James Bradbury Movies

The Romantic Rogue is handsome Reed Howes, the scion of a disreputable family of peddlers. In the tradition of his forebears, Howes sets up shop in a small town to sell his family's line of patent medicine. But whereas the previous members of Howes' brood knew that their snake oil is bogus, our hero genuinely believes in the stuff -- and his faith in the medicine is contagious, resulting in "miracle cures" that are more due to self-determination and optimism than anything else. In the end, Howes realizes that his wares are worthless, but it hardly matters, since his goodwill-spreading has won him the heart of heroine Ena Gregory. James Bradbury and Syd Crossley co-star as a pair of Mutt-and-Jeff comic sidekicks. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This lively outing chronicles the adventures of a daring young buck who defies his father, who grounded the lad for getting bad grades, and swipes his neighbor's car so he can take his girl to the dance. Afterward, he and his buddies begin playing "chicken" and the lad destroys his neighbor's rig. He then takes it to a body shop, unknowing that it is really run by crooks who use the cars for robberies. The innocent youth and his gal end up working as getaway drivers while the crooks rob his father's company. The crooks shoot his father during the heist and then threaten to kill him unless he drives. They force him to go the speed limit so as not to attract undue attention. The ever-defiant youth does just the opposite and peels off towards the police department where all ends happily. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Fascinating Youth was designed as a showcase for the winners of Paramount's Junior Star contest of 1926. Newcomer Charles "Buddy" Rogers heads the cast as Teddy Ward, the son of a wealthy hotelier (Ralph Lewis). Disturbed by Teddy's hedonistic lifestyle, Ward Sr. orders the boy to take over management of a winter resort hotel. With the help of talented sketch artist Jeanne King (Ivy Harris), Teddy mounts a big-time advertising campaign and transforms the dormant resort into a smashing success. Outside of Buddy Rogers and Ivy Harris, the other Junior Stars given a boost in Fascinating Youth include future cowboy hero Jack Luden and the delightful comedienne Thelma Todd. Also performing box-office duty in cameo roles are such established Paramount luminaries as Richard Dix, Adolphe Menjou, Clara Bow, Lois Wilson and Thomas Meighan, not to mention contract directors Lewis Milestone and Mal St. Clair. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This film combines four short films under the title Bits Of Life. The Bad Samaritan is taken from a story in Popular Magazine in which the son of a Chinese father and a white mother is sold into slavery by his father. The boy becomes a criminal and a cunning but cruel thief. The one time he stops to help a lady in distress he is thrown in jail. Wesley Barry is the young boy and Lon Chaney the grown-up criminal. The Man Who Heard Everything is taken from the magazine Smart Set. A deaf barber saves up $50 to buy a hearing aid. When the device arrives, he hears a ribald joke at the barber shop. He returns home to overhear his wife in conversation with her brother that her husband is a "dummy" and that she willingly takes advantage of his money and good nature. Shaken by his experience, the barber's answer to his problem is to smash the new device. In Chinese Story, a young boy runs away from home to avoid a constant prayer vigil demanded by his father of his children. Sing Fat (Lon Chaney) grows up to become the proprietor of an opium factory. He falls in love with a Chinese woman who gives birth to a daughter. The irate father beats her because he wanted a boy. The mother tells their servant to nail a crucifix to the wall so she may pray to a Christian God. The crucifix begins to drip the blood of Sing Fat, who was resting on the opposite side of the wall. Director Marshal Neilan wrote the last feature called The Intrigue. A man dreams he encounters a princess and her entourage while playing golf. Following her to a fancy reception, he is attacked by Oriental guards and awakens in a dentist's chair with his tooth extracted. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi