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Buster Keaton

Born Joseph Frank Keaton VI
October 4, 1895(1895-10-04)
Piqua, Kansas
Died February 1, 1966 (aged 70)
Woodland Hills, California
Years active 1917–1966
Spouse(s) Natalie Talmadge (1921-1932)
Mae Scriven (1933-1936)
Eleanor Norris(1940-1966)
Official website

Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an Academy Award-winning American comic actor and filmmaker. Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Piqua is an unincorporated community in Woodson County, Kansas, United States. Events 1327 - Teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. Woodland Hills is a district in the City of Los Angeles, California, United States. Natalie Talmadge (1896-1969 was an occasional Silent film actress who was more well-known as the middle sister of her movie star siblings Norma and Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 1327 - Teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Best known for his silent films, his trademark was physical comedy with a stoic, deadpan expression on his face, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face" (referencing the Nathaniel Hawthorne story about the "Old Man of the Mountain"). Stoicism, a school of Hellenistic philosophy, was founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium in the early third century BC Deadpan is a form of non-comedic delivery in which Humour is presented without a change in emotion or Facial expression, usually speaking in Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4 1804 – May 19 1864 was an American novelist and Short story writer History The formation was carved by Glaciers and was first recorded as being discovered by a surveying team circa 1805 He has also been called "The Michelangelo of Silent Comedy".

Keaton's career as a performer and director is widely considered to be among the most innovative and important work in the history of cinema. He was recognized as the seventh greatest director of all time by Entertainment Weekly. Entertainment Weekly (sometimes abbreviated as EW) is a Magazine published by Time Inc [1]

A 2002 world-wide poll by Sight and Sound ranked Keaton's The General as the 15th best film of all time. The General is a 1927 silent Comedy released by United Artists based upon the Great Locomotive Chase from 1862 While there is no agreement upon the greatest Film of all time many publications and organizations have tried to determine the films considered the greatest ever. Three other Keaton films received votes in the survey: Our Hospitality, Sherlock, Jr., and The Navigator. Our Hospitality is a silent comedy directed produced written by and starring Buster Keaton. Sherlock Jr ( is an American Comedy Silent film starring and directed by Buster Keaton and written by Clyde Bruckman The Navigator is a 1924 Comedy directed by and starring Buster Keaton. [2]

Contents

Biography

1994 stamp by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld
1994 stamp by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld

Early life in vaudeville

Buster Keaton was born into a vaudeville family. Albert Hirschfeld ( June 21, 1903 – January 20, 2003) was a Jewish American Caricaturist best known for his simple black Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s His father was Joseph Hallie Keaton, a native of Vigo County, Indiana. Vigo County is a County located in the US state of Indiana. As of 2000, the Population was 105848 Joe Keaton owned a traveling show with Harry Houdini called the Mohawk Indian Medicine Company, which performed on stage and sold patent medicine on the side. Patent medicine is the somewhat misleading term given to various medical Compounds sold under a variety of names and labels though they were for the most part actually Buster Keaton was born in Piqua, Kansas, the small town where his mother, Myra Edith Cutler, happened to be when she went into labor. Piqua is an unincorporated community in Woodson County, Kansas, United States.

According to Keaton, in an interview that he and his wife Eleanor did with the CBC television program Telescope in 1964, Keaton acquired the nickname "Buster" at about six months of age. Telescope was a Canadian Television series which aired on the CBC between 1963 and 1973 Keaton told interviewer Fletcher Markle that Harry Houdini happened to be present one day when the young Keaton took a tumble down a long flight of stairs without injury. Fletcher Markle (March 27 1921 Winnipeg Manitoba – May 23 1991 In a career that spanned three decades he played various roles as an actor director and producer for After the infant sat up and shook off his experience, Houdini remarked, "That was a real buster!" According to Keaton, in those days, the word buster was used to refer to a spill or a fall that had the potential to produce injury. Thereafter, it was Keaton's father who began to use the nickname to refer to the youngster. [3] Despite Keaton's story, however, Houdini did not begin touring with the Keatons until Buster Keaton was well beyond infancy.

