The silent film era featured some of the most revered names of on-screen comic performance, from Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton to Harold Lloyd, Douglas Fairbanks, and Laurel & Hardy. Besides these giants of cinema, however, there are other silent era performers-both leading actors and supporting players-who left an enduring legacy of laughter. In The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians, James Roots ranks the greatest performers based on a scorecard that measures each comic's humor, timelessness, originality, and teamwork. Far more than just a listing, this is an idiosyncratic and entertaining review of the men and women who created the golden age of comedy. As a critic and deaf viewer, Roots brings a truly unique perspective to the evaluation of these performers and their work. He has viewed thousands of silent comedies and offers some assessments that run contrary to the standard list of performers. While many obvious names are placed in the top echelon, the author also champions performers who have been neglected, in part because their work has not been as visible. Each entry includes *a filmography *a scorecard *an evaluation of the artist's overall work *an assessment of representative films *DVD availability With the increased availability of films on DVD, as well as Internet access, more and more silent performers are being discovered by film fans. Supplemented by an appendix of comedians who missed the cut, as well as an annotated bibliography, The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians will be an invaluable resource to anyone wanting to know more about the brilliant entertainers of the silent era.
Acknowledgements Preface Introduction Arrangement of Entries Scorecard
The First Rank: 1. Charlie Chaplin 2. Buster Keaton 3. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy 4. Charley Chase 5. Harold Lloyd 6. Harry Langdon 7. Mabel Normand 8. Roscoe Arbuckle 9. Douglas Fairbanks 10. Raymond Griffith
The Second Rank: 11. Sidney Drew 12. Phyllis Haver 13. Our Gang 14. Jobyna Ralston 15. Anita Garvin 16. Bebe Daniels 17. Ton of Fun 18. Max Linder 19. Ford Sterling 20. Max Davidson 21. Lupino Lane 22. Larry Semon 23. Edgar Kennedy 24. Mack Swain 25. Fay Tincher 26. Supporting ladies and gents 27. Gale Henry 28. Mae Busch 29. Ben Turpin 30. Charley Bowers 31. Lloyd Hamilton 32. Louise Fazenda 33. John Bunny 34. Harry Gribbon 35. Vernon Dent 36. Hank Mann 37. Alice Howell 38. Polly Moran 39. Jack Duffy 40. Charlie Murray 41. Jimmy Finlayson
The Third Rank: 42. Harry McCoy 43. Alice Ardell 44. Wallace Beery 45. Monty Banks 46. Chester Conklin 47. Bobby Vernon 48. Paul Parrott 49. Snub Pollard 50. Marie Prevost 51. Sydney Chaplin 52. Al St. John 53. Dorothy Dwan 54. Victor Moore 55. Joe Rock 56. Madeline Hurlock 57. Billy Bevan 58. Dorothy Devore 59. Minta Durfee 60. Alice Day 61. Slim Summerville 62. Andy Clyde 63. Glenn Tryon
The Fourth Rank: 64. Fred Mace 65. Billy Dooley 66. Billy Quirk 67. Johnny Hines 68. Victor Potel 69. Monty Collins 70. Augustus Carney 71. Bud Jamison 72. Phil Dunham 73. Clyde Cook 74. Bud Duncan 75. Mack Sennett 76. Lee Moran and Eddie Lyons 77. Lige Conley 78. Tom Kennedy 79. Jimmy Aubrey 80. Neal Burns 81. Billy Franey 82. Glen Cavender 83. Douglas MacLean 84. Max Asher 85. Bobby Ray 86. Billy Engle 87. Sid Smith 88. Billy Bletcher 89. Walter Hiers 90. Paddy McGuire 91. Jack Cooper 92. Billy West 93. Eddie Boland 94. Flora Finch 95. Milburn Morante 96. Billie Ritchie 97. Earl Mohan 98. Billy Reeves 99. Hughie Mack 100. Cliff Bowes Appendix: Also-Rans, Missed the Cut, Left No Surviving Legacy, Or Otherwise Were Not Included in the Top 100 Bibliography Index About the Author
Acknowledgements Preface Introduction Arrangement of Entries Scorecard The First Rank: 1. Charlie Chaplin 2. Buster Keaton 3. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy 4. Charley Chase 5. Harold Lloyd 6. Harry Langdon 7. Mabel Normand 8. Roscoe Arbuckle 9. Douglas Fairbanks 10. Raymond Griffith The Second Rank: 11. Sidney Drew 12. Phyllis Haver 13. Our Gang 14. Jobyna Ralston 15. Anita Garvin 16. Bebe Daniels 17. Ton of Fun 18. Max Linder 19. Ford Sterling 20. Max Davidson 21. Lupino Lane 22. Larry Semon 23. Edgar Kennedy 24. Mack Swain 25. Fay Tincher 26. Supporting ladies and gents 27. Gale Henry 28. Mae Busch 29. Ben Turpin 30. Charley Bowers 31. Lloyd Hamilton 32. Louise Fazenda 33. John Bunny 34. Harry Gribbon 35. Vernon Dent 36. Hank Mann 37. Alice Howell 38. Polly Moran 39. Jack Duffy 40. Charlie Murray 41. Jimmy Finlayson The Third Rank: 42. Harry McCoy 43. Alice Ardell 44. Wallace Beery 45. Monty Banks 46. Chester Conklin 47. Bobby Vernon 48. Paul Parrott 49. Snub Pollard 50. Marie Prevost 51. Sydney Chaplin 52. Al St. John 53. Dorothy Dwan 54. Victor Moore 55. Joe Rock 56. Madeline Hurlock 57. Billy Bevan 58. Dorothy Devore 59. Minta Durfee 60. Alice Day 61. Slim Summerville 62. Andy Clyde 63. Glenn Tryon The Fourth Rank: 64. Fred Mace 65. Billy Dooley 66. Billy Quirk 67. Johnny Hines 68. Victor Potel 69. Monty Collins 70. Augustus Carney 71. Bud Jamison 72. Phil Dunham 73. Clyde Cook 74. Bud Duncan 75. Mack Sennett 76. Lee Moran and Eddie Lyons 77. Lige Conley 78. Tom Kennedy 79. Jimmy Aubrey 80. Neal Burns 81. Billy Franey 82. Glen Cavender 83. Douglas MacLean 84. Max Asher 85. Bobby Ray 86. Billy Engle 87. Sid Smith 88. Billy Bletcher 89. Walter Hiers 90. Paddy McGuire 91. Jack Cooper 92. Billy West 93. Eddie Boland 94. Flora Finch 95. Milburn Morante 96. Billie Ritchie 97. Earl Mohan 98. Billy Reeves 99. Hughie Mack 100. Cliff Bowes Appendix: Also-Rans, Missed the Cut, Left No Surviving Legacy, Or Otherwise Were Not Included in the Top 100 Bibliography Index About the Author