The First Auto
About The First Auto
In 1895, in Maple City, livery owner and harness racer Hank Armstrong mocks the horseless carriage. He is about to horsewhip his son Bob for chasing automobiles when Bob's girlfriend, Rose Robbins, stops him. Bob leaves for Detroit and is there when Barney Oldfield, playing himself, drives a mile in a minute. Hank goes bankrupt. In 1905 Bob returns for the county's first auto race. A rival for Rose talks Hank into sabotaging a displayed car, which is Bob's. It crashes and burns. Hank, sure he has killed his son, sets fire to his stable, then hears that Bob will live and joins him in the car business.
Cast & crew
More about The First Auto
Roy Del Ruth directed. Darryl F. Zanuck produced. David Abel photographed it. The release has no full spoken dialogue.
Themes
Music
Vitaphone discs carry a synchronized score, sound effects, a few spoken words, cheering, and laughter. There is no full dialogue track.
Preservation
In the public domain in the United States as of 1 January 2023.
Notes
- Russell Simpson plays Hank, Charles Emmett Mack plays Bob, and Patsy Ruth Miller plays Rose.
- Hank's mare is Sloe Eyes. He jeers at manufacturer Elmer Hays, who tells a crowd that a car will someday go 30 miles an hour.
- Frank Campeau and Gibson Gowland are also in the cast.
Scenes
- Hank tampers with a car and then learns it is the one Bob will race.
