The Country Kid
- November 4, 1923 (1923-11-04)
The Country Kid is a 1923 American silent comedy drama film directed by William Beaudine for Warner Bros. It stars Wesley Barry, Spec O'Donnell, and Bruce Guerin as three orphaned brothers who struggle to preserve their inheritance and remain together.[2]
Plot
Orphaned Ben Applegate (Barry) strives to care for his younger brothers (O'Donnell and Guerin) and run the farm left to them. Their unscrupulous legal guardian, Uncle Grimes (George Nichols) schemes to take their property and separate the brothers, but he is ultimately thwarted by a benevolent judge (George C. Pearce). The Applegates are reunited, their property restored, and they are adopted by caring neighbors.
Cast
- Wesley Barry as Ben Applegate
- Spec O'Donnell as Joe Applegate
- Bruce Guerin as Andy Applegate
- Kate Toncray as Mrs. Grimes
- Helen Jerome Eddy as Hazel Warren
- George Nichols as Mr. Grimes
- Edmund Burns as Arthur Grant
- George C. Pearce as The County Judge
Production
The story was conceived and written as a vehicle for popular child star Wesley Barry. Barry had been signed to a Warner contract by Harry Rapf in 1922 and was one of the studio's top draws at the time.[3] William Beaudine had directed Barry with considerable success in Heroes of the Street (1922), which led to the pair working together on a number of Warner films, one of which was The Country Kid.[4]
Release
Released at the beginning of November 1923, The Country Kid was distributed on a state rights basis,[5] as were all Warner pictures of the early 1920s.[6]
It garnered mixed to unfavorable reviews. A number of critics found the film "trite" and melodramatic, and many commented on Barry's increasing age.[7] The Variety reviewer reflected, "While there is no particular finesse in the way the picture is put together, the scenes in which the three kids figure hold a definite appeal for the countless thousands with a soft spot for homely sentiment."[8]
Box Office
According to Warner Bros records the film earned $263,000 domestically and $25,000 foreign.[1]
Preservation
It is an extant film, archived in the David Bradley Film Collection at Indiana University and in the holdings of Warner Bros. A complete version and an abridged version are preserved.[9] The Country Kid was one of the films purchased by Kodak for its Kodascope home library collection, the source of a number of abridged surviving films.[10]
References
- ^ a b c Warner Bros financial information in The William Shaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 2 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
- ^ Munden, Kenneth White (1997). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States. University of California Press. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-520-20969-5.
- ^ Pawlak, Debra Ann (2012). Bringing Up Oscar: The Story of the Men and Women Who Founded the Academy. Pegasus Books. p. 65. ISBN 978-1-60598-216-8.
- ^ Marshall, Wendy L. (2005). William Beaudine: From Silents to Television. Scarecrow Press. pp. 34–37. ISBN 978-0-8108-5218-1.
- ^ "Wesley Barry in 'The Country Kid'". The Film Daily. XXVI (29): 5. November 4, 1923. Retrieved March 21, 2015 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Bennett, Carl (ed.). "Warner Brothers Pictures Inc". Progressive Silent Film List. Retrieved March 21, 2015 – via Silent Era.
- ^ "'The Country Kid'—Warner's". Newspaper Opinions. The Film Daily. XXVI (28): 6. November 2, 1923. Retrieved March 21, 2015 – via Internet Archive.
Also, "46 Pictures Reviewed in 16 Cities; 'The Country Kid'—Warner's". The Film Daily. XXVI (75): 6. December 30, 1923. Retrieved March 21, 2015 – via Internet Archive. - ^ "The Country Kid". Variety. LXXII (11): 27. November 1, 1923. Retrieved March 21, 2015 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Pierce, David (March 31, 2014). "The Country Kid/William Beaudine". American Silent Feature Film Survival Database. Library of Congress. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
- ^ Descriptive Catalogue of Kodascope Library Motion Pictures. 1932. pp. 162–163 – via Internet Archive..
For survival claim: Pierce, David (September 2013). The Survival of American Silent Feature Films: 1912–1929 (PDF). Council on Library and Information Resources and The Library of Congress. p. 2. ISBN 978-1-932326-39-0.
