The Little Clown on AllMovie

The story to this mild little romance obviously owed a lot to the play Polly of the Circus, which was made into a 1917 film starring Mae Marsh. Here, Mary Miles Minter is the title character. Pat (Minter) is a little orphan who has been raised around the circus. Her foster father is Toto the clown (Neely Edwards). Toto hopes to marry Pat until the day the circus comes to a Southern town and she meets handsome Dick Beverley (Jack Mulhall). Beverley falls in love with Pat and takes a job as trick rider just to be near her. Beverley's aristocratic parents (Winter Hall and Helen Dunbar) find out about his new job and insist that he come home. He brings Pat with him, and his parents keep a close eye on her to see if she is worthy to marry their son. Pat finds life at the Beverleys' difficult, and while the parents are away, her circus family pays her a visit. Beverley's kid brother, Roddy (Cameron Coffey), spikes the punch with liquor and the circus folk get drunk. The Beverleys return and they throw Pat's guests out. She goes with them, but Dick goes after her. Explanations result in a wedding for Pat and young Beverley.