Paramount Press Books (1918)

CAST AND STORY OF “POOR BOOB” For Use of Exhibitors in Their House Organs or for General Publicity in the Exploitation of Bryant Washburn’s New Photoplay A PARAMOUNT PICTURE Typical Bryant Washburn Picture Subject is “Poor Boob ” an Adaptation of Margaret Mayo’s Famous Stage Success Popular Paramount Star Ideally Cast in Role of Ostensible Failure Who Doesn’t Prove to be the Poor Boob he Appears to be. C I M PSON — more generally known as “Simp” — Hightower is leaving his natal village ostensibly a failure — in reality, he has been bamboozled out of the rights to the canning factory, which had been in his family for generations, by Stephen Douglas, who also wins away Tiny Parcel, the girl who fills the thoughts of Simp to the exclusion of business and everything else. In New York, Simp, now a clerk in Platt’s Provision office, is still handicapped by the memory of his lost love. When Platt, egged by Hope, his competent stenographer, tries a big bluff on Swanson, telling him that unless Swanson closes the deal for Denmark immediately, he will accept a proposition from Holland, and Swanson hurries to Platt’s office, Simp makes one of his colossal mistakes and takes the cost instead of the price sheets. For this, Platt, when giving his office force a holiday, tells Simp to “forget to come back.” Simp is overcome with the thought of his successive failures, but Hope and Jimmy, the office boy, assuring him he can and must succeed, originated a wild but merry plan whereby Simp is to pretend to be a millionaire, they are to be his secretary and valet, and they all are to go to some town and make a splurge for a day or two. At first Simp won’t agree, but, spurred on by the other two, he enters into the scheme and they decide to go to Hightower, Simp’s home town. There is great excitement in the village when the news leaks out that the Hon. Simpson Hightower, secretary, valet and chauffeur are coming to Hightower for “POOR BOOB” The Cast Simp Hightower Bryant Washburn Hope i*<Wanda Hawley Jimmy ^ . Dick Rosson Henry Platt .^Theodore Roberts Stephen Douglas Raymond Hatton Benton Jay Dwiggins Tucker ..^KCharles Ogle Mrs. Benton .... . Jane Wolff Tiny ‘Majy' Thurman Hallock v A . Guy Oliver a visit, and hurried preparations are made for his reception. Simp and his “suite” arrive in Hightower and a series of events happen : First, Swanson, having made an appointment to meet Platt at a certain place, finds it impossible to do so and wires for Platt to meet him in Hightower. Platt is late, and Swanson, unable to wait any longer, persuades Simp, whom he knows as “Platt’s silent partner,” from a facetious joke of Jimmy’s, to sign for Platt. Simp, knowing what the loss of the contract will mean to Platt, finally consents, but signs it in his own name only. Then Platt arrives and, overjoyed at getting the contract, magnanimously offers Simp his old job! Simp refuses, saying he wants a commission of $5,000 — this being the sum which Tiny, hearing of Simp’s return as a “millionaire,” has asked him to lend her. Platt writes him a check for the amount and hurries away with the contract. His car stopping for gas at the village garage, he learns that his factory has been burned. He rushes back to the hotel, thrusts the contract upon Simp, demanding the return of the check. Simp, having already sent the money to Tiny, cannot comply. Platt, raging, dashes out of the room. Tiny comes to see Simp, and he finds her quite different from the idealistic memory he has been treasuring of his boyhood’s sweetheart. She now weighs two hundred pounds. She is ready to go back to the old friendly footing, but Simp is not ! She has come to tell Simp that Douglas would like Simp to buy his factory, but gives Simp a receipt for the $5,000 as part payment on the transaction. Outside iPlatt and Douglas meet and Douglas offers the factory to Platt. Just then Tiny comes out and tells her husband that Simp has bought the plant. Simp now has the factory and the contract, but not the capital to work it with. The Hightower bankers come in at this moment and beg Simp to let them go in with him on the factory deal and make a little money for themselves. Simp consents. The village band now arrives to serenade their millionaire fellow citizen, and under cover of the music Simp thanks Hope and Jimmy for their making him put up the bluff and tells them they, too, are “in on the deal.” As Jimmy goes to the window to watch the serenaders, Simp asks Hope if, for her, it will be “for life?” She replies, '“If I were sure I’d never grow fat.” So Simp, rid of the incubus of the memory of a hopeless love, with a flourishing business on his hands, nominated as Hightower’s next candidate for Congress, really begins to live. 5