A Natural Born Gambler
About A Natural Born Gambler
Bert Williams sits in on a lodge meeting at a saloon and loses at cards. He and Limpy Jones see two chicken thieves in a graveyard, haul them back, and take the birds. Brother Scott throws the gamblers out and pockets the money they leave. Bert then beats Cicero Sampson, just back from the north with a stake. Police raid the game. The judge gives the winnings to Brother Scott as a fee, gives Cicero three days to leave town, and sends Bert to jail for ten days, where he dreams of dealing poker and still loses.
Cast & crew
More about A Natural Born Gambler
Bert Williams wrote and directed his first two-reel comedy and played the lead. G. W. Bitzer, usually D. W. Griffith's cameraman, photographed it. Biograph made it and General Film Company released it on July 24, 1916.
Themes
Look
Billy Bitzer photographed the saloon, the graveyard walk, and the jail dream.
Preservation
The two-reeler survives.
Notes
- It is the first of only two films in which Williams starred.
- He plays the gambler in the blackface makeup he used on stage.
- Newspapers carried the advertising that put the short in front of exhibitors before the July 24 release.
Scenes
- Bert and Limpy drag the chicken thieves back to the saloon.
- In jail, Bert mimes a poker hand and loses even in the dream.
Also available
- Wikimedia Commons