Acting
"The Leather Pushers" were a charming series of comedies based upon the story of a prize-fighter from the Colliers articles by H.C. Witwer. Each episode was self-contained and complete in itself. Formerly wealthy Kane Halliday ( Reginald Denny), fighting as the elegant "Masked Mystery", pays more attention to his flirtation with a chorus girl, Estelle, than his boxing career - frustrating his manager at every turn. Estelle, not realizing her new beau is is actually a prize fighter, is under the mistaken impression that he's a rich playboy, a belief that Halliday does nothing to correct. The manager sets out enlighten her in spectacular fashion!This entry from the series includes some terrific night scenes of New York's Times Square as it appeared in 1922. Titles from other Universal productions are prominently displayed on the theater marquees!
Little Patty Barnes lives with her grandfather, Captain Amos Barnes, in a rickety shack on the New England coast. The wealthy Mrs. Gaythorne, who wishes to adopt Patty, instructs James Henley to secure the mortgage on the shack, and when Amos, now homeless and penniless, departs for the poor farm, Patty is forced to live with the cruel old woman.
Heiress Rhoda Canby is badgered by her eccentric relatives Uncle Silas, Aunt Elizabeth, and Cousin Hepzibah. She falls in love with writer Irving Mason, who believes Rhoda to be the heiress' secretary, and courts her as chauffeur "Henry Smith." Accompanied by her African-American nurse Aunt Chloe, Rhoda runs away from home. Irving, meanwhile, is abducted. Upon reading of the supposed suicide of Irving Mason, Rhoda assumes the role of widow and visits his hometown. There she is befriended by Irving's uncles and goes to work in the family's general store. Irving escapes his captors and surreptitiously returns home, but is surprised to find himself presumed dead and Rhoda his widow. When the family store catches fire and Irving saves Rhoda, their true identities are revealed, after which they are married.
Jack goes from business to business, trying to sell ad space in his newspaper. At each stop he catches the boss in a compromising position with a secretary. He writes an editorial about the practice, hinting that he could expose prominent businessmen. Suddenly everyone wants to buy ads in his paper.
The first film in the first "Leather Pushers" series from Universal.
