Tag Archives: Our Gang

Silent Comedy’s Bridges of Hollenbeck Park

The graceful arch bridge that once spanned the narrow lake in Hollenbeck Park has appeared in numerous silent films. USC Digital Library. Perhaps its most celebrated appearance is with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy during their early talkie short Men … Continue reading

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Buster, Harold, and Stymie at the Venice Pier

A prior post explains Buster Keaton and Orson Welles crossed paths filming in Venice, California. But what about Buster and Our Gang superstar Stymie Beard? Above Buster in The High Sign (1920) and Orson directing A Touch of Evil (1958). … Continue reading

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Silent Comedy’s Crazy Corner

Quick – what are some essential elements for a silent comedy? A park bench? An angry cop? A banana peel? If you think about it, one absolutely essential geographic element is the humble street corner. It doesn’t matter what the … Continue reading

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Laurel & Hardy’s Liberty Rooftop

Shortly after the San Francisco Silent Film Festival presented Laurel & Hardy’s high-rise comedy Liberty (1929), accompanied by Jon Mirsalis, TCM broadcast the 1933 MGM drama Day of Reckoning, starring Richard Dix. The Dix film was full of surprises. For … Continue reading

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