Friday, February 15, 2019

Meeting Buster Backwards: A Hard Act to Resist


This is my entry in the Buster Keaton Blogathon hosted by the amazing Lea Stans at Silent-ology . Please click here for more Buster goodies! And thanks, Lea, for keeping silents alive.



I believe this to by my first encounter with Buster:


Candid Camera was a family favorite and I do recall, as a very (repeat very) young child laughing at this old man’s antics, especially when his toupee fell in his coffee. I seem to remember the host, Alan Funt or Durwood Kirby (Arthur Godfrey in this clip), describing this old fellow as someone who was important back in the day (like all of those old unknown – to me – performers that showed up every week on the Hollywood Palace). I learned that his nickname was “The Great Stone Face,” based on his trademark never smiling expression. 

It was a memorable old face, so when I saw him again being silly on the beach with Annette and Frankie (classics Beach Blanket Bingo and How to Stuff a Wild Bikini), I smiled. I was more interested in the kids on the beach, but glad the old fellow showed up for the hijinks.

So when my 7th grade teacher handed me the assignment of writing about the man described in this New York Times obituary of February 1, 1966, I was a bit disappointed. That old guy? I was hoping for someone more interesting!

I must say, silent film to me at that time in my life were about as interesting as dried paint peeling off a soiled wall. I was just beginning to get interested in classic film and if you had said James Cagney or Jean Harlow to me, my ears would have perked up. But Keaton? Chaplin? And who the heck was Harold Lloyd? It was around this time I picked up a book in the bargain bin of our local bookstore – ah the fun of wandering around the Cherry Hill Book Store after school – called The Parade’s Gone By. It was filled with chapters about stars I barely heard of, but it was printed on rich, thick glossy paper and it was only a few dollars. I thumbed through it at home, read a few entries and put it aside (I still have it - somewhere....).

Back to the assignment. I read and wrote, probably not something very memorable. However, for some reason, that assignment remained memorable all of my life. I guess there was just something about Buster that was unforgettable.

Fast forward a few years, and Sunday nights with PBS – starting with Upstairs Downstairs and continuing to all things British on Masterpiece Theater (RIP Alistair Cooke) - became a time to be savored. So, somewhere in the 1980s I saw the advertisement for Unknown Chaplin. I know, this is about Buster, but I got to him through Charlie. This amazing 3-part documentary by Kevin Brownlow and David Gill made me hungry to learn more. And hey, wasn’t Brownlow the author of that book I picked up years ago?


What are you doing on my post about Buster?
Anyway, because I was  enchanted with Unknown Chaplin, I was all in when PBS next aired Brownlow and Gill’s Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow. That beautiful genius of a young man was the guy who sold Alka Seltzer? Amazing!
A face for the ages
And so I went from old Buster to the young Buster of such great features as Sherlock , Jr., The Navigator, The General, and - my favorite - Our Hospitality, all the way back to those delicious shorts. I must say, the ending of One Week is one of the best laughs I ever ever had. 

The truth is, I love all Busters - Buster young and Buster old. The young Buster was brilliant and adorable, but the old Buster was a testament to the survival of genius and the soul of a performer. 

My interest in and love of silent film has been like a tangled ball of yarn, so much fun and sometimes frustrating to unravel. There is a bar of gold at the center of discovery, but much of the fun is in the unraveling.

p.s. Many thanks to my 7th grade English teacher whose name I have forgotten.


18 comments:

Silver Screenings said...

Beautifully written!

Like you, I love all Busters – young and old. He had a truly remarkable gift.

Steve Bailey said...

Lovely blogathon entry! I wish I'd had an English teacher astute enough to assign Buster to me -- I had to "discover" him on my own! Glad you latched onto his multitude of comedic gifts.

FlickChick said...

Hey Ruth - thanks so much. Buster young, Buster old, Buster in-between - we love them all!

FlickChick said...

Steve - yes, I sure was fortunate to have such a great assignment that stayed with me for always. Now, I just wish I could remember that teacher's name!

Brittaney said...

I loved reading about your journey of discovering Buster Keaton. It's always interesting how one detail can spark the next and the next.

FlickChick said...

Thanks for the kind words, Brittaney. It's amazing how sometimes the universe just wants us to find something!

Amy Condit said...

I enjoyed your post and use of clips. While Buster's silent work is masterful, I like the older Buster in the commercials and industrial films, too!

Virginie Pronovost said...

Lovely article! I always love reading about how people discovered certain actors!
One Week is the film that made me discover Buster. I first saw it in a museum (it was not an exhibition of Buster Keaton, it was contemporary art, but the artist was a fan and decided to share that with us).

FlickChick said...

Hi Amy. Yes, old Buster was adorable. He did al ot with the opportunities that came his way.

FlickChick said...

Thank you, Virginie! It's so much fun to discover someone when we weren't looking, right?

Lea S. said...

I love hearing how people became Buster fans, everyone has a unique and often personal story. And hey, if Charlie wants to make a cameo in a Buster-themed post that's alright by me. :-D Thanks for sharing these reminisces in our Buster blogathon, it's much appreciated!

Joe Thompson said...

Great essay. I somehow missed the old Buster Keaton and went straight to the young one when some channel showed The General in a chopped-up version and I watched it with my grandfather, who told me how much he had liked Buster when they were both young. I enjoyed learning how you came to be aware.

Unknown said...

Aw, this is really touching. I know how it is to stumble upon a bar of gold and not realize it until much later... I first saw BK in A Funny Thing Happened of the Way to the Forum and only years later, when I got into silents, did I make the connection that the old man running in the funny hat was also the young man running in the funny hat! Should have been obvious, but hey. lol. Anyway great article!

FlickChick said...

Lea - thank you and many thanks for hosting this blogathon. We all love Buster!

FlickChick said...

Hi Joe. Thank you for the kind words. It's a testament to your love of silents that you could watch a chopped up version of the General and still be drawn to it as a kid. I remember watching The Gold Rush in junior high school (that's what we called it then!) without music and I was bored to death. It wasn't until I was properly introduced to them with appropriate music and visually restored to their original state that I was able to appreciate them.

FlickChick said...

Hello unknown person. Thank you for the kind words. I was the same as you - who knew that old guy had such an interesting past!

Silver17 Productions said...

Very interesting to meet BK "backwards." I guess I did it "forwards." Cool addition to the blogathon!!

Lê said...

That was such a lovely post! I didn't have a memorable introduction to Buster - I just wanted to watch more and more old movies, and stumbled upon The Three Ages one afternoon on TV. And my love for him has only gown ever since.
THanks for the kind comment!
Kisses!