Clyde Bruckman Movies
Upon graduating from high school, American writer/director Clyde Bruckman entered the infant movie industry as a "gag man" for the many comedy studios of the era. Bruckman settled with Buster Keaton's company in 1921, working on the writing team for Keaton's classic feature films The Three Ages (1923), Our Hospitality (1923), Sherlock Jr. (1924) and The Navigator (1925). In 1926 he moved on to Harold Lloyd's staff, contributing material to Lloyd's For Heaven's Sake (1926), Welcome Danger (1929), Feet First (1930) and Movie Crazy (1932). Bruckman was also credited as director on the three last-mentioned films, and had previously co-directed Keaton's The General (1926). While at Hal Roach studios, Bruckman was listed as director on Laurel and Hardys Putting Pants of Philip (1927), Battle of the Century (1927) and Leave 'Em Laughing (1928). Most historians have concluded that Bruckman's directorial credits were nominal at best; most of the top comedians virtually directed themselves, but didn't want to appear egomaniacal by grabbing all the credit. As proof of this, Bruckman's detractors cite his work on such films as Robert Woolsey's Everything's Rosie (1931), Lloyd Hamilton's Too Many Highballs (1933) and The 3 Stooges' Horses Collars (1935). Without strong creative input from the stars, these films are sloppily constructed and lacking in pace. Bruckman's best talkie work was in collaboration with another self-starting comedian, W.C. Fields; Field's two-reeler The Fatal Glass of Beer, directed by Bruckman, is a comedy classic by any standard. Increasingly uncomfortable as a director, Bruckman drowned his insecurities in liquor. During production of W. C. Fields' Man on the Flying Trapeze (1935), Bruckman disappeared for nearly a week, compelling Fields himself to take over direction. Virtually unemployable in feature films after this, Bruckman found work with Jules White's short subject unit at Columbia, where he filled his scripts with gags and routines lifted from his best silent work. The limit came when Bruckman copied Harold Lloyd's "magician's coat" routine from Movie Crazy (1932) and transplanted it nearly word for word into the 3 Stooges short Loco Boy Makes Good (1942). Lloyd sued Columbia, and Bruckman never again received a movie credit. His last work was for the syndicated Abbott and Costello Show, where once again his scripts were overloaded with repeated routines from Bruckman's glory days. Broke and depressed, Clyde Bruckman borrowed Keaton's gun, purportedly for target practice, and shot himself in a Santa Monica restaurant on January 4, 1955. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1930
A Flask of Fields consists of three short subjects starring the inimitable W.C. Fields. All three will be familiar to Fields buffs, but chances are they won't pass up the opportunity for just one more look. First on the docket is 1930's The Golf Specialist, wherein W.C. recreates his classic Ziegfeld Follies golf routine ("Stand clear and keep your eye on the ball!") Next up is The Dentist (1932), in which the comedy gets so raucous that an entire sequence had to be censored in reissue prints (it's the bit where Fields is forced to straddle his struggling female patient (Elise Cavanna)). Last on the program is The Fatal Glass of Beer (1932), a surrealistic bit of inspired nonsense best summed up by the catchphrase "And it ain't a fit night out fer man nor beast!" ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1942
One of the most fondly remembered of the "Blondie" series entries, Blondie Goes to College is predicated on the notion that Dagwood Bumstead (Arthur Lake) must receive a college diploma or lose his job with the Dithers Construction Company. Not wishing to be separated from her husband, Blondie (Penny Singleton) enrolls in college as well-but the rules stipulate "no married couples", forcing our hero and heroine to pretend that they're not married. This causes quite a dilemma when coed Laura Wadsworth (Janet Blair) begins flirting with Dagwood and B.M.O.C. Rusty Bryant (Larry Parks) does same with Blondie. Making things worse-Blondie is expecting another child (who will make her first appearance in the next installment, Blondie's Blessed Event), but she daren't tell anyone lest both she and Dag be expelled. The student body at this particular seat of learning is comprised of quite a few familiar faces (most well past college age), including Lloyd Bridges, Sid Melton, and Adele Mara. The biggest laughs in Blondie Goes to College are garnered by famed double-talk expert Al Kelly, playing an uncredited cameo as a tangle-tongued professor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, (more)
- 1927
Jewish comic Max Davidson stars in this Hal Roach farce that would most likely have been completely forgotten had not Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, and Charley Chase turned up in cameo appearances. Davidson, wife Lillian Elliott, and son Spec O'Donnell are attempting to sell their house, which is located right next door to an insane asylum inhabited by a group of would-be radio announcers (the Messieurs Laurel, Hardy, Chase and James Finlayson). At the end of their ropes, the Davidsons finally find a buyer willing to swap houses, "no questions asked." The proud little family takes possession of their new abode, the street number of which is 1313, but it proves to be a lemon of gargantuan proportion where everything is topsy-turvy. A housewarming party ends in a free-for-all that nearly wrecks the house, and, after surveying the damage, the Davidsons discover that the insane asylum has relocated as well -- to right next door. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Max Davidson, Lillian Elliott, (more)
