Ted Okuda (born December 8, 1953) is an American non-fiction author and film historian. He has many books and magazine features to his credit, under his own name and in collaboration with others.

Career

Okuda's long-held interest in movie comedies led to his first book, ''The Columbia Comedy Shorts'' (1986, with Edward Watz), an in-depth account of

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

' short-subject department, detailing the production of two-reel comedies starring

The Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appeared ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 pro ...

, and

Gus Schilling August "Gus" Schilling (June 20, 1908 – June 16, 1957) was an American film actor who started in burlesque comedy and usually played nervous comic roles, often unbilled. A friend of Orson Welles, he appeared in five of the director's films � ...

& Richard Lane, among many others. Since the book's first publication in 1986, Okuda has explored other areas of popular culture, including science fiction, children's television, and silent films. Okuda's other books include '' Dorothy Lee: The Life and Films of the

Wheeler and Woolsey Wheeler & Woolsey were an American vaudeville comedy double act who performed together in comedy films from the late 1920s. The team comprised Bert Wheeler (1895–1968) of New Jersey and Robert Woolsey (1888–1938) of Illinois. Collaboration a ...

Girl'' (2013, with Jamie Brotherton), ''Stan Without Ollie: The

Stan Laurel Stan Laurel (born Arthur Stanley Jefferson; 16 June 1890 – 23 February 1965) was an English comic actor, writer, and film director who was one half of the comedy double act, duo Laurel and Hardy. He appeared with his comedy partner Oliver Ha ...

Solo Films'' (2012, with James L. Neibaur), ''Chicago TV Horror Movie Shows'' (2007, with Mark Yurkiw), ''The

Soundies Soundies are three-minute American musical films, and each short displays a performance. The shorts were produced between 1940 and 1946 and have been referred to as "precursors to music videos" by UCLA. Soundies exhibited a variety of musical gen ...

Book: A Revised and Expanded Guide'' (2007, with

Scott MacGillivray Scott MacGillivray (born June 29, 1957) is an American non-fiction author specializing in motion picture history. His book ''Laurel & Hardy: From the Forties Forward,'' revised and expanded in 2009, chronicles the later films of Stan Laurel and Ol ...

), ''

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 ...

at Keystone and Essanay'' (2005, with David Maska), ''The Golden Age of Chicago Children's Television'' (2004, with Jack Mulqueen), and ''The

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in popular culture, pop culture ...

Films'' (1995, with Neibaur). He also contributed chapters to the books ''Science Fiction America'' (edited by David J. Hogan) and ''Guilty Pleasures of the Horror Film'' (edited by Gary and Susan Svehla), and wrote the foreword for MacGillivray's ''

Castle Films Castle Films was a film company founded in California by former newsreel cameraman Eugene W. Castle (1897–1960) in 1924. Originally, Castle Films produced industrial and advertising films. Then in 1937, the company pioneered the production and d ...

: A Hobbyist's Guide''. His articles, interviews, and reviews have appeared in such publications as ''Filmfax'', ''

Classic Images ''Classic Images'' is a monthly American mail-subscription newspaper in tabloid format, founded in 1962 by film collector Samuel K. Rubin, dedicated to film and television of the "Golden Age". Its offices are located in Muscatine, Iowa and it is ...

'', ''Cult Movies'', ''Classic Film Collector'', '' The Big Reel'', and '' Movie Collector's World''. He has also appeared on television, usually with popular movie host and Stooge expert

Rich Koz Rich Koz (born March 12, 1952) is an American actor and broadcaster best known for his portrayal of horror-movie host Svengoolie, as well as his early '90s children's cartoon showcase ''The Koz Zone''. Koz is also the host of the syndicated '' S ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Okuda, Ted 1953 births Living people American non-fiction writers Place of birth missing (living people)