An European immigrant endures a challenging voyage only to get into trouble as soon as he arrives in New York.
A derelict, huddled under the steps of a missionary church, feels enlightened by the sermon of a passionate preacher and infatuated by the beauty of the congregation's pianist, in such a way that he tries to improve his life of poverty by becoming a policeman. His first assignment will be to patrol along Easy Street, the turf of a vicious bully and his criminal gang.
Firefighter Charlie Chaplin is tricked into letting a house burn by an owner who wants to collect on the insurance.
A tramp tries to earn money by playing the violin, but he’s soon facing off against the jealous competition.
The daring convict no. 23, known as The Eel, escapes from prison and, after mocking his inept persecutors, saves the lives of three people in peril: a beautiful girl, her mother and an annoying suitor, only to get exhausted and almost drowned. Once he regains his strength at Judge Brown's home, he participates on an upper-class social party where he competes with the suitor for the favors of the charming Miss Brown. But prison guards are still after him…
An impecunious customer creates chaos in a department store while the manager and his assistant plot to steal the money kept in the establishment's safe.
A drunken homeowner has a difficult time getting about in his home after arriving home late at night.
A pawnbroker's assistant deals with his grumpy boss, his annoying co-worker and some eccentric customers as he flirts with the pawnbroker's daughter, until a perfidious crook with bad intentions arrives at the pawnshop.
After amusements working in a restaurant, Charlie uses his lunch break to go roller skating.
An alcoholic checks into a health spa and his antics promptly throw the establishment into chaos.
During the troubled shooting of several movies, David, the prop man's assistant, meets an aspiring actress who tries to find work in the studio. Things get messy when the stagehands decide to go on strike.
A tailor's apprentice burns Count Broko's clothes while ironing them and the tailor fires him. Later, the tailor discovers a note explaining that the count cannot attend a dance party, so he dresses as such to take his place; but the apprentice has also gone to the mansion where the party is celebrated and bumps into the tailor in disguise…
Although only a dental assistant, Charlie pretends to be the dentist. After receiving too much anesthesia, a patient can't stop laughing, so Charlie knocks him out with a club.
This early Chaplin film has him playing a character quite different from the Tramp for which he would become famous. He is a rich, upper-class gentleman whose romance is endangered when his girlfriend oversees him being embraced by a maid. Chaplin's romantic interest in this film, Minta Durfee, was the wife of fellow Keystone actor, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle.
Masha, a young Russian emigrant traveling to the U.S., is saved from an officer's advances by civil engineer David Harding. Upon landing in America, J. J. Walton, a self-made political boss and contractor, pursues Masha and hires her as his maid. She leaves after the first night, but becomes his mistress after Walton promises her an education and marriage.