The Climbers (1927 film)


The Climbers is a 1927 silent film produced and distributed by Warner Bros. and presumed lost. The film stars Irene Rich and was directed by Paul Stein. It was based on a 1901 Clyde Fitch play of the same name, but bore scant resemblance to it.
Previous versions of Fitch's play had been made, under the same name, in 1915 with Gladys Hanson and also in 1919 with Corinne Griffith.

Plot

The action takes place in Spain and Puerto Rico during the early 19th-century reign of Ferdinand VII. The Duchess of Arrogan is the victim of the machinations of court "climber" Countess Veya. The Countess arranges to hide the king's enemy, Duke Cordova in the Duchess's room where he is discovered resulting in the banishment of both to the colony of Puerto Rico, and the Duchess's estrangement from her powerful husband. In exile the Duchess successfully but cruelly manages her extensive land holdings, nursing bitterness against all men, while Cordova becomes the bandit El Blanco. The two are thrown together and begin an affair. The Duchess's daughter Laska arrives, fleeing an unwelcome marriage to which the death of her father has left her vulnerable. Laska is kidnapped and rescued. The Duchess has a happy resolution, reunited with her daughter and Cordova.

Cast