At the age of three, Buster began performing with his parents in The Three Keatons; the act was mainly a comedy sketch. Myra played the saxophone to one side while Joe and Buster performed on center stage. The young Keaton would goad his father by disobeying him, and the elder Keaton would respond by throwing him against the scenery, into the orchestra pit, or even into the audience. A suitcase handle was sewn into Keaton's clothing to aid with the constant tossing. The act evolved as Keaton learned to take trick falls safely; he was rarely injured or bruised on stage. Nevertheless, this knockabout style of comedy led to accusations of child abuse. Child abuse is the physical, psychological or sexual maltreatment of children Decades later, Keaton said that he was never hurt by his father and that the falls and physical comedy were a matter of proper technical execution. He claimed he was having so much fun that he would begin laughing as his father threw him across the stage. This drew fewer laughs from the audience, so he adopted his famous deadpan expression whenever he was working.

The act ran up against laws banning child performers in vaudeville. It is said that, when one official saw Keaton in full costume and makeup, and asked a stagehand how old he was, the stagehand then pointed to the boy's mother, saying "I don't know, ask his wife!" According to one biographer, Keaton was made to go to school while performing in New York, but only attended for one day. Despite tangles with the law and a disastrous tour of music halls in the UK, Keaton was such a rising star in the theater that, when his parents tried to introduce their other children into the act, he remained the focus of attention. Music hall is a form of British theatrical Entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960

Keaton himself stated that he learned to read and write late, and was taught by his mother. By the time he was 21, his father's alcoholism threatened the reputation of the family act, so Buster and his mother left Joe in Los Angeles. Alcoholism is a term with multiple and sometimes conflicting definitions Buster travelled to New York, where his performing career moved from vaudeville to film. Although he did not see active combat, he served in World War I, during which time his hearing became impaired. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All [4]

Silent film era

In February 1917, Keaton met Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle at the Talmadge Studios in New York City, where Arbuckle was under contract to Joseph M. Schenck. Roscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle ( March 24 1887 &ndash June 29 1933) was an American Silent film Comedian Joseph Michael Schenck ( December 25, 1878 &ndash October 22, 1961) was a pioneer executive who played a key role in the development of Joe Keaton disapproved of films, and Buster also had reservations about the medium. During his first meeting with Arbuckle, he asked to borrow one of the cameras to get a feel for how it worked. He took the camera back to his hotel room, dismantled and reassembled it. With this rough understanding of the mechanics of the moving pictures, he returned the next day, camera in hand, asking for work. He was hired as a co-star and gag-man, making his first appearance in The Butcher Boy. The Butcher Boy is a 1917 short comedy film starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Buster Keaton. Keaton later claimed that he was soon Arbuckle's second director and his entire gag department. Keaton and Arbuckle became close friends.

After Keaton's successful work with Arbuckle, Schenck gave him his own production unit, Buster Keaton Comedies. He made a series of two-reel comedies, including One Week (1920), The Playhouse (1921), Cops (1922), and The Electric House (1922). One Week is a 1920 short comedy film starring comedian Buster Keaton. The Playhouse is a 1921 Film written and directed by and starring Buster Keaton. Cops is a 1922 comedy short Silent film about a young man ( Buster Keaton) who accidentally gets on the bad side of the entire The Electric House is a 1922 short Comedy film directed by and featuring Buster Keaton. Based on the success of these shorts, Keaton moved to full-length features.

Keaton's silent films are characterized by clever visual gags and technical trickery. His writers included Clyde Bruckman and Jean Havez, but the most ingenious gags were often conceived by Keaton himself. Clyde A Bruckman ( September 20, 1894 &ndash January 4, 1955) was an American writer and director of Comedy The more adventurous ideas called for dangerous stunts, also performed by Keaton at great physical risk; during the railroad-water-tank scene in Sherlock Jr. , Keaton broke his neck and did not realize it until years afterward. Comedy director Leo McCarey, recalling the freewheeling days of making slapstick comedies, said, "All of us tried to steal each other's gagmen. Thomas Leo McCarey ( October 3, 1898 - July 5, 1969) was an Academy Award -winning American Film director Slapstick is a type of Comedy involving exaggerated physical violence or activities which exceed the boundaries of common sense such as a character being hit in the face with But we had no luck with Keaton, because he thought up his best gags himself and we couldn't steal him!"