- 1931
Having built up the comedy team of Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey into a surefire box-office draw, RKO Radio was possessed with the notion to briefly split up the team, showcasing each actor in his own separate vehicle in hopes of doubling their profitability. Woolsey's first (and last) solo effort was Everything's Rosie, which though ostensibly a screen original by Al Boasberg was actually a rip-off of the 1923 W. C. Fields stage vehicle Poppy (in which Woolsey had played a featured role). The bespectacled, cigar-chomping comedian is cast as Dr. J. Dockweiler Droop, a crooked-yet-lovable sideshow medicine man. Rescuing a two-year old urchin named Rosie from her harridan of a mother, Doc Droop raises the girl as his own. By the time she reaches maturity, the lovely Rosie (played as an adult by Anita Louise) is every bit the sharpster that her "father" is. When Rosie falls in love with wealthy Billy Lowe (John Darrow), Doc tries his best to make a good impression at a party given by Billy's mother, only to end up in the calaboose when he's accused of theft. Realizing that he's a millstone around Rosie's neck, Doc quietly shuffles out of her life, but not before smoothing the romantic path for the hero and heroine. Funny though he was in the Wheeler and Woolsey comedies, Bob Woolsey simply wasn't a strong enough performer to carry a picture by himself -- though in all fairness, it should be noted that Bert Wheeler fared almost as badly in his solo RKO effort, Too Many Cooks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Woolsey, Anita Louise, (more)
- 1930
Harold Lloyd's second talkie finds The Bespectacled One playing a shoe clerk in Honolulu. Harboring dreams of becoming an executive, Lloyd passes himself off as a millionaire to heiress Barbara Kent. As the plot merrily rolls along, Harold stows away on a ship bound for the mainland, and ends up at the top of a dizzying skyscraper. In a reversal of his dilemma in 1923's Safety Last, Lloyd must find the safest way to climb down the building--with the dubious assistance of bumbling black janitor Willie Best (here derogatorily billed as "Sleep 'N' Eat"). Attempting to extend his silent-film technique into the talkie era, Harold Lloyd is successful about half the time. The climactic building-climbing sequence, though amusing, pales in comparison to Lloyd's earlier excursions into "high and dizzy" humor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harold Lloyd, Robert McWade, (more)
- 1926
Harold Lloyd plays a wealthy young spendthrift who is upset that his name is being used to bring parishioners into a storefront mission in the poorer part of town. He heads to the mission to have it out with the minister, only to fall in love with minister's daughter Jobyna Ralston. Realizing that the use of his name as an endorsement was an honest error on Ralston's part, Harold decides to help the girl's father attract worshippers and hymn-shouters. He goads a bunch of thugs and pluguglies into the mission, then makes certain that they stay--and secures their undying loyalty--by saving them from being arrested. Harold and Jobyna decide to get married, whereupon Harold's wealthy chums, dismayed that he is marrying beneath his station, kidnap the poor fellow to prevent him from making a "mistake". Harold is rescued by his tough-guy slum pals, but not before they've gotten themselves drunk and commandeered a double-decker bus. The climactic chase is as hilarious and exciting a piece of celluloid as has ever been produced, but it is merely the capper to an uninterrupted stream of brilliant sight gags. Long underrated, For Heaven's Sake is one of the cleverest and most consistently entertaining of all of Harold Lloyd's silent vehicles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, (more)
- 1941
When millionaire Peter Hedley Lamar Jr. (Buster Keaton) is smitten by the loveliness of an Army nurse (Dorothy Appleby), he decides to enlist because the woman will pay attention only to soldiers. Once in the service, however, he spends most of his time cleaning spittoons and fending off the advances of another, more predatory nurse (Elsie Ames) -- although the two do engage in a show-stopping song-and-dance routine. He eventually manages to get himself sufficiently injured to be put in the hospital near his beloved and, despite the further efforts of the rival nurse, he is able to rescue his girl from a lunatic and win her affection. ~ Nicole Gagne, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton
- 1936
