''Steamboat Bill, Jr.'' is a 1928
silent comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
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 ...
. Released by
United Artists
United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...
, the film is the final product of Keaton's independent production team and set of gag writers. It was not a box-office success and became the last picture Keaton made for United Artists. Keaton ended up moving to
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
, where he made one last film in his trademark style, ''
The Cameraman
''The Cameraman'' is a 1928 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Edward Sedgwick and an uncredited Buster Keaton. The picture stars Keaton and Marceline Day.
''The Cameraman'' was Keaton's first film with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It ...
'', before his creative control was taken away by the studio.
Charles Reisner
Charles Francis Reisner (March 14, 1887 – September 24, 1962) was an American film director and actor of the 1920s and 1930s.
The German-American directed over 60 films between 1920 and 1950 and acted in over 20 films between 1916 and 1 ...
directed the film, and the credited story writer was Carl Harbaugh. The film, named after
Arthur Collins's popular 1911 recording of the 1910 song "
Steamboat Bill
"Steamboat Bill" is a 1910 song with music by the vaudeville group The Leighton Brothers and lyrics by Ren Shields which became one of the first hit recordings in the United States through its 1911 recording by Arthur Collins. "Steamboat Bill" ...
", also featured
Ernest Torrence
Ernest Torrence (born Ernest Torrance-Thomson, 26 June 1878 – 15 May 1933) was a Scottish film character actor who appeared in many Hollywood films, including '' Broken Chains'' (1922) with Colleen Moore, '' Mantrap'' (1926) with Clara Bow a ...
,
Marion Byron
Marion Byron (born Miriam Bilenkin; 1911 – 1985) was an American movie comedian.
Early years
Born in Dayton, Ohio, Byron was one of five daughters of Louis and Bertha Bilenkin.
Career
After following her sister into a short stage caree ...
, and Tom Lewis. The film is known for what may be Keaton's most famous film stunt: The facade of a house falls around him while he stands in the precise location of open window to avoid being flattened.
In 2016, the film was selected for preservation in the United States
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...
by the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
.
Plot
William "Steamboat Bill" Canfield is the owner and captain of a
paddle steamer
A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses wer ...
, the
Stonewall Jackson
Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, considered one of the best-known Confederate commanders, after Robert E. Lee. He played a prominent role in nearl ...
, that has seen better days. A new steamer the King owned by J J King is stealing all his customers. King also owns the local bank and the town hotel. At a well-attended launch party, he belittles the Stonewall Jackson. Bill receives a
telegram
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
saying his son is arriving on the 10am train, having finished his studies in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
. Bill has not seen him for many years.
King's daughter Kitty arrives home from college to visit him. She drives a swanky car.
Bill waits at the train station, expecting a big, husky man like himself to get off. He inspects all men getting off but none wear a white carnation which Bill Jr said he would wear. Junior got off on the wrong side. He then goes down the platform pointing his carnation at everyone in turn. Bill Senior and his assistant have given up when they read a luggage tag on a bag reading "William Canfield Jr, Boston". They have found the right man. William is deepy disappointed with his slight, awkward offspring, who shows up with a
pencil moustache
A pencil moustache is a thin moustache found adjacent to, or a little above the lip. The style is neatly clipped, so that the moustache takes the form of a thin line, as if it had been drawn using a pencil. A large gap is left between the nose an ...
, a
ukulele
The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings.
The tone and volume of the instrumen ...
, and wearing a foppish beret. He sends him to the barber to have the moustache removed and there he bumps into his college friend Kitty. They (father and son) then go to the hat shop to choose a new hat. After much selection, the chosen hat blows off as soon as he leaves the shop, and he reverts to the beret.
Down at the riverside they meet King and his daughter. Bill is embarrassed by his son and sends him to get some working clothes. He gets kitted out as a naval officer (which is not what Bill wanted). Bill's assistant quips "no jury would convict you". On board Bill Jr is awkward. He knocks off a life belt (which instantly sinks). He sees Kitty on the dock talking to a handsome officer off the King. But she runs off when taken onto the King and goes to the Stonewall Jackson instead...to see Junior. Her dad orders her back. Junior ends up getting pushed to and fro between ships. Junior is sent to the engine room to see how the ship works. He pulls a lever making the ship crash into the King.
Both Bill and King are determined to break up the relationship between Junior and Kitty, but at night, Junior slips off and boards the King. As the ships are further apart than before he uses a plank to cross. The King starts moving but the plank does not fall as it is jammed on one side. Junior walks off the end of the plank.
