Sidney Smith

Dog and kid comedy. With Cliff Bowes and Virginia Vance. (youtube.com/watch?v=qz4lYxz9wbY)

Detective Harry is on the trail of a stolen diamond necklace worth $100,000. (imdb)

A Al Christie comedy short featuring Jimmie Adams & Lorraine MacLean. (imdb)

There is no love lost between the Red Dog Garage, and the Black Cat Garage, two auto repair shops on opposite sides of the street. A big cross-country auto race is announced, and it turns into a no-holds-barred contest as the rival garages go all out to win. (imdb)

All the qualified men line up to be chosen, as an heiress advertises that she will marry the man with the most interesting mustache, that marriage which comes with a mansion. John Syrup Soother wins the marriage to who he believes is the heiress, Olive Palmer, a tank of a woman who has lost her beauty with age. But he learns that he his betrothed is not the heiress, Diana Palmer, but her mother. (imdb)

In 1923, The Gumps moved up to two-reel live-action comedies, with former Keystone Cop Joe Murphy as the chinless lead, pioneering comedienne-producer Fay Tincher as Min, and Jack Morgan as the rascally Chester. In this episode, the comedy begins with the announcement of Min's tenth anniversary gift from Uncle Bim--a "tin" flivver. Primping for a family outing in the new car, Min breaks a mirror due to her son's shenanigans. "That's seven more years of bad luck, Chester," she scolds.

A bumbling bank custodian becomes an unlikely hero when he foils a robbery.

A crooked lawyer sells his car.

Jimmie Adams and Sid Smith comedy produced by Jack White and distributed by Educational.

Mack Sennett silent short comedy.

Lovable buffoon Monty Banks tries to relax, but ultimately spends his day worrying about who is keeping company with his wife.

Hajj, a rascally beggar on the periphery of the court of Baghdad, schemes to marry his daughter to royalty and to win the heart of the queen of the castle himself. (imdb)

A mother and daughter are in a fix because their mortgage payment is due and they can't make it--and the heartless landlord is about to foreclose on their house and throw them in the street. Their son Jack, who is in jail, finds out about their plight and breaks out in order to enter his horse in the steeplechase race to win enough money to pay the mortgage. (imdb)

"At Your Service" (aka James Manages a Restaurant), 1921, starring Sidney Smith, is a nice and inventive silent comedy. James and George are seen driving down the street in an extremely dilapidated vehicle and they stop when they see a sign on a restaurant window asking for buyers OR someone willing to trade for the business. Well, given that the car is a mess, they figure to make a killing by trading it for the restaurant.

Sid Smith plays a chauffeur to James Parrott who helps a vamp captivate his boss while foiling a bank robbery.

Penniless and without a job, Mortimer has just been evicted from his apartment. When the disorganized Matthew is late again for work, he is fired, and Mortimer gets a chance to take Matthew's place as a truck driver. The optimistic Matthew continues to flirt with his ex-boss's daughter, and he feigns an injury so that he can be near her. Little does he realize that the inexperienced Mortimer is about to affect his life again, in a most unexpected way.

Louise gets hired as a maid for a swank society party, but the it's really a set up for a bunch of tough jewel robbers. She gets hold of the swag and a big slapstick chase along a highway and beach ensues.

Little Jerry elopes with a young girl whose parents have just divorced. The mother thinks the father (denied custody) has kidnapped her and, as it happens, the three (Jerry, girl and dog) do end up (along with the elephant and various zoo animals) stowing away on the same boat as the father (bound for Europe) and the other (in pursuit of father).

A sailor home from the sea sets off on a road trip to pick up his girlfriend from work. Unfortunately, he's a better sailor than he is a driver. Complications ensue.

The one-reel movie I saw appears to be a version of TAMING THE WEST (1919), cut down for the Pathe show-at-home market. Percy (Edward Flanagan) and Ferdie (Neely Edwards) buy themselves a couple of cowboy suits, then head out west. They flirt with the pretty bar maids, knock out the local banditos with golf balls and play some poker. It's slight, low-key and amusing.

The pair are elegant down-and-outs in a park where a mother and her baby are having a picnic. Their dog steals the picnic basket for them but when the woman complains to the policeman on duty, they have to hide their booty. Unfortunately the dog keeps giving the game away.

Percy & Ferdie at the nursery minding their babies with the mentality of Safety Last.