Buster Keaton's most enduring feature-length films include Our Hospitality (1923), The Navigator (1924), Sherlock Jr. (1924), Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928), The Cameraman (1928), and most notably The General (1927). Our Hospitality is a silent comedy directed produced written by and starring Buster Keaton. The Navigator is a 1924 Comedy directed by and starring Buster Keaton. Sherlock Jr ( is an American Comedy Silent film starring and directed by Buster Keaton and written by Clyde Bruckman Steamboat Bill Jr ( is a feature-length comedy Silent film featuring Buster Keaton. The Cameraman is an American 1928 silent Comedy directed by Edward Sedgwick and an uncredited Buster Keaton The General is a 1927 silent Comedy released by United Artists based upon the Great Locomotive Chase from 1862

The General, set during the American Civil War, is considered his masterpiece, combining physical comedy with Keaton's love of trains. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South A train is a connected series of vehicles that move along a track ( Permanent way) to transport freight or passengers from one place to another Keaton took his crew on picturesque locations and painstakingly re-enacted an actual wartime incident, complete with epic locomotive chase. This film was Keaton's proudest achievement, but was received poorly at the time. It was too dramatic for moviegoers expecting a lightweight comedy, and reviewers thought it was "fair" and noted it only had a "few laughs. " The fact that the heroes of the story were the Confederate army may have also contributed to the film's unpopularity. Later audiences have given more favorable reviews, but in its day it was an expensive misfire, and Keaton was never entrusted with total control over his movies again. His distributor, United Artists, insisted on a production manager, who monitored expenses and interfered with certain story elements. This article is about the film studio Previously it was affiliated with a cinema chain bearing its name now owned by Regal Entertainment Group. Keaton endured this treatment for two more feature films, and then exchanged his independent setup for employment at Hollywood's biggest studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Keaton's loss of independence as a filmmaker coincided with the coming of sound films and mounting personal problems, and his career in the early sound era was hurt as a result.

Marriages

Natalie Talmadge and Buster Keaton on their wedding day
Natalie Talmadge and Buster Keaton on their wedding day

In 1921, Buster Keaton married Natalie Talmadge, sister-in-law of his boss, Joseph Schenck, and sister of actresses Norma Talmadge and Constance Talmadge. Natalie Talmadge (1896-1969 was an occasional Silent film actress who was more well-known as the middle sister of her movie star siblings Norma and Natalie Talmadge (1896-1969 was an occasional Silent film actress who was more well-known as the middle sister of her movie star siblings Norma and Norma Talmadge ( May 26, 1893 &ndash December 24, 1957) was one of the greatest film stars of the silent era Constance Talmadge ( April 19, 1897 - November 23, 1973) was a Silent movie star born in Brooklyn, New York During the first three years of the marriage, the couple had two sons, James (1922-2007) and Robert (1924-), but after the birth of Robert, the relationship began to suffer.

According to Keaton in his autobiography, Natalie turned him out of their bedroom and sent detectives to follow him to see who he was dating behind her back. Her extravagance was another factor in the breakdown of the marriage. During the 1920s, according to his autobiography, he dated actress Kathleen Key. Kathleen Key ( April 1, 1903 - December 22, 1954) was an American Actress who achieved a When he ended the affair, Key flew into a rage and tore up his dressing room. After attempts at reconciliation, Natalie bitterly divorced Keaton in 1932, taking his entire fortune and refusing to allow any contact between Keaton and his sons, whose last name she had changed to Talmadge. Keaton was reunited with them about a decade later when his older son turned 18. The failure of his marriage, along with the loss of his independence as a filmmaker, led Keaton into a period of alcoholism.

