. On the evening before the deadline, the heir shows old, but it's not Carr; he died in the passage. His sister, Marion Davies, has cut her hair and is pretending to be him, at the order of her father.

Miss Davies gives a fine, layered performance as a girl pretending to be a boy, falling gradually in love with Mr. Ford, but her serio-comic performance makes up only a small part of this movie. Like her earlier hit epic, WHEN KNIGHTHOOD WAS IN FLOWER, this movie is in greater part about its sets, designed again by Joseph Urban, its props, like the life-sized replica of Fulton's steamship Clermont, shot on the river with the Palisades and the Tappan Zee in background, but even more about the historical characters, offered as legends and shown as human: Fulton, trying to raise money for his steam ship; John Jacob Astor, who doesn't see it as a commercial project, but urges Davies to invest in real estate; Washington Irving; Delmonico, the city's first restaurateur, and so forth and so on in a dizzying demonstration that the great men of history were....men.

This film was recently restored by the Library of Congress, and has just been released on dvd by Ed Lorusso. It is the latest of his Marion Davies projects, and boasts a fine score by silent-music specialist Ben Model, who incorporates the waltz written by Victor Herbert for the movie's original release. Mr. Lorusso has been releasing as many of Miss Davies silent movies as he can over the past few years, working hard -- along with showings of his later pictures on Turner Classic Movies, and Mr. Model's recent dvd version of WHEN KNIGHTHOOD WAS IN FLOWER, to demonstrate that Miss Davies was an actress of great accomplishment. For many decades, she was thought of as the Dorothy Comingore character in CITIZEN KANE, a talentless floozy raised to stardom through her free-spending lover, William Randolph Hearst and supported by his chain of sycophantic newspapers and magazines. While Hearst did spend a lot of money on her movies, they were successful commercially and in showing off Miss Davies talents as an actress and comedienne. Let us offer cheers to her loyal supporters, to the more than 200 people who contributed to make this dvd a reality, and to the hope that next year, when they come out of copyright, we may see good copies of her 1924 movies!

The plot: rich guy dies leaving estate to nephew; nephew dies suddenly; niece disguises herself as nephew to claim money.

These days that setup takes less than a minute. But in Little Old New York, it takes 15 minutes. That might have been OK in 1923. In 2023 it had my fidgeting. I mean, why would I care about Gloria Vanderbilt or Jerry Jeff Astor or Washington "Dr W" Irving.

But it gets worse, the nephew and niece are brawling, filthy Irishmen who are so poor their belongings are being auctioned off when the caravan of legal minds pulls up to tell them of their inheritance.

Davies, sporting a really bad wig, desperately flails her arms around in an attempt to be what I assume was ''funny" in 1923. I call it the ''Robin Williams School of Comedy."

Finally, a half-hour into this mess we finally get to see Davies dressed up as a boy, pulling faces. It's not funny. Then she's asked to emote over her dying father. She can't pull it off.

I'm sorry, but the more Marion Davies movies I see - and TCM devoted a month of Tuesdays to her - the more I am convinced she was, in fact, a talentless floozy promoted way beyond her abilities by King of Misinformation William Randolph Hearst.

In Ireland, golden-locked Marion Davies (as Patricia "Pat" O'Day) and her poverty-stricken family are about to be evicted from their home when news from "Little Old New York" reveals her young brother has inherited the estate of a wealthy relative. The family books passage to claim their fortune in the United States. Meanwhile, back in the USA, handsome Harrison Ford (as Larry Delavan) hopes the distant relatives do not arrive on time; if they're late, he gets the fortune. Just as Mr. Ford prepares to celebrate, Ms. Davies arrives to claim the estate, but disguised as her little brother, who died en route.

Ford is obviously unhappy. While left an allowance, he doesn't have the money to finance his much-hoped for investment, in a steam driven vessel developed by future famed inventor Robert Fulton (Courtenay Foote). And, Davies is frustrated and unhappy. She finds herself attracted to Ford, but stuck pretending she's her dead brother. Ford shows no sexual desire for effeminate young boys, but develops a fatherly affection for Davies. Ford accepts Davies as a young pal, and she helps finance Fulton's steam engine - but, Davies realizes she will only win Ford's love as a woman. And, she has fallen in love…

Davis isn't a very convincing boy, but she makes up for it with a charming performance. Ford, in pasty sideburns, convinces. Stage actor Charles Kennedy (as Reilly) and future "Superman" player Stephen Carr (as Patrick O'Day) help show the range of an illustrious cast and crew. Harry Watson and Louis Wolheim add excitement to the climax, as boxers "Bully Boy Brewster" and "The Hoboken Terror". Mr. Wolheim certainly whips up a frenzy. Veteran director Sidney Olcott gives pastoral beauty to the location scenes, like the one where Davies is bullied by three boys approaching from behind a fence.

"Little Old New York" benefits from the obvious financing of Davies sponsor William Randolph Hearst. And, unlike a couple of recent Hearts/Davies productions, it paid off handsomely at the box office. This picture helped restore Davies to the annual top ten "Box Office Stars" list compiled Quigley Publications - she was the #5 for 1923, rising to her all-time high of #2 the following year. The movie finished at #10 in the annual "Film Daily" poll, and surprised many by appearing at a well-respected #5 on the "New York Times" ten best list. The Times was not a Hearst paper, and its praise was genuine.

******* Little Old New York (8/1/23) Sidney Olcott ~ Marion Davies, Harrison Ford, Courtenay Foote, Stephen Carr

The otherwise likeable Marion Davies gives us possibly cinema's worst female-pretending-to-be-a-male impersonation in this lively but hoary silent from William Randolph Hearst's Cosmopolitan Productions. She's pretending to be her own recently deceased brother so that she can claim the inheritance left to him by an American uncle who has long been estranged from her side of the family. Harrison Ford (not that one) is the relative who stands to inherit otherwise. There's something a little unavoidably uncomfortable about the increasing affection Ford's character feels for Davies when she's disguised as a boy, and it isn't completely dispelled once her secret is revealed. It's an entertaining silent though, which features an hilarious boxing match (featuring Louis Wolheim) followed by a mass brawl.

If you want to introduce someone to the joys of silent films this movie would be an excellent choice. I was sitting on the edge of my seat after the first ten minutes, with a big smile on my face. Few films, silent or talkie, can do that for me. It was great fun!

Pretty Marion Davies plays a fiesty Irish lass in 1806, who is forced by her father to pretend she is a boy, with the intent to claim a fortune from her dead uncle in America. Dashing Harrison Ford the First plays the step-son who is being cheated out of his inheritance, and who finds himself strangely attracted to the young "boy", for whom he is forced to become guardian in old New York.

Great comedic and romantic touches between the two leads add spark to a fast paced story. This film was very daring for its time too, especially in the scene where "Patrick" (alias Patricia) is tied to a public square and her shirt ripped off for a whipping before an angry mob.

If you get a chance to see this delightful film, please do so. You will not regret it in the least.