by Hal Erickson
synopsis
Despite its title, this Biograph half-reeler is a comedy. The plot is the old one about two poverty-stricken souls pretending to be wealthy to attract rich spouses. The hero, a humble clerk, poses as a millionaire; the heroine, a waitress, assumes the guise of an heiress. Unfortunately, they are only able to fool each other with their mutual masquerade. Even in 1910, this sort of comedy fare was all too familiar to moviegoers; even so, the reviewer for the trade magazine Variety applauded the film's freshness of approach. Though not personally directed by Biograph's star director D.W. Griffith, A Summer Tragedy was no doubt supervised by him.