Junior decides to go back to Boston but changes his mind and rips up the ticket.
When Canfield's ship is condemned as unsafe, he accuses the King of orchestrating it. He assaults his enemy and is then put in jail. On a very wet and windy day his son tries to free him by bringing him a huge loaf of bread with tools hidden inside, but father refuses the bread, especially when Junior says he made it himself. Junior tries to signal to Bill what the plan is and Bill then says he wants the bread. But the tools fall out. Junior says the dough fell in the tool chest. The sheriff gets knocked out and locked in the cell where Bill was. Bill runs off but Junior's coat gets stuck in the cell door. He accidentally releases the sheriff who hits Canfield Jr. on the head with his revolver, sending him to the hospital.
Then a cyclone hits, tearing down buildings and endangering the ships. A pier collapses and the King breaks loose. The King Hotel collapses. The walls disappear from the hospital leaving Junior exposed. As Canfield Jr. makes his way through the town, a building front falls all around him, as an unbroken facade and Junior fits through the open window (an infamous stunt). Several buildings collapse dangerously close. Then he is blown in the air clinging to the tree and lands in the river. The jail blows off its foundations and starts to sink. He reaches his father's ship and a house floats by with Kitty on its side. He rescues Kitty with her full weight hanging as he crosses on a rope, then he sees his father floating down in the jail which is sinking lower and lower. He devises a set of ropes to pull the power lever downstairs while he steers and rams the ship into the sinking jail, splitting it open to release his father. Next they see Kitty's father: the King has sunk and he is in the river. Junior ties himself to a rope and dives in to rescue him. When Kitty goes to her hero, she is puzzled when William jumps into the water. However, his purpose becomes clear when he returns, towing a minister in a
lifebelt
A lifebuoy is a life-saving buoy designed to be thrown to a person in water, to provide buoyancy and prevent drowning. Some modern lifebuoys are fitted with one or more seawater-activated lights, to aid rescue at night.
Other names
Other na ...
.
Cast
*
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 ...
as William Canfield, Jr.
*
Ernest Torrence
Ernest Torrence (born Ernest Torrance-Thomson, 26 June 1878 – 15 May 1933) was a Scottish film character actor who appeared in many Hollywood films, including '' Broken Chains'' (1922) with Colleen Moore, '' Mantrap'' (1926) with Clara Bow a ...
as William "Steamboat Bill" Canfield, Sr.
*
Marion Byron
Marion Byron (born Miriam Bilenkin; 1911 – 1985) was an American movie comedian.
Early years
Born in Dayton, Ohio, Byron was one of five daughters of Louis and Bertha Bilenkin.
Career
After following her sister into a short stage caree ...
as Kitty King
*
Tom McGuire as John James King
* Tom Lewis as Tom Carter
*
Joe Keaton
Joseph Hallie Keaton (July 6, 1867 – January 13, 1946) was an American vaudeville performer and silent film actor. He was the father of actor Buster Keaton and appeared with his son in several films.
Life and career
Keaton was born a few mile ...
as the barber
Production
The original idea for the film came from
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...
-collaborator
Charles Reisner
Charles Francis Reisner (March 14, 1887 – September 24, 1962) was an American film director and actor of the 1920s and 1930s.
The German-American directed over 60 films between 1920 and 1950 and acted in over 20 films between 1916 and 1 ...
, who was the director. Keaton, who had directed or co-directed many of his earlier films, was an uncredited co-director on this project. In June 1927, he traveled to
Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
, and spent over $100,000 building sets, including a pier. Original plans called for an ending with a flood sequence, but due to the devastating
1927 Mississippi River Flood, producer
Joseph Schenck
Joseph Michael Schenck (; December 25, 1876 – October 22, 1961) was a Russian-born American film studio executive.
Life and career
Schenck was born to a Jewish family in Rybinsk, Yaroslavl Oblast, Russian Empire. He emigrated to New York City ...
forced him to cut the arrangement. Keaton also spent an additional $25,000 for the cyclone scene, which included breakaway street sets and six powerful
Liberty
Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom.
In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
-motor wind machines. The cyclone scene cost one-third of the film's entire budget, estimated at between $300,000 and $404,282. Keaton himself, who planned and performed his own stunts, was suspended on a cable from the crane, which hurled him from place to place as if airborne.
