86. Lazybones (1925)

Lazybones in interesting in the sense that I watched it last night and now, the following day I still find myself thinking about it. At first I felt like most of the actors were wrong for their parts, starting with Buck Jones who played the title character. He was more known for doing tons of westerns.

But in Lazybones he portrays a somewhat challenged guy who still lives with his mother. The film is based on a play and the story is quite similar to Laugh, Clown, Laugh. A man brings up an abandoned child who grows up to become a beautiful girl that the man falls in love with.

 a pictorial reference likening mr Lazybones' work pace to the speed at which syrup oozes onto pancakes

 the man himself, Steve 'Lazybones' Tuttle, as played by Buck Jones (34) 

 Jane Novak (29) as Agnes Fanning, a girl he's got feelings for

 William Bailey as Elmer Ballister, a rich dude who's engaged to marry Agnes Fanning's sister Ruth

 and here's Ruth (Zazu Pitts, 31) who's coming home with a heavy burden, a secret she plans to die with

 she attempts to drown herself

 because she's got a baby nobody else knows of

 but Steve, who's been fishing/napping spots the girl in the river and rescues her

 it turns out Ruth married a sailor back when she was living in a big city and the lord was lost at sea and so she was widowed  (check out that handsome sailor,  I wish they'd done a closeup of his face)

 Steve tells Ruth he'll take care of her baby until she can muster up the courage to break the news about the kid to her controlling and awful mother

 ah... if they only knew

Emily Fitzroy (65) played Mrs Fanning

 when the girl (now called Kit) grows up she gets bullied

one day Kit's mother steps in to break up a fight between her and the bullies but won't reveal her true identity

 LOOK AT THAT FACE! Isn't she amazing? She was played by Virginia Marshall. I think she was the best actress in the whole movie.

 This is Kit as a teen, played by Madge Bellamy (26)

Ruth's last wish. She never got over the fact that she was forced to give her daughter away 

Steve asks the girl to come and see Ruth but from what I gather, he still doesn't tell her that the lady is her mother

Time passes and a war breaks out. Steve is drafted and Kit is devastated

it was at this point that I got that "uh-oh... no" feeling. The way Steve looked at Kit was not very fatherly

Steve becomes an accidental war hero 

meanwhile back home Kit's fixing up the farm

and she's got some help too, in the form of this young cat Dick Ritchie (Leslie Fenton , 23) who's recently moved to the town

Steve comes back home and in my opinion looks much improved now that his hair has started to turn silvery gray

the townspeople throw a party in Steve's honor, here's Kit and Dick getting ready 

Dick takes Kit to a gazebo during the party

Steve overhears it and understands his chances with Kit are nonexistent 

that's life, Steve

*

Directed by Frank Borzage (31)