During the height of his popularity, he spent $300,000 to build a 10,000-square-foot (930 m²) home in Beverly Hills. Later owners of the property were actors James Mason and Cary Grant. James Neville Mason ( 15 May 1909 – 27 July 1984) was a three-time Academy Award -nominated British Actor who The "Italian Villa," as Keaton called it, can also be seen in the movie The Godfather, as well as in Keaton's own film Parlor, Bedroom and Bath. The Godfather is a 1972 Crime drama film based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Mario Puzo and directed Keaton later said, "I took a lot of pratfalls to build that dump. " It was James Mason who later discovered numerous cans of rare Keaton films in the house; the films were quickly transferred to safety film before the original silver nitrate prints further deteriorated. Silver nitrate also known as lunar caustic is a soluble Chemical compound with Chemical formula Ag[[Nitrogen N]] O 3

Keaton was at one point briefly institutionalized; however, according to the TCM documentary 'So Funny it Hurt,' Keaton managed to escape a straitjacket with tricks learned during his vaudeville days. In 1933 he married his nurse, Mae Scriven, during an alcoholic binge about which he afterwards claimed to remember nothing (Keaton himself later called that period an "alcoholic blackout"). Scriven herself would later claim that she did not even know Keaton's real first name until after the marriage. When they divorced in 1936, it was again at great financial cost to Keaton.

In 1940, Keaton married Eleanor Norris, who was 23 years his junior. She has been credited with saving his life by stopping his heavy drinking, and helped to salvage his career. The marriage lasted until his death. Between 1947 and 1954, they appeared regularly in the Cirque Medrano in Paris as a double act. The Cirque Medrano (in English: Circus Medrano is a French Circus, located on the edge of Montmartre in Paris. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city She came to know his routines so well that she often participated in them on TV revivals.

Sound era and television

Keaton signed with MGM in 1928, a business decision that he would later call the worst of his life. He realized too late that the studio system MGM represented would be more restrictive than the freedom he had known, severely limiting his creative input. The studio system was a means of film production and distribution dominant in Hollywood from the early 1920s through the early 1950s He would have to adhere to dialogue-laden scripts and (for the first time) would be forced to use a stunt double during some of the more dangerous scenes, as MGM wanted badly to protect its investment. He also stopped directing, but continued to perform and made some of his most financially successful films for the studio. MGM tried teaming the laconic Keaton with the rambunctious Jimmy Durante in a series of movies including The Passionate Plumber, Speak Easily, and What! No Beer? Although the two comedians never quite meshed as a team, the films proved popular.

In the first Keaton pictures with sound, he and his fellow actors would shoot each scene three times: one in English, one in Spanish, and one in either French or German. This was done before dubbing became commonplace. The actors would memorize the foreign-language scripts a few lines at time and shoot immediately after. This is discussed in the TCM documentary Buster Keaton: So Funny it Hurt, with Keaton complaining about having to shoot lousy movies not just once, but three times. His stage name in Spanish markets was Pamplinas ("Nonsense"), and his nickname became Cara de palo ("Wooden face"). cineclasico.com (Spanish)

Keaton's last starring feature in America was What! No Beer? Behind the scenes, Keaton's world was in chaos, with divorce proceedings contributing to his alcoholism, which in turn caused production delays and unpleasant incidents at the studio. Keaton was so depleted during the filming of What! No Beer? that MGM released him, despite the film being a resounding hit. In 1934 Keaton accepted an offer to make an independent film in Paris, Le Roi des Champs-Élysées. During this period he made one other film in Europe, The Invader (released in America as An Old Spanish Custom in 1936).

