After a dedication, "To those who believe in Santa Claus, thirty miles to the gallon, and other fairy stories," a flashback to the year 1725 shows bare-chested Rod La Rocque (as Jeremiah Cleggett) adventuring aboard the pirate ship "Jasper B" in its glory days. His taking over of the ship, and wedding a Spanish maiden on board, starts a tradition - each generation's "Cleggett" must marry on his twenty-fifth birthday, aboard the old ship known as the "Jasper B", or lose his inheritance.
In the present (1926), Mr. La Rocque (now as Jeremiah "Jerry" Cleggett VIII) turns twenty-five, and knows he has to marry a woman on the deck of the old "Jasper B", or lose the family fortune, according to tradition. Trusty companion and valet Jack Ackroyd (as Wiggins) wants his hunky pal to remain single, but La Rocque finds the ideal lass in Mildred Harris (as Agatha Fairhaven), who is also inheriting a fortune. But Ms. Harris' disinherited stepbrother, Snitz Edwards (as Reginald Maltravers), wants to stop the potentially wealthy couple from reaching the alter.
La Rocque became a top star in Cecil B. Deville's "The Ten Commandments" (1923), and remained popular through the 1920s. "The Cruise of the Jasper B" is a good film to see an appealing La Rocque in his peak of popularity as a star (and it provides a generous look at his physique). It would have been nice to see Vilma Bánky as his leading lady in this one; instead of the current Mrs. La Rocque (Bánky), we get a former Mrs. Charlie Chaplin (Harris). Mr. Ackroyd, the "spoof" prologue, and the "chase" scenes are highlights.
****** The Cruise of the Jasper B (12/13/26) James W. Horne ~ Rod La Rocque, Mildred Harris, Jack Ackroyd