AllMovie

G. M. Anderson, best known to his fans as "Broncho Billy," briefly drops his traditional cowboy character in The Good-For-Nothing. This time, Anderson plays the worthless son of a stockbroker (Carl Stockdale). After disgracing himself in business, the son heads westward, where he "finds himself" and becomes a man's man. After striking it rich as a gold miner, our hero returns home to rescue his family from financial ruin. The Good-For-Nothing ran a compact 4 reels, or approximately 50 minutes. Anderson remained the principal attraction of Essanay Studios until 1915, when he hired up-and-coming comedian Charlie Chaplin for a series of short subjects.