External links
- The Country Kid at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
- The Country Kid at IMDb
- v
- t
- e
- Watch Your Step (1922)
- Catch My Smoke (1922)
- Heroes of the Street (1922)
- Her Fatal Millions (1923)
- Penrod and Sam (1923)
- The Printer's Devil (1923)
- The Country Kid (1923)
- Boy of Mine (1923)
- Daring Youth (1924)
- Wandering Husbands (1924)
- Daughters of Pleasure (1924)
- A Self-Made Failure (1924)
- Cornered (1924)
- Lovers' Lane (1924) (unconfirmed)
- The Narrow Street (1925)
- A Broadway Butterfly (1925)
- How Baxter Butted In (1925)
- Little Annie Rooney (1925)
- That's My Baby (1926)
- Sparrows (1926)
- The Social Highwayman (1926)
- The Canadian (1926)
- Frisco Sally Levy (1927)
- The Life of Riley (1927)
- The Irresistible Lover (1927)
- The Cohens and the Kellys in Paris (1928)
- Heart to Heart (1928)
- Home, James (1928)
- Do Your Duty (1928)
- Give and Take (1928)
- Fugitives (1929)
- Two Weeks Off (1929)
- Hard to Get (1929)
- The Girl from Woolworth's (1929)
- Wedding Rings (1929)
- Those Who Dance (1930)
- Road to Paradise (1930)
- Father's Son (1931)
- Misbehaving Ladies (1931)
- The Lady Who Dared (1931)
- The Mad Parade (1931)
- Penrod and Sam (1931)
- Men in Her Life (1931)
- Three Wise Girls (1932)
- Make Me a Star (1932)
- The Crime of the Century (1933)
- Her Bodyguard (1933)
- The Old Fashioned Way (1934)
- Two Hearts in Harmony (1935)
- So You Won't Talk (1935)
- Dandy Dick (1935)
- Boys Will Be Boys (1935)
- Get Off My Foot (1935)
- Mr. Cohen Takes a Walk (1935)
- Where There's a Will (1936)
- Educated Evans (1936)
- It's in the Bag (1936)
- Windbag the Sailor (1936)
- Feather Your Nest (1937)
- Said O'Reilly to McNab (1937)
- Take It from Me (1937)
- Torchy Gets Her Man (1938)
- Torchy Blane in Chinatown (1939)
- She Done Him Right (1940)
- Four Shall Die (1940)
- The Last Alarm (1940)
- Misbehaving Husbands (1940)
- Up Jumped the Devil (1941)
- Emergency Landing (1941)
- Mr. Washington Goes to Town (1941)
- Federal Fugitives (1941)
- Desperate Cargo (1941)
- Flying Wild (1941)
- Mr. Celebrity (1941)
- The Miracle Kid (1941)
- Blonde Comet (1941)
- Duke of the Navy (1942)
- Broadway Big Shot (1942)
- Lucky Ghost (1942)
- Professor Creeps (1942)
- The Panther's Claw (1942)
- Men of San Quentin (1942)
- Gallant Lady (1942)
- One Thrilling Night (1942)
- Phantom Killer (1942)
- Foreign Agent (1942)
- The Living Ghost (1942)
- The Ape Man (1943)
- Clancy Street Boys (1943)
- Spotlight Scandals (1943)
- Ghosts on the Loose (1943)
- Here Comes Kelly (1943)
- Mr. Muggs Steps Out (1943)
- Mystery of the 13th Guest (1943)
- What a Man! (1944)
- Voodoo Man (1944)
- Hot Rhythm (1944)
- Detective Kitty O'Day (1944)
- Follow the Leader (1944)
- Leave It to the Irish (1944)
- Oh, What a Night (1944)
- Shadow of Suspicion (1944)
- Bowery Champs (1944)
- Crazy Knights (1944)
- Mom and Dad (1945)
- Adventures of Kitty O'Day (1945)
- Fashion Model (1945)
- Blonde Ransom (1945)
- Swingin' on a Rainbow (1945)
- Come Out Fighting (1945)
- Black Market Babies (1945)
- Girl on the Spot (1946)
- The Face of Marble (1946)
- One Exciting Week (1946)
- Don't Gamble with Strangers (1946)
- Below the Deadline (1946)
- Spook Busters (1946)
- Mr. Hex (1946)
- Philo Vance Returns (1947)
- Hard Boiled Mahoney (1947)
- Too Many Winners (1947)
- Killer at Large (1947)
- Gas House Kids Go West (1947)
- News Hounds (1947)
- Bowery Buckaroos (1947)
- The Chinese Ring (1947)
- Angels' Alley (1947)
- Jinx Money (1948)
- Shanghai Chest (1948)
- The Golden Eye (1948)
- Smugglers' Cove (1948)
- Incident (1948)
- Kidnapped (1948)
- Jiggs and Maggie in Court (1948)
- The Feathered Serpent (1948)
- The Lawton Story (1949)
- Tuna Clipper (1949)
- Forgotten Women (1949)
- Trail of the Yukon (1949)
- Jiggs and Maggie in Jackpot Jitters (1949)
- Tough Assignment (1949)
- Blue Grass of Kentucky (1950)
- Blonde Dynamite (1950)
- Jiggs and Maggie Out West (1950)
- Lucky Losers (1950)
- County Fair (1950)
- Second Chance (1950)
- Blues Busters (1950)
- A Wonderful Life (1951)
- Bowery Battalion (1951)
- Cuban Fireball (1951)
- Ghost Chasers (1951)
- Let's Go Navy! (1951)
- Havana Rose (1951)
- Crazy Over Horses (1951)
- Rodeo (1952)
- Hold That Line (1952)
- Jet Job (1952)
- Here Come the Marines (1952)
- The Rose Bowl Story (1952)
- Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (1952)
- Feudin' Fools (1952)
- No Holds Barred (1952)
- Jalopy (1953)
- Born to the Saddle (1953)
- Roar of the Crowd (1953)
- Murder Without Tears (1953)
- Yukon Vengeance (1954)
- Paris Playboys (1954)
- Pride of the Blue Grass (1954)
- High Society (1955)
- Jail Busters (1955)
- Westward Ho the Wagons! (1956)
- Up in Smoke (1957)
- In the Money (1958)
- Ten Who Dared (1960)
- Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966)
- Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter (1966)