The Delicious Little Devil (1919)
A poor coat checker assumes the identity of a scandalous dancer.
Genre
Characters/Groups
Uncle Barney - Richard Cummings
Mother Maguire - Alice Knowland
Pat Maguire - Henry Rattenberry
Michael Calhoun - Edward Jobson
Jimmie Calhoun - Rudolph Valentino
Duke de Sauterne - Bertram Grassby
Character thumbnails with links to profiles
Detailed Synopsis
"There are those who spend the major portions of their lives trying to conceal their misdeeds, but here a great problem asserted itself: - How can I liver a quiet, decent life and not get caught at it."
Kitty Maguire gets ready for work and walks into the living room and gets angry when she sees Uncle Barney sitting around playing checkers with himself while Mother Maguire is busy washing other people's clothes to make a living. Pat Maguire is getting drunk at a bar when the barman tells him to pay up and get out. Barney writes to Pat and tells him that Kitty has a good job and he should come back home. While at work, someone drops off their coat to Kitty and she tries it on. She starts dancing with it on in front of the other coat check girls Her boss sees her dancing with the coat and fires her. Although Kitty was fired, Barney continues to consume lots of food. He fills his plates with food and then tells Mother to get him more. Pat arrives at the apartment and Barney offers him Mother's seat and tells him to eat. Kitty sees Pat and tells him and Barney they need to get jobs. Michael Calhoun is sitting in his office when Jimmie Calhoun stops by for a visit. Michael yells at Jimmie for sitting on his desk and randomly grabbing items and looking at them. At the Peach Tree Inn, Larry McKean shows Mr. Musk and Mrs. Musk a flyer he had printed up offering jobs for a jazz band, Swiss trained waiters, vaudeville and cabaret entertainers, and a hostess and solo dancer.
Dinny drops Kitty off at her apartment and puts the newspaper she bought onto the dining room table. Barney and Pat both grab for it and Barney sees a help wanted ad and throws that section on the ground. Kitty reads about a scandal involving the Duke de Sauterne and Gloria du Moine, a notorious dancer, who then went into hiding. She then sees the advertisement for the Peach Tree Inn. Kitty shows Mother the job advertisement and while Mother doesn't approve of the dancing job, Kitty tells her a job is a job. A group of women gather for the job including Kitty. Larry sees Kitty and stares at her out of fashion clothes. He asks the women to start dancing and they becomes offended and most of them leave, except Kitty and another woman. Kitty starts awkwardly dancing and the house band starts playing music to accompany her. Larry likes her dance moves and asks her about her reputation and she shows him the article about the Duke de Sauterne and Gloria du Moine. She tells him that she is Gloria and he asks her why she speaks with an Irish accent and has shabby clothes. She tells him that she had an Irish maid and switched clothes with her when she went into hiding. Larry then offers her a hundred dollars a week. In Paris, the Duke tells Francois that they must leave immediately as the police are after them.
On opening night the Peach Tree Inn is packed with people who wanted to see who they thought was Gloria. Jimmie has a ring side seat while Kitty does her original dance, The Peacock Promenade. Afterwards, Larry goes to Kitty's dressing room and tells her he wants her to meet someone and takes her to Jimmie's table. The next morning the newspaper puts out a story on Kitty as Gloria. Dinny reads the article, while Jimmie continues to go to the Peach Tree Inn to see Kitty. Dinny goes to the inn and Kitty gets him a job as a bouncer in exchange for him not telling anyone that she wasn't really Gloria. Over time Kitty spends her money fixing up her place while Jimmie tells Michael that he wants to marry Kitty. Michael then calls Larry and tells him he wants a dinner set for Gloria. The Duke arrives in the United States and reads an article about the Peach Tree Inn and Gloria. During the evening of the dinner Michael ordered, he hopes Kitty gets drunk and Jimmie will tire of her, but she stays sober. Dinny invites Barney and Pat to the inn and shows them around Kitty's dressing room.
The Duke arrives at the inn and Larry introduces him to Michael's party. The Duke walks over to Kitty and kisses her hand, which upsets Jimmie. Kitty asks the Duke not to tell the truth about her lying about being Gloria and he takes advantage of the situation and continues to kiss her. The next morning, Kitty ties to get away and the Duke corners her in her dressing room and starts to sexually assault her. She manages to get away temporarily and Jimmie sees the Duke grabbing at her and he and the Duke get into a fight. Kitty runs away and takes a taxi to her apartment and the Duke and Francois chase after her followed by everyone else. Kitty runs into her apartment and the Duke barges in and locks the door behind him. He starts to sexually assault her again and Jimmie kicks down the door and he and the Duke get into another fight. A police officer runs into the apartment and tells Kitty and Jimmie that the Duke is wanted all over Europe for forgery and the Duke is arrested. Michael walks in to the apartment and tells Jimmie that Kitty is no good and Mother gets offended and says Kitty is just as good as Jimmie. As Michael is dragging Jimmie away he runs into Barney and Pat who recognize him and they shake hands. Kitty admits to Jimmie that she isn't Gloria and Michael finally okays her and Jimmie's marriage. Meanwhile outside, Dinny tells Larry how much he loved Kitty.