![Keaton Steamboat Bill Jr 1928](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Keaton_Steamboat_Bill_Jr_1928.jpg)
Shooting began on July 15, 1927, in Sacramento. Production was delayed when Keaton broke his nose in a baseball game. The film includes his most famous stunt: an entire building facade collapsing all around him. The open attic window fits neatly around Keaton's body as it falls, coming within inches of flattening him. He had performed a similar, though less elaborate, stunt in his earlier short films ''
Back Stage
''Backstage'', also previously written as ''Back Stage'', is an American entertainment industry trade publication. Founded by Allen Zwerdling and Ira Eaker in 1960, it covers the film and performing arts industry from the perspective of performer ...
'' (1919) and ''
One Week One Week may refer to:
* One Week (1920 film), ''One Week'' (1920 film), a short film starring and co-directed by Buster Keaton
* One Week (2008 film), ''One Week'' (2008 film), a Canadian feature film directed by Michael McGowan
* One Week (song), ...
'' (1920). He used a genuine, two-ton building facade and no trickery. The mark on the ground showing Keaton exactly where to stand to avoid being crushed was a nail. It has been claimed that if he had stood just inches off the correct spot, he would have been seriously injured or killed.
His third wife, Eleanor, suggested that he took such risks due to despair over financial problems, his failing first marriage, the imminent loss of his filmmaking independence, and recklessness due to his worsening alcohol abuse at the time.
[ Evidence that Keaton was suicidal, is scant—he was known throughout his career for performing dangerous stunts independent of any difficulties in his personal life, including a fall from a railroad water tower tube in 1924's '']Sherlock Jr.
''Sherlock Jr.'' is a 1924 American silent comedy film directed by and starring Buster Keaton and written by Clyde Bruckman, Jean Havez, and Joseph A. Mitchell. It features Kathryn McGuire, Joe Keaton, and Ward Crane.
In 1991, ''Sherlock J ...
'' in which his neck was fractured. He later said, "I was mad at the time, or I would never have done the thing." He also said that filming the shot was one of his greatest thrills.
It is one of the few Keaton films to reference his fame. At the time of filming, he had stopped wearing his trademark pork pie hat
A pork pie hat is one of several different styles of hat that have been popular since the mid-19th century. It features a flat crown that resembles a traditional pork pie.
Buster Keaton and the 1920s
The pork pie began to appear in Britain a ...
with a short flat crown. During an early scene in which his character tries on a series of hats (something that was copied several times in other films), a clothing salesman briefly puts the trademark cap on his head, but he quickly rejects it, tossing it away.
At the end of shooting, Schenck announced the dissolution of Buster Keaton Productions.
Reception
''Steamboat Bill, Jr.'' was a box office failure and received mixed reviews upon its release. ''Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' described the film as "a pip of a comedy" and "one of Keaton's best." The reviewer from ''The Film Spectator'' appointed it "as perhaps the best comedy of the year thus far" and advised, "exhibitors should go after it." A less enthusiastic review from ''Harrison's Reports
''Harrison's Reports'' was a New York City-based motion picture trade journal published weekly from 1919 to 1962. The typical issue was four letter-size pages sent to subscribers under a second-class mail permit. Its founder, editor and publisher ...
'' stated, "there are many situations all the way through that cause laughs" while noting that "the plot is nonsensical." Mordaunt Hall
Mordaunt Hall (1 November 1878 – 2 July 1973) was the first regularly assigned motion picture critic for ''The New York Times'', working from October 1924 to September 1934.[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 d ...]
'' called the film a "gloomy comedy" and a "sorry affair."
Over the years, ''Steamboat Bill, Jr.'' has become regarded as a masterpiece of its era. On Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
100% of critics have given the film a positive rating based on 30 reviews, with an average score of 9.00/10. The film was included in the book '' 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die''.
Legacy
The film inspired the title of Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
's ''Steamboat Willie
''Steamboat Willie'' is a 1928 American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. It was produced in black and white by Walt Disney Animation Studios, Walt Disney Studios and was released by Pat Powers, under the name of Celeb ...
'' (1928), which was released six months later and is considered the debut of Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is an animated cartoon Character (arts), character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime mascot of The Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red sho ...
.