Upon his return to Hollywood, he made a screen comeback in a series of 16 two-reel comedies for Educational Pictures. For the current and unrelated company of the same name see Educational Pictures (image archive Most of these are simple visual comedies, with many of the gags supplied by Keaton himself. The high point in the Educational series is Grand Slam Opera, featuring Buster in his own screenplay as an amateur-hour contestant. When the series lapsed in 1937, Keaton returned to MGM as a gag writer, including the Marx Brothers films At the Circus (1939) and Go West (1940), and for Red Skelton. The Marx Brothers were a popular team of sibling Comedians who appeared in Vaudeville, stage plays film and television At the Circus is a 1939 Marx Brothers Comedy Film in which they save a circus from Bankruptcy. Go West ( 1940) was the 10th Marx Brothers Comedy Film, in which the three brothers Groucho, Chico, and Richard Bernard “Red” Skelton ( July 18, 1913 &ndash September 17, 1997) was an American comedian who was best known as a top

In 1939, Columbia Pictures hired Keaton to star in two-reel comedies. }} Columbia Pictures Industries Inc is an American Film production and distribution company The series ran for two years. The director was usually Jules White, whose emphasis on slapstick made most of these films resemble White's Three Stooges comedies. Jules White born Jules Weiss ( 17 September 1900 - 30 April 1985) was a movie director and producer Slapstick is a type of Comedy involving exaggerated physical violence or activities which exceed the boundaries of common sense such as a character being hit in the face with The Three Stooges were an American Vaudeville and Comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous Short subject films Keaton's personal favorite of the 10 Columbias was directed not by White but by Mack Sennett veteran Del Lord, Pest from the West (1939), a two-reel remake of Keaton's feature The Invader. Mack Sennett ( January 17, 1880 &ndash November 5, 1960) was an Academy Award -winning director and was known as the innovator Del Lord ( October 7, 1894 - March 23, 1970) was a Film director and Actor best known as a director of Three Stooges Moviegoers and exhibitors welcomed Keaton's Columbia comedies, which were successful enough to be re-released again and again through the 1960s.

Keaton's personal life had stabilized with his 1940 marriage, and now he was taking life a little easier, abandoning Columbia for the less strenuous field of feature films. Throughout the 1940s Keaton played character roles in both "A" and "B" features. Critics rediscovered Keaton in 1949 and producers now hired him for bigger pictures. He guest-starred in such films as Sunset Boulevard (1950), Around the World in Eighty Days (1956), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966). Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American Film noir classic Directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, it was named It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World is a 1963 American Comedy film directed by Stanley Kramer about the madcap pursuit of $350000 A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a Musical comedy film based on the stage musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim He appeared in Chaplin's Limelight (1952), recalling the vaudeville of The Playhouse. Limelight is a 1952 comedy - drama Film written directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, co-starring Claire Bloom The Playhouse is a 1921 Film written and directed by and starring Buster Keaton. With the exception of Seeing Stars, a minor publicity film produced in 1922, Limelight was the only time in which the two giants of silent comedy would appear together on film.

Keaton had a successful series on Los Angeles television, The Buster Keaton Show (1950). An attempt to recreate the first series on film as Life with Buster Keaton (1951), which allowed it to be broadcast nationwide, was less well received, although veteran actress Marcia Mae Jones and gagman Clyde Bruckman made contributions. Marcia Mae Jones ( 1 August 1924 &ndash 2 September 2007) was an American actress whose prolific career spanned 47 years Clyde A Bruckman ( September 20, 1894 &ndash January 4, 1955) was an American writer and director of Comedy A theatrical feature film, The Misadventures of Buster Keaton, was fashioned from the series. Keaton said he cancelled the filmed series himself because he was unable to create enough fresh material to produce a new show each week.

Keaton also appeared on Ed Wynn's variety show. Ed Wynn ( November 9 1886 - June 19 1966) was a popular American Comedian and Actor noted for both his Perfect At the age of 55, he successfully recreated one of the stunts of his youth, in which he propped one foot onto a table, then swung the second foot up next to it, and held the awkward position in midair for a moment before crashing to the stage floor. I've Got a Secret host Garry Moore recalled, "I asked (Keaton) how he did all those falls, and he said, 'I'll show you'. For IGAS qua graphology organization see International Graphoanalysis Society I've Got a Secret is a weekly panel Game show produced Garry Moore (January 31 1915 – November 28 1993 was an American Entertainer, Game show host and Comedian best known for his work in television He opened his jacket and he was all bruised. So that's how he did it — it hurt — but you had to care enough not to care. "

Keaton's silent films saw a revival in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1961 he starred in The Twilight Zone episode "Once Upon a Time", which included both silent and sound sequences. The Twilight Zone is an American Television series created by Rod Serling. "Once Upon a Time" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. Keaton played time traveler Mulligan, who traveled from 1890 to 1960, then back, by means of a special helmet. Keaton also found steady work as an actor in TV commercials, including a popular series of silent ads for Simon Pure Beer in which he revisited some of the gags from his silent film days.

