''Battling Butler'' is a 1926 American

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

directed by and starring

Buster Keaton Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...

. It is based on the 1923 musical '' Battling Buttler''. The film entered the public domain in 2022.

Plot

Battling Butler ad in Motion Picture News, 1926

Alfred Butler is a scion of a wealthy family, but an embarrassment to his father as Alfred is a slight, gentle young man, accustomed to ease and luxury. His father suggests a hunting and fishing trip to toughen him up. Alfred goes on the trip, accompanied by his chauffeur / personal valet. During the excursion, he falls in love at first sight with a low-class mountain girl who lives with her family in a shack. In order to impress her working-class family, the valet tells them that Alfred is the well-known professional championship fighter who happens to have the same name and fights under the professional sobriquet "Battling Butler". From there, the masquerade must be maintained, in public and in private. When he returns, Alfred is greeted by a cheering crowd of boxing enthusiasts who think that he is the fighter. Alfred expects that he will have to actually fight one of the Battling Butler's opponents and trains as best he can. On the day of the fight, he reluctantly dons his boxing trunks and gloves, expecting to be badly beaten. To his great relief, the real Battling Butler shows up, fights, and wins. However, the Battler resents having been impersonated by a feeble milquetoast like Alfred. In the locker room, he starts punching Alfred in the head and body. This continues until Alfred sees that the door of the locker room is open and his beloved is watching. Inspired, he begins fighting back, his confidence and fury increasing with each blow he lands. To everyone's surprise, the beating turns into a real contest, and culminates in a knockout victory for Alfred, who, in a frenzy of unaccustomed blood-lust, continues savaging the unconscious Battler until the Battler's trainer and manager rush in and restrain him. Shocked by his own prowess, he confesses his deception to his beloved. She forgives him, and they celebrate with an evening on the town, Alfred still dressed in his boxing trunks and athletic shoes, but also wearing a top hat and carrying a classy walking stick.

Origins

Like Keaton's earlier ''

Seven Chances ''Seven Chances'' is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by and starring Buster Keaton, based on the play of the same name by Roi Cooper Megrue, produced in 1916 by David Belasco. Additional cast members include T. Roy Barnes, Snitz Ed ...

'', the film is an adaption of a stage work. The musical was called '' Battling Buttler'', by Walter L. Rosemont and

Ballard MacDonald Ballard MacDonald (October 15, 1882 – November 17, 1935) was an American lyricist, who was one of the writers of Tin Pan Alley. Born in Portland, Oregon, he was a charter member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers ...

, and starred

Charlie Ruggles Charles Sherman Ruggles (February 8, 1886 – December 23, 1970) was an American comic character actor. In a career spanning six decades, Ruggles appeared in close to 100 feature films, often in mild-mannered and comic roles. He was also the e ...

on Broadway. It ran from October 8, 1923, to July 5, 1924. '' The New York Times '' noted the difference in the spelling of the name of the central character between the stage and film versions.''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', August 23, 1926, p. 9

Cast

as Alfred Butler *

Sally O'Neil Sally O'Neil (born Virginia Louise Concepta Noonan; October 23, 1908 – June 18, 1968) was an American film actress of the 1920s. She appeared in more than 40 films, often with her name above the title. Early years O'Neil was one of eleven child ...

as the mountain girl *

Walter James Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 1 ...

as her father *

Budd Fine Budd Nathan Fine (September 10, 1894 – February 9, 1966) was an American character actor of the silent and sound film eras. Born Budd Nathan Fine on September 10, 1894, in Hartford Connecticut, Fine served in the US Army during World War I, ...

as her brother *

Francis McDonald Francis McDonald (August 22, 1891 – September 18, 1968) was an American actor whose career spanned 52 years. Early years Born on August 22, 1891, in Bowling Green, Kentucky, McDonald was the son of John Francis McDonald and Catherine Ashlu ...

as Alfred "Battling" Butler * Mary O'Brien as his wife * Tom Wilson as his trainer *

Eddie Borden Edgar Mason Borden (May 1, 1888 – June 30, 1955) was an American film actor who started his career in vaudeville as an acrobat and then successfully turned to comedy. Throughout the 1920s, he toured in the Keith, Orpheum and Pantages vaudev ...

as his manager *

Snitz Edwards Snitz Edwards (born Edward Neumann, 1 January 1868 – 1 May 1937) was a stage and character actor of the early years of the silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialog ...

as Alfred's valet

Home media

This film was released for home video by

Kino Video Kino Lorber is an international film distribution company based in New York City. Founded in 1977, it was originally known as Kino International until it was acquired by and merged into Lorber HT Digital in 2009. It specializes in art house films, ...

in a collection with two Keaton shorts, ''

The Frozen North ''The Frozen North'' is a 1922 American short comedy film directed by and starring Buster Keaton. The film is a parody of early western films, especially those of William S. Hart. The film was written by Keaton and Edward F. Cline (credited ...

'' and '' The Haunted House''.

References

External links

* * * *
''Battling Butler''
at the

International Buster Keaton Society The International Buster Keaton Society Inc.— a.k.a. "The Damfinos"—is the official educational organization dedicated to comedy film producer-director-writer-actor-stuntman Buster Keaton. Mission According to the Damfinos, their mission is "t ...