The famous falling house stunt has been re-created several times on film and television (although with lighter materials and more contemporary safety measures in place) including the 1975 The Goodies
The Goodies were a trio of British comedians: Tim Brooke-Taylor (17 July 1940–12 April 2020), Graeme Garden (b. 18 February 1943) and Bill Oddie (b. 7 July 1941). The trio created, wrote for and performed in their eponymous television comed ...
episode ''The Movies
''The Movies'' is a business simulation game created by Lionhead Studios for Microsoft Windows and ported to Mac OS X by Feral Interactive. Players run a Hollywood film studio, creating films that can be exported from the game. ''The Movies'' wa ...
'', the 1991 ''MacGyver
Angus "Mac" MacGyver is the title character and the protagonist in the TV series ''MacGyver''. He is played by Richard Dean Anderson in the 1985 original series. Lucas Till portrays a younger version of MacGyver in the 2016 reboot.
In both po ...
'' episode " Deadly Silents"; Jackie Chan
Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...
's ''Project A Part II
''Project A Part II'' (; aka ''Jackie Chan’s Project A II''; released in the Philippines as ''Super Fighter'') is a 1987 Hong Kong action film starring and directed by Jackie Chan, who also writer with Edward Tang, who also producer with Ray ...
''; the 2004 ''Arrested Development
The term "arrested development" has had multiple meanings for over 200 years. In the field of medicine, the term "arrested development" was first used, ''circa'' 1835–1836, to mean a stoppage of physical development; the term continues to be use ...
'' episode "The One Where They Build a House" (performed by the show's character named Buster); Al Yankovic's music video Amish Paradise
"Amish Paradise" is a 1996 single by satirist "Weird Al" Yankovic. It is a parody of the hip hop song " Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio featuring L.V. (which itself is a reworking of the Stevie Wonder song " Pastime Paradise"). Featured on the al ...
(cross-referencing Peter Weir
Peter Lindsay Weir ( ; born August 21, 1944) is a retired Australian film director. He's known for directing films crossing various genres over forty years with films such as '' Picnic at Hanging Rock'' (1975), ''Gallipoli'' (1981), ''Witness ...
's 1985 film ''Witness
In law, a witness is someone who has knowledge about a matter, whether they have sensed it or are testifying on another witnesses' behalf. In law a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, e ...
''); the 2006 comedy film Jackass Number Two
''Jackass Number Two'' is a 2006 American reality slapstick comedy film directed by Jeff Tremaine. It is the sequel to '' Jackass: The Movie'' (2002), both based upon the MTV series '' Jackass''. Like its predecessor and the original television s ...
; an Australian home insurance TV advertisement in 2021; and episode 7 in the first season of ''Lucha Underground
Lucha Underground was an American professional wrestling promotion founded in 2014 by United Artists Media Group. Partly owned by Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), ''Lucha Underground'' also refers to its weekly television program, which featured c ...
'', with a ladder.
''Deadpan'', a 1997 work by English film artist and director Steve McQueen
Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s, and 1 ...
, was also inspired by ''Steamboat Bill, Jr.'' McQueen stands in Keaton's place as a house facade falls over him. This film was shot from multiple angles, and the scene repeats over and over again while McQueen stands seemingly unaffected.
George Miller's "The Witches of Eastwick" film from 1987 references the scene where crates are blown all over Buster during the cyclone when Jack Nicholson gets debris (including boxes) blown over him in the windstorm sequence towards the end. The shot from the Keaton film is also seen in one of the multiple TVs in the media room in the final scene.
See also
* Buster Keaton filmography
This is a list of films by the American actor, comedian, and filmmaker Buster Keaton.
Short films
Starring Roscoe Arbuckle, featuring Buster Keaton
Starring Buster Keaton under Buster Keaton Productions
Starring Buster Keaton for ...
* '' The Wind'', 1928 movie starring Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893February 27, 1993) was an American actress, director, and screenwriter. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was called the "First Lady of American Cinema", ...
* '' The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore''
* ''Volga-Volga
''Volga-Volga'' (russian: Волга-Волга) is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called th ...
''
Notes
;Bibliography
*
External links
*
*
*
*
''Steamboat Bill, Jr.''
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 ...
Choice clips
from this Public Domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
classic (in Windows and Real Media format)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steamboat Bill Jr
1928 comedy films
1928 films
1920s adventure comedy films
1920s American films
American adventure comedy films
American black-and-white films
American silent feature films
Articles containing video clips
Films about father–son relationships
Films directed by Buster Keaton
Films directed by Charles Reisner
Films produced by Joseph M. Schenck
Films set on boats
Films shot in Sacramento, California
United Artists films
United States National Film Registry films
Silent American comedy films
Silent adventure films