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1915Thanhouser CompanyOne reelDrama

The Spirit of Uplift

No copy you can watch online. No print is known to survive. What follows is what does: the release, the cast, the story, and what the trade press said at the time.

The story

“After the death of Blinky, his pal, in a fight with a policeman, Whitey discovers that the dead man has an old blind father, whom he has made comfortable with $25,000. Whitey persuades Muggs to impersonate the son to the blind man and try to get the cash. Muggs goes to Blinky’s home and is accepted as the son. On meeting May, the girl who has been taking care of the helpless old man, he pretends to her that he is acting the part of Blinky in order that his father may not die of a broken heart. Later, however, under May’s influence, Muggs determines to give up the game, Whitey calls Muggs to account. They quarrel and the former crook disarms his old pal. Whitey makes up his mind to get Muggs. While robbing a gun store, however, he is caught by the police. And Muggs is left to go on living his new life.”

Summary from Reel Life · 20 March 1915

What the papers said

1 review

“Jim impersonates the dead son of a blind man and plans to rob him of his money. But there is a girl in the case and he weakens. When a member of the gang shows up he saves the old man from being robbed, confesses his deception and is forgiven. The plot material is familiar and obvious, but quite well handled, though the latter scenes were rather hurried.”

The Moving Picture World · 3 April 1915

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Cast and crew

Cast
D. Younge as Blinky
Edward N. Hoyt as the blind father
John Stone as Whitey
Minnie Berlin as May
J. Morris Foster as Muggs
Writer
John William Kellette

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More about this film

From Volume II: Filmography of Q. David Bowers’ Thanhouser Films: An Encyclopedia and History, reproduced with permission and unchanged. Read the history of 1915 →

Cite as: Bowers, Q. David. Thanhouser Films: An Encyclopedia and History, “The Spirit of Uplift”. thanhouser.org/films/the-spirit-of-uplift/

Where a print is held

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No print known