In 1960, Keaton returned to MGM for the final time, to participate in one of the numerous adaptations of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30 1835 – April 21 1910 better known by the Pen name Mark Twain, was an American Humorist, satirist Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (often shortened to Huck Finn) is a novel written by American Humorist Mark Twain. Much of the film was shot on location on the Sacramento River, which doubled for the Mississippi River in Twain's original book. The Sacramento River is the longest River entirely within the U The Mississippi River is the second longest River in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to

Touring as King Sextimus in Once Upon A Mattress (1960)
Touring as King Sextimus in Once Upon A Mattress (1960)

In August 1960, Keaton accepted the role of mute King Sextimus The Silent in the national touring company of Once Upon A Mattress, already a successful Broadway musical. Once Upon a Mattress is a musical Comedy that opened Off-Broadway on May 11, 1959, and then moved to Broadway Once Upon a Mattress is a musical Comedy that opened Off-Broadway on May 11, 1959, and then moved to Broadway Eleanor Keaton was cast in the chorus, and during rehearsals she fielded questions directed at Buster, creating difficulties in communication. After a few days, Keaton warmed up to the rest of the cast with his "utterly delicious sense of humor", according to Fritzi Burr, who played opposite him as Queen Aggravaine. When the tour landed in Los Angeles, Keaton invited the entire cast and crew to a spaghetti party at his Woodland Hills home, and entertained them by singing vaudeville songs. [5]

At the age of 70, Keaton suggested a piece of physical comedy for his appearance in the 1965 movie Sergeant Deadhead, in which he ran past the end of a firehose into a six-foot-high flip and crash. When director Norman Taurog balked, expressing concerns for Keaton's health, Keaton said, "I won't hurt myself, Norm, I've done it for years!"

Keaton starred in a short film called The Railrodder (1965) for the National Film Board of Canada. Norman Rae Taurog ( February 23, 1899 - April 7, 1981) was an Academy Award -winning American film director born in Chicago The Railrodder is a 1965 short comedy film released by the National Film Board of Canada and starring Buster Keaton in one of his The National Film Board of Canada (usually National Film Board or NFB) is Canada's public film producer and distributor Wearing his traditional porkpie hat, he travelled from one end of Canada to the other on a motorized handcar, performing gags similar to those in films he made 50 years before. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The film is also notable for being Keaton's last silent screen performance. The Railrodder was made in tandem with a behind-the-scenes documentary about Keaton's life and times, called Buster Keaton Rides Again — also made for the National Film Board. He played the central role in Samuel Beckett's Film (1965), directed by Alan Schneider. Samuel Barclay Beckett (13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989 was an Irish Writer, Dramatist and poet Film is a Film written by Samuel Beckett, his only Screenplay. Alan Schneider ( December 12, 1917 - May 3, 1984) was an American theatre director and mentor responsible for more than Keaton's last film appearance was in the musical farce A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966). A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a Musical comedy film based on the stage musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim He amazed the cast and crew by doing many of his own stunts in the film, although Thames Television said he did have a stunt double for some of his scenes.

Death

Keaton died of lung cancer on February 1, 1966, at the age of 70. Lung cancer is a Disease of uncontrolled Cell growth in tissues of the Lung. Events 1327 - Teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. [6] He was never told that he was terminally ill, thinking that he had bronchitis. Terminal illness is a medical term popularized in the 20th century to describe an active and Malignant Disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated Confined to a hospital in his final days, Keaton was restless and paced the room endlessly. In a documentary on his career, his widow Eleanor told Thames Television that Keaton played cards with friends the night before he died. Thames Television was a licencee of the British ITV television network covering London and parts of the surrounding counties [7] It was said that Keaton was buried with a rosary in one pocket and a deck of cards in the other, preparing him for both eternal possibilities. Eleanor herself died in 1998, also of lung cancer.

