Summary
In an aerial escapade gone awry, young Bobby Dunn, relegated to the ignominious role of human ballast aboard a desperate balloon, finds himself unceremoniously jettisoned into the unsuspecting world below. His precipitous descent concludes rather inconveniently within the hallowed, if somewhat dilapidated, confines of a rural schoolhouse, where, by a stroke of comedic mistaken identity, he is instantly heralded as the long-awaited new educator. This unlikely pedagogical tenure, however, swiftly veers from the mundane to the utterly farcical when Bobby inadvertently orchestrates the capture of a notorious brigand, a scoundrel responsible for pilfering the collective savings of the local children. Elevated to an undeserved pinnacle of local heroism, Bobby, basking in the transient glow of public adulation, embarks upon a grandiloquent, albeit apocryphal, recounting of his grandfather's legendary exploits—a saga replete with daring skirmishes against indigenous peoples, the vanquishing of 'half-breeds,' and the valiant shepherding of settlers to sanctuary. He posits this ancestral valor as the irrefutable fount of his own intrinsic bravery. Yet, this fragile edifice of newfound glory crumbles spectacularly as the supposedly vanquished villain makes a dramatic, unscripted return, shattering Bobby's heroic facade and instigating a frantic, ignominious flight from the very town that had momentarily crowned him its savior.
Synopsis
Bobby Dunn is the ballast of a balloon. The occupants of the balloon decides to go higher. They throw Bobby out. He lands in a schoolhouse and is mistaken for the new teacher. He is accidentally the means of capturing a bold, bad man who has stolen the savings bank money belonging to the children. Bobby is the hero of the day and he goes on to explain what a brave man his grandfather was - fighting Indians, killing half-breeds, and bringing his settlers to a safe camping place. Having such a wonderful ancestor, how can he (Bobby) be other than a brave man? This sounds all right till the bad-man escapes and chases Bobby out of town.
Review Excerpt
"
Stepping back into the annals of early cinema, one often unearths cinematic curiosities that, while perhaps not monumental in their grand artistic ambition, nevertheless offer invaluable insights into the burgeoning language of film and the comedic sensibilities of a bygone era. Such is the case with Oh, Teacher!, a 1917 short feature that thrusts the diminutive, yet undeniably charismatic, Bobby Dunn into a whirlwind of accidental heroism and spectacular comeuppance. It’s a delightful, if ..."
