George M. Cohan crafted this melodramatic play from Robert Hobart Davis's novel. It opened on 21 September 1914 for 97 performances at the Astor Theatre, produced by Cohan and Sam H. Harris. The play focuses on some con men attempting to bilk a small community that believes its blind minister is a faith healer. The scheme works for a time, until they are moved by the minister's fervor and the simple belief of his congregation, "healing" them of their evil impulses. The Miracle Man was made into a motion picture twice, most famously in 1919 starring Lon Chaney in a film now considered lost, and in a 1932 version with Boris Karloff. The Miracle Man was a longtime staple of stock and touring companies.
The Historical Dictionary of the American Theater. James Fisher.