The scenario was based on the 1924 play, Beggar on Horseback by George S. Kaufman and Marc Connelly. It was listed in the 15 November 1924 Los Angeles Times as one of forty planned Paramount Pictures Corp. releases for the coming year. The 6 December 1924 edition noted that director James Cruze had already begun preparations, including “work on the scenario and sets.” At least one member of the Broadway cast was expected to appear in the screen version. The 1 January 1925 Los Angeles Evening Citizen News noted that Broadway actor Arthur Lubin had been cast as the “comedy butler,” but it was not specified whether he had appeared in the stage version of the play.
       The start of principal photography at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, CA, was announced in the 3 January 1925 Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. Writer Anthony Coldewey was credited with contributing to the screenplay by the 5 January 1925 Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, while the 3 March 1925 Los Angeles Evening Citizen News attributed the film’s inter-titles to Alfred Hustwick. Items in the 9 January 1925 editions of the [Oakland] Tribune and Los Angeles Evening Post-Record stated that the picture featured Edward Everett Horton in his first starring role on screen, which, according to the 30 May 1925 Los Angeles Evening Express, he played almost entirely in pajamas and a bathrobe. Production was completed in approximately five weeks. The 8 June 1925 [Los Angeles] Daily News claimed that co-star Gertrude Short performed some of her first scenes in the film wearing very little clothing on a very cold day.
       The 18 May 1925 [Topeka, KS] Stage and Screen, and the 7 June 1925 editions of the [Birmingham, AL] News and Los Angeles Times described sets for the dream sequences as “freakish” and the worst “ever built.” One was a living room occupying approximately 60,000 square feet, decorated with marble columns, “overgrown cherubs,” and “futuristic rugs.” Another was a cathedral measuring more than 76,000 square feet, with 135-foot-high windows. The 11 June 1925 Los Angeles Evening Post-Record noted that the wedding party was led by a jazz band costumed as frogs, while the bridesmaids were men in formal attire and long veils, carrying “elaborate bouquets of bank notes;” the mother of the bride was harnessed to a rocking chair and supplied with unlimited chewing gum.
       Shortly after Horton completed principal photography, the 13 April 1925 [Los Angeles] Daily News reported that he appeared in a stage production of the play at the Majestic Theatre. One month later, the 14 May 1925 [Brooklyn, NY] Daily Eagle revealed that the film debuted the previous night at the Town Hall in New York City. The event also featured explorer Carl Akeley, who enlightened the audience on the habits and behavior of African gorillas. Proceeds benefited the Cathedral of St. John the Divine Building Fund.
       Beggar on Horseback was released on 24 August 1925, preceded by openings on 3 June 1925 at the Million Dollar Theatre in Los Angeles, CA, and on 5 June 1925 at the Criterion Theatre in New York City. Cameraman Karl Brown was listed in the October 1925 American Cinematographer “Roll of Honor” for his work on the film. Despite critical acclaim, the picture was revealed in the 26 May 1926 Variety to be unpopular with audiences due to its fantasy sequences.
       According to the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) Treasures from the Film Archives database, three of the film’s seven reels are extant.