Even a run-of-the-mill Three Stooges short had its moments, as this one proves. It begins in November, 1918, and Larry, Moe and Curly are sleeping through the end of World War I. The sergeant (Stanley Blystone) wakes them up to tell them the war is over -- and to abuse them, blacking Curly and Larry's eyes and mercilessly twisting Moe's arm. But the Stooges release their pent-up anger at the sarge once they have their discharge papers, and he winds up much the worse for wear. Seventeen years later, it's the depths of the depression and the Stooges are broke and hungry. When they see a diner sitting in front of a sumptuous feast, they get a stray dog to run in and grab the roast chicken. The dog, of course, won't give it up, and the diner is ready to throttle them. Instead, he tricks them into re-enlisting in the Army. The worst part about being back in uniform is that once again they're stuck with the same nasty sergeant. During one drill with a cannon, they are sent out to get the shells and gun powder. When they return they don't realize that target practice has been canceled and proceed to shoot everything in sight, including the admiral's flagship (at this point it's pretty obvious that Columbia thanked its lucky stars for stock footage!). The boys are proud of their work, and the sergeant cheerfully lines them up. But instead of the reward they're expecting, he points the cannon at them and fires. All that's left of the Stooges is their smoking boots. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- 1945
In this romantic comedy, three man-hungry sisters consult a fortune-teller to help them with their romantic futures. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1943
Honeymoon Lodge is a musical variation on the old Awful Truth plotline. Divorce-bound Bob and Carol Sterling (David Bruce, June Vincent) make a last-ditch attempt to avoid their legal breakup by restaging their mountain-resort honeymoon. Things get complicated when a rancher named Big Boy (Rod Cameron, in a Ralph Bellamy-style "sap" role) shows up at the resort in ardent pursuit of Carol, while Lorraine Logan (Harriet Hilliard) sets her cap for Bob. Though it has more plot than usual for a film of this kind, Honeymoon Lodge is worth seeing only for its musical highlights, including a few delightful numbers teaming Harriet Hilliard with her real-life bandleader husband Ozzie Nelson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Bruce, June Vincent, (more)
- 1927
Horse Shoes wasn't quite as spectacular as Monty Banks' previous comedy Play Safe, but it still packed plenty of laughs into its tight six reels. This time the dapper, diminutive Banks gets involved with the horsey set, leading to plenty of slapstick shenanigans at the racetrack. The story wraps up in a courtroom, with Banks performing some eye-popping athletics while pleading his case. An earlier sequence, in which Banks tries to sleep in an upper berth, only to find that his travelling companion is a strange young woman, was singled out for critical praise. Horse Shoes was directed by Clyde Bruckman, a frequent contributor to the films of Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Monty Banks, Jean Arthur, (more)
- 1935
The Three Stooges are in fine form for their fifth Columbia short. Clyde Bruckman, who worked with silent luminaries Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd, was the director, and it's obvious that he added quite a bit to the fun. The boys are working for the Hyden Zeke Detective Agency, as evidenced by their Sherlock Holmes-style hats and pipes. While the boss explains their next assignment -- going out West to save a girl's ranch from the evil Double Deal Decker -- Curly's eyes seem to be glazed over. It turns out he has eyes painted on his eyelids to hide the fact that he's napping. A mouse, however, sends him into a hyperactive fit, which is only cured when Moe and Larry feed him cheese. Soon enough, the Stooges arrive at the gambling hall run by Decker. They take a few turns on a dance floor in an attempt to lift Decker's wallet, which they assume contains the I.O.U. they're looking for. But they're caught and strung-up, only to be saved at the last minute when Curly sees a mouse and knocks everyone unconscious. He comes to the rescue again when the Stooges are found breaking into Decker's safe. Two mice are inside and as a result, Decker and his henchman get floored. Unfortunately, this time the cheese cure also knocks out the other Stooges when they get a whiff of Curly's Limburger breath. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Moe Howard, Larry Fine, (more)
- 1928
In this Laurel and Hardy two-reel silent, Stan's toothache is keeping both him and Ollie awake. Their attempts to pull the tooth out also wake up their chagrined landlord (the perennial Laurel and Hardy landlord, Charlie Hall). The next day, Ollie takes Stan to a dentist (Jack V. Lloyd). Stan, after sitting in the waiting room and seeing the wreckage a dental visit can do, has gotten very nervous by the time his turn comes. Ollie tells the dentist to leave the room while he calms down the squeamish Stan. Ollie, naturally, is the one who winds up with an extracted tooth. Both of them finally leave the office under the influence of laughing gas. They encounter a cop (Edgar Kennedy, the perennial Laurel and Hardy policeman), who does not understand what is so funny. After several failed attempts to get them to stop laughing and get going, the cop takes over the wheel and drives them off -right into a puddle. Stan and Ollie are still laughing as they sink ever deeper into the mud. Much of the dentist's office scene was repeated in the boys' 1931 sound feature, Pardon Us. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- 1927
Although Hal Roach had already decided to officially team up Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, he cast Hardy as Max Davidson's sidekick in this two-reeler about a couple of miners who strike it rich. "Cherokee" Cohen (Davidson) and "Happy" Hopey (Hardy) strike gold, and the claim is purchased by