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The Golden Age Of Comedy
''The Golden Age of Comedy'' (1957) is a compilation of silent comedy films from the Mack Sennett and Hal Roach studios, written and produced by Robert Youngson. Youngson had previously produced several award-winning short documentaries beforehand, and this was the first compilation of its kind in feature-length form. Initially, the film was distributed by a small independent company, Distributors Corporation of America, before being taken up by major Hollywood studio Twentieth Century Fox. The film's commercial success led Youngson to follow suit with other silent film compilations over the next decade. The film is often regarded as particularly bringing Laurel and Hardy back into the public's notice after years of obscurity (they are the film's most predominantly featured performers), but Oliver Hardy died around the time of the film's release in August 1957. The film was released (along with several other Youngson compilations) on DVD for the first time in the United States in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tom Jung
Thomas Jung is an American Art director#In advertising, art director, graphic designer, illustrator, and storyboard artist.The Star Wars Poster Book, Stephen J. Sansweet, Chronicle Books (October 13, 2005)The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film, J. W. Rinzler, LucasBooks (April 24, 2007) He is known for his movie poster art. Biography Early life and career Jung, a Chinese American, was raised and educated in Boston, Massachusetts. After finishing high school, he attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. During his second year he was drafted into the Army. While stationed at Fort Jackson (South Carolina), Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina, Jung contributed to the newspaper ''Fort Jackson Leader'' as an editorial cartoonist, designing and illustrating primarily public service communications.Fort Jackson Leader newspaper December 31, 1953, U.S. Army Basic Combat Training Museum archives, Columbia, South Carolina Following his discharge, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Battle Of The Century
''The Battle of the Century'' is a 1927 silent short film starring comedy double act Laurel and Hardy, who appeared in 107 films between 1921 and 1951. The film is famous for its use of more than 3,000 cream pies (although the Guinness Book of Records claims that as many as 10,000 may have been used) in the film's climactic pie fight. For many years, only three minutes from the film's second reel containing the pie fight was known to survive, as the footage had been included in Robert Youngson's 1950s film documentaries. However, the complete reel was rediscovered in 2015. It was released to the public on DVD and Blu-ray disc on June 16, 2020 as part of the ''Laurel & Hardy: The Definitive Restorations'' compilation of remastered films. Also in 2020, ''The Battle of the Century'' was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Plot A broke Hardy arranges for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Gribbon
Harry Peter Gribbon (June 9, 1885 – July 28, 1961) was an American film actor, comedian and director known for ''The Cameraman'' (1928), ''Show People'' (1928) and ''Art Trouble'' (1934). He appeared in more than 140 films between 1915 and 1938. Many of his films from this era have been lost. Early life Harry Peter Gribbon was born on June 9, 1885 in New York City. He was the brother of actor Eddie Gribbon. Career Gribbon started in vaudeville, performing on the Keith, Orpheum, and Pantages circuits, and in 1913 he became the leading man in the ''Ziegfeld Follies.'' He performed on stage in approximately 200 productions, including ''Buster Brown'', ''The Man Who Owned Broadway'', and ''The Red Widow'', after which Mack Sennett signed him to make films. Gribbon's Broadway credits included ''Meet a Body'' (1944), ''Mr. Big'' (1941), ''Arsenic and Old Lace'' (1944), ''Delicate Story'' (1940), and ''Alley Cat'' (1934). Gribbon worked for the L-KO Kompany. From 1915, Gribbon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andy Clyde
Andrew Allan Clyde (March 25, 1892 – May 18, 1967) was a Scottish-born American film and television actor whose career spanned more than four decades. In 1921 he broke into silent films as a Mack Sennett comic, debuting in ''On a Summer Day''. He was the fifth of six children of theatrical actor, producer and manager John Clyde. Clyde's brother David and his sister Jean also became screen actors. Although Andy Clyde's movie career spanned 45 years, he may be best known for his work as California Carlson in the Hopalong Cassidy movie series. He is also known for roles in two television series: the farmer Cully Wilson in CBS's '' Lassie'' and as the neighbor George MacMichael on ABC's ''The Real McCoys''. Early years At age 19, he toured Scotland with Durward Lely & Company, playing Connor Martin in the romantic Irish musical costume drama The Wearin’ o’ the Green. In 1912, Clyde first came to the United States on tour in the Graham Moffat Players, playing the part ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgar Kennedy
Edgar Livingston Kennedy (April 26, 1890 – November 9, 1948) was an American comedic character actor who appeared in at least 500 films during the silent and sound eras. Professionally, he was known as "Slow Burn", owing to his ability to portray characters whose anger slowly rose in frustrating situations. In many of his roles, he used exasperated facial expressions and performed very deliberately to convey his rising anger or "burn", often rubbing his hand over his bald head and across his face in an effort to control his temper. One memorable example of his comedy technique can be seen in the 1933 Marx Brothers' film '' Duck Soup'', where he plays a sidewalk lemonade vendor who is harassed and increasingly provoked by Harpo and Chico. Early years Kennedy was born April 26, 1890, in Monterey County, California, to Canadians Neil Kennedy and Annie Quinn. He attended San Rafael High School before taking up boxing. He was a light-heavyweight and once went 14 rounds with Jac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charley Chase
