Summary
In the frantic silent comedy Papa's Pest, Neal finds himself caught between the high-stakes allure of a local poker game and the domestic demands of his wife, Vera. When his attempt to slip away for a night of gambling is thwarted, he is saddled with the responsibility of caring for his sister-in-law's infant. In a move of questionable paternal instinct, Neal decides to bring the baby to the smoke-filled poker room. The chaos intensifies when Neal, distracted by the game, accidentally leaves the child behind. What follows is a desperate, high-velocity race against time as Neal attempts to recover the baby while being pursued by a private detective hired by a suspicious Vera. The climax involves a surreal and hilarious sequence where Neal infiltrates a day-nursery disguised as a bear, leading to a frantic chase through hospital corridors that challenges the very limits of silent-era slapstick.
Synopsis
Neal tries to slip out of the house to go to a poker game, but his wife, Vera, catches him, and he is forced to stay at home and mind her sister's baby. Neal goes to the poker game and takes the baby with him, but absentmindedly leaves him when he goes home. Vera has hired a detective to find the baby and Neal has many misadventures trying to get the baby home with the detective hot on his heels. He ends up in the disguise of a bear in a day-nursery with the doctors and nurses chasing him through the corridors. When he arrives home, he finds the baby safely at home with Vera and her sister.
