A bitter clown endeavors to rescue the young woman he loves from the lecherous count who once betrayed him.
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Title: He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
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Edit
Cast
| Credited cast: | |||
| Lon Chaney | ... | Paul Beaumont / HE | |
| Norma Shearer | ... | Consuelo | |
| John Gilbert | ... | Bezano | |
 |
Ruth King | ... | Marie Beaumont |
| Marc McDermott | ... | Baron Regnard | |
| Ford Sterling | ... | Tricaud | |
| Tully Marshall | ... | Count Mancini | |
| Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Pierre Watkin | ... | spectator in audience at HE's final performance | |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
Storyline
Story of an inventor who, suffering betrayal in life, makes a career of it by becoming a clown whose act consists of getting slapped by all the other clowns. He falls in love with another circus performer, and those who betrayed him enter his life yet again. Written by Robert Tonsing <rtonsing@ti.com>
Taglines:
Victor Seastrom's production of the famous stage play by Leonid Andreyev. (Poster). See more »Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
22 December 1924 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Akit arcul csaptak See more »Filming Locations:
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USAEdit
Box Office
Budget:
$172,000 (estimated)Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
(original) | (TCM print)Sound Mix:
SilentAspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1
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See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
The actual onscreen title is "HE Who Gets Slapped," with the "HE" capitalized, so as to emphasize that HE is a proper name, not a pronoun. See more »Goofs
During part of the scene where the lion is loose in the room, Beaumont is seen with no, or hardly any, black makeup around his right eye. Before and after this scene, both eyes are made up. See more »Quotes
Paul Beaumont: He slapped me, Marie. I would have killed him, but they laughed - laughed as if I were a clown.See more »
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I saw this film for the first time on TCM and I have to tell you, no movie has hooked me in like this for the longest time! I furthered my appreciation for Lon Chaney, the first TRUE film actor their was in my opinion. This was the first film made by MGM and it was the best choice they could have made.
The film concerns a scientist/inventor played by Chaney whose discoveries are claimed by someone else, a baron. He is publicly humiliated but sees an oppurtunity and becomes a circus clown as a result of it. He falls in love with one of the bareback riders at the circus but, as is common with a lot of his films, the girl loves someone else. One night, the baron who ruined his life comes to the circus and he see's his opportunity for revenge. The overall theme and/or message of this movie is "he who gets the last laugh, laughs last!"
The film is marveously done from begining to end. Chaney is brilliant as always but his performance is subtle at saddening and vicious at times, you actually root for him!
Bravo!