Charles Joseph Parrott (October 20, 1893 – June 20, 1940), known professionally as Charley Chase, was an American comedian, actor, screenwriter and film director. He worked for many pioneering comedy studios but is chiefly associated with producer Hal Roach. Chase was the elder brother of comedian/director James Parrott. Life and career Born Charles Joseph Parrott in Baltimore, Maryland, Charley Chase began performing in vaudeville as a teenager and started his career in films by working at the Christie Film Company in 1912. He then moved to Keystone Studios, where he began appearing in bit parts in the Mack Sennett films, including those of Charlie Chaplin. By 1915 he was playing juvenile leads in the Keystones, and directing some of the films as Charles Parrott. His Keystone credentials were good enough to get him steady work as a comedy director with other companies; he directed many of Chaplin imitator Billy West's comedies, which featured a young Oliver Hardy as villain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean Harlow
Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter; March 3, 1911 – June 7, 1937) was an American actress. Known for her portrayal of "bad girl" characters, she was the leading sex symbol of the early 1930s and one of the defining figures of the pre-Code era of American cinema. Often nicknamed the "Blonde Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde", Harlow was popular for her "Laughing Vamp" screen persona. Harlow was in the film industry for only nine years, but she became one of Hollywood's biggest movie stars, whose image in the public eye has endured. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Harlow 22 on its greatest female screen legends of classical Hollywood cinema list. Harlow was first signed by business magnate Howard Hughes, who directed her first major role in '' Hell's Angels'' (1930). After a series of critically failed films, and Hughes' loss of interest in her career, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer bought out Harlow's contract in 1932 and cast her in leading roles in a string ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carole Lombard
Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard 23rd on its list of the greatest female stars of Classic Hollywood Cinema. Lombard was born into a wealthy family in Fort Wayne, Indiana, but was raised in Los Angeles by her single mother. At 12, she was recruited by director Allan Dwan and made her screen debut in ''A Perfect Crime'' (1921). Eager to become an actress, she signed a contract with the Fox Film Corporation at age 16, but mainly played bit parts and was dropped after a year. Her career came close to ending shortly before her 19th birthday when a shattered windshield from a car accident left a scar on her face, but she overcame this challenge and appeared in fifteen short comedies for Mack Sennett between 1927 and 1929, and then began appearing in feature films such as ''High ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Langdon
Harry Philmore Langdon (June 15, 1884 – December 22, 1944) was an American comedian who appeared in vaudeville, silent films (where he had his greatest fame), and talkies.Obituary ''Variety'', December 27, 1944, page 39. Life and career Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Langdon began working in medicine shows and stock companies while in his teens. In 1906, he entered vaudeville with his first wife, Rose Langdon. By 1915, he had developed a sketch named "Johnny's New Car", on which he performed variations in the years that followed. In 1923, he joined Principal Pictures Corporation, a company headed by producer Sol Lesser. He eventually went to The Mack Sennett Studios, where he became a major star. At the height of his film career, he was considered one of the four best comics of the silent film era. His screen character was that of a wide-eyed, childlike man with an innocent's understanding of the world and the people in it. He was a first-class pantomimist. Most of Lang ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ben Turpin
Bernard "Ben" Turpin (September 19, 1869 – July 1, 1940) was an American comedian and actor, best remembered for his work in silent films. His trademarks were his cross-eyed appearance and adeptness at vigorous physical comedy. Turpin worked with notable performers such as Charlie Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy, and was a part of the Mack Sennett studio team. He is believed to have been the first filmed "victim" of the pie in the face gag. When sound came to films, Turpin chose to retire, having invested profitably in real estate, although he did do occasional cameos. Personal life Turpin was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on September 19, 1869,His birth date was given as September 19, 1869, but other years were used at various times in his Hollywood publicity material. In the 1900 United States Census he used the year "1869", and his death certificate used "1869", and that year will be used here. ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' wrongly lists the year of his birth as "1874 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Will Rogers
William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma), and is known as "Oklahoma's Favorite Son". As an entertainer and humorist, he traveled around the world three times, made 71 films (50 silent films and 21 "talkies"), and wrote more than 4,000 nationally syndicated newspaper columns. By the mid-1930s, Rogers was hugely popular in the United States for his leading political wit and was the highest paid of Hollywood film stars. He died in 1935 with aviator Wiley Post when their small airplane crashed in northern Alaska. Rogers began his career as a performer on vaudeville. His rope act led to success in the ''Ziegfeld Follies'', which in turn led to the first of his many movie contracts. His 1920s syndicated newspaper column and his radio appearances increased his visibility and populari ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
You're Darn Tootin'
''You're Darn Tootin is a silent short subject directed by E. Livingston Kennedy starring comedy duo Laurel and Hardy. It was released on April 21, 1928, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Plot Members of a municipal band, Stanley and Oliver seem to be always following someone else's lead, rather than that of the temperamental conductor. Soon they're out of a job, as well as their lodgings when the landlady finds out they've been fired. The boys try their luck at being street musicians, but the tiffs they get into with each other soon spread to passersby in general, until the street is filled with men pulling each other's pants off. Cast Production notes ''You're Darn Tootin was filmed in January 1928. The title is an American idiomatic phrase akin to "You're darn right!" The film was originally released in the UK under its working title ''The Music Blasters''. The film was directed by fellow film comedian Edgar Kennedy (billed as "E. Livingston Kennedy"). Scenes from ''You're Darn To ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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