Legacy and contribution

Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd are remembered as the great comic innovators of the silent era. Harold Clayton Lloyd Sr ( April 20, 1893 &ndash March 8, 1971) was an American Film actor and producer Keaton enjoyed Lloyd's films highly and often praised Chaplin. [8]

Keaton has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: 6619 Hollywood Boulevard (for motion pictures); and 6321 Hollywood Boulevard (for television). The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a Sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood Los Angeles California, USA, that

A 1957 film biography, The Buster Keaton Story,[9] starred Donald O'Connor as Keaton. Donald David Dixon Ronald O’Connor ( August 28, 1925 &ndash September 27, 2003) was an American Dancer, Singer The screenplay was vaguely based on his life, but contained many factual errors and merged his three wives into one character. Most of the story centered on his drinking problem, in the producer's attempt to imitate the success of I'll Cry Tomorrow, a sudsy biography about another alcoholic celebrity (Lillian Roth). Lillian Roth ( December 13, 1910 - May 12, 1980) was an American Singer and Actress. The 1987 documentary Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow,[10] which won 2 Emmy Awards, is considered a much more accurate telling of Keaton’s story.

Porkpie hats

Keaton seated, in costume, wearing his signature porkpie hat
Keaton seated, in costume, wearing his signature porkpie hat

Keaton designed and fabricated many of his own porkpie hats during his career. A pork pie hat or porkpie hat is a type of hat made of Felt or less commonly straw In 1964, he told an interviewer that in making the porkpie he started with a good Stetson hat and cut it down, stiffening the brim with concentrated sugar water. Stetson hats or Stetsons are a brand of hat manufactered by the John B The hats were often destroyed during Keaton's wild movie antics; some were given away as gifts and some were snatched by souvenir hunters. Keaton said he was lucky if he used only six hats in making a film. Keaton estimated that he and his wife Eleanor made thousands of the hats during his career. [11]

Filmography

Main article: Buster Keaton filmography

Notes

  1. ^ Greatest Film Directors and Their Best Films
  2. ^ bfi : Sight & Sound: Top ten. These are the films of Buster Keaton. Short films Starring Roscoe Arbuckle, featuring Buster Keaton Retrieved on 2005-11-18. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 326 - The old St Peter's Basilica is consecrated 1302 - Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull
  3. ^ Telescope: Deadpan an interview with Buster Keaton, 1964 interview of Buster and Eleanor Keaton by Fletcher Markle for the CBC
  4. ^ [1] Keaton's biography at IMDB, the Internet Movie Database
  5. ^ Meade, Marion (1997). Fletcher Markle (March 27 1921 Winnipeg Manitoba – May 23 1991 In a career that spanned three decades he played various roles as an actor director and producer for Buster Keaton: Cut to the Chase. Da Capo, 284. ISBN 0306808021.  
  6. ^ Buster Keaton, 70, Dies on Coast; Poker-Faced Comedian of Films
  7. ^ Turner Classic Movies
  8. ^ "My Wonderful World of Slapstick"
  9. ^ The Buster Keaton Story at IMDB
  10. ^ Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow at IMDB
  11. ^ How To Make A Porkpie Hat Buster Keaton, interviewed in 1964 at the Movieland Wax Museum. Henry Gris

Further reading

See also

External links

Persondata
NAME Keaton, Joseph Frank, Jr.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Keaton, Buster (professional name)
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actor and filmmaker
DATE OF BIRTH October 4, 1895
PLACE OF BIRTH Piqua, Kansas
DATE OF DEATH February 1, 1966
PLACE OF DEATH Woodland Hills, California

Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Piqua is an unincorporated community in Woodson County, Kansas, United States. Events 1327 - Teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. Woodland Hills is a district in the City of Los Angeles, California, United States.
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