An Aerial Joyride on AllMovie

If nothing else, this one-reel comedy starring the team of Plump (Oliver Hardy) and Runt (Billy Ruge) offers an interesting view of Jacksonville, Florida, as it appeared in the summer of 1916. To impress his wife (Ray Godfrey), Runt has bought a car and hired Plump as his chauffeur. Unfortunately, the car proves to be a lemon, and with the corpulent Plump behind the wheel, Runt himself is forced to ride on the axle. According to extant reviews of the film, the car at one point takes to the air and has to be shot down by the Jacksonville police, but these scenes are sadly missing in surviving prints. Oliver Hardy was teamed with Billy Ruge, a former circus and vaudeville performer, by the Vim company in early 1916, but Ruge was later replaced by character comedienne Kate Price. According to at least one account, this farce was penned by comedian Raymond Griffith.