The loss of this film is a particularly tragic one for those who follow the early film career of Douglas Fairbanks Sr, along with those who study the growing art of silent cinema. This was the popular actors sixth film in which he starred in as well as wrote. The Good Bad Man was a western spoof directed by the notable Allan Dwan and photographed by Victor Fleming. A full synopsis of this film is hard to track down, but basically the story is about a fellow who was orphaned at birth and grows up to be a Robin-Hood-like bandit, robbing the rich so that he can finance a home for unwanted children. He calls himself "Passin' Through" and he eventually meets Bud Frazer/The Wolf ( Sam De Grasse ) the man who killed his father. Bessie Love has a small part in this her fifth film playing the standard heroine. Silent film enthusiasts can only hope a copy of this early Fairbanks film someday resurfaces.
Update: The Good Bad Man was reissued in 1923 after it had been revised and updated. A copy of this film survives and has been restored and shown at several Silent Film Festivals as of May, 2014. This is good news for silent film fans and those keen to see an early Douglas Fairbanks film.
Update: The Good Bad Man was reissued in 1923 after it had been revised and updated. A copy of this film survives and has been restored and shown at several Silent Film Festivals as of May, 2014. This is good news for silent film fans and those keen to see an early Douglas Fairbanks film.