AllMovie

Frances Hodgon Burnett's popular novel Little Lord Fauntleroy was first adapted to the screen in this 6-reel British version. Master Gerald Royston plays the title character, aka Cedric Erroll, who is unwillingly separated from his widowed American mother "Dearest" (Jene Wells) when he falls heir to a British earldom. Winning over his crusty old grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt (H. Agar Lyons, Cedric is able to convince the old gent to welcome "Dearest" back into the family fold. But first, Cedric must foil a scheming pretender to his title. Filmed in the revolutionary Kinemacolor process (which required special -- and very expensive -- projection equipment), the first Little Lord Fauntleroy has been dwarfed by its better-known remakes, featuring such luminaries as Mary Pickford (in the dual role of Cedric and "Dearest"), Freddie Bartholomew, and Rick Schroder.