The Mystery of the Laughing Death - Production & Contact Info

The Mystery of the Laughing Death (1914)
Short | Short, Drama

Primary photo for The Mystery of the Laughing Death

The Mystery of the Laughing Death (1914)

Short | Short, Drama

The Arbuthnot family was shrouded in mystery and fear. Kate Arbuthnot and her brothers, Jack, Geoffrey, Harold and Eric, who had been left their father's entire fortune, had lately been joined by their nearest living relative, Eugene Brand...See moreThe Arbuthnot family was shrouded in mystery and fear. Kate Arbuthnot and her brothers, Jack, Geoffrey, Harold and Eric, who had been left their father's entire fortune, had lately been joined by their nearest living relative, Eugene Brand, who had just returned from Mexico. Shortly after his arrival, Geoffrey Arbuthnot fell a victim to a strange malady, marked by paroxysmal bursts of hideous laughter. Death resulted in a few hours after his first uncanny laugh. A little later, Harold, the second brother, died under the same conditions. The doctor was utterly at a loss. The symptoms clearly corresponded with certain types of poisoning, but it was impossible to even hazard a guess as to the exact cause. Everybody in the unhappy home became a prey to silent suspicion. No one was entirely free. Kate, her fiancé, the remaining two brothers and Brand would all profit by the deaths. In default of other means, Kate, her fiancé, Jack and Brand, visited Cleek separately and engaged him. On the very evening of Cleek's arrival, Eric, the youngest brother, died from the same terrible disease. Cleek viewed the body, noticed the convulsed face, and looked about the room. His attention finally centered on a hideous Mexican idol. On inquiry, he learned that it had been brought into the house by Brand, and on Kate's request, placed it in her brothers' room. A slender filmy thread projected from the idol's mouth. Cleek seized the ugly thing with both hands and smashed it on the floor. A hideous shape crawled out from the ruined bits of pottery, a tremendous tarantula. The mystery was solved. Both Brand and Kate had been the innocent causes of the terrible Laughing Death. Written by Moving Picture World synopsis See less

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9 cast members

Name	Known for
Ben F. Wilson Detective Hamilton Cleek Detective Hamilton Cleek See fewer	The Power God (1925)
Cora Williams Kate Arbuthnot Kate Arbuthnot See fewer	The Great Mail Robbery (1927)
Edward Earle Actor Actor See fewer	The Wind (1928)
Robert Brower Police Superintendent Narkhom Police Superintendent Narkhom See fewer	The Little Minister (1921)
Yale Boss Actor Actor See fewer	The Ransom of Red Chief (1911)
Edwin Clarke Actor Actor See fewer	Eugene Wrayburn (1911)
Warren Cook Actor Actor See fewer	Seven Keys to Baldpate (1917)
Robert Harvey Actor Actor See fewer	The Great Victory, Wilson or the Kaiser? The Fall of the Hohenzollerns (1919)
Hughie Mack Actor Actor See fewer	Bringing Up Father (1915)