Silent Comedians

"Bumping into Broadway"

1919 American short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd. Culturally significant.

Harold Lloyd

American actor, comedian, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and stunt performer who is most famous for his silent comedy films. Lloyd made nearly 200 comedy films, both silent and "talkies", between 1914 and 1947. He is best known for his bespectacled "Glasses" character.

Buster Keaton

American actor, vaudevillian, comedian, filmmaker, stunt performer, and writer.[1] He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".

Hal Roach

American film and television producer, director, and actor from the 1910s to the 1990s, best known today for producing the Laurel and Hardy and Our Gang.

"Sherlock Jr."

American silent comedy film directed by and starring Buster Keaton. Listed as one of the funniest films of all time.

Fatty Arbuckle

American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. Starting at the Selig Polyscope Company he eventually moved to Keystone Studios where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd. He mentored Charlie Chaplin and discovered Buster Keaton and Bob Hope. Arbuckle was one of the most popular silent stars of the 1910s, and soon became one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood, signing a contract in 1920 with Paramount Pictures for US$1 million.

"The Kid"

Chaplin starred and Directed. Huge success. Jackie Coogan plays Chaplin's cute sidekick kid.

Charlie Chaplin

Charlie Chaplin, considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognized as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popular "Little Tramp" character; the man with the toothbrush mustache, bowler hat, bamboo cane, and a funny walk.

Keystone

Founded by Mack Sennett. Charlie Chaplin got his start here. Specialized in Slapstick comedy.

Mack Sennett

Innovator of Slapstick Comedy

The Tramp

The Tramp, as portrayed by Chaplin, is a childlike, bumbling but overall good-hearted character who is most famously portrayed as a vagrant who endeavors to behave with the manners and dignity of a gentleman despite his actual social status.

United Artists (UA)

UA was incorporated as a joint venture on February 5, 1919, by four of the leading figures in early Hollywood: Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, and D. W. Griffith. They wanted better control over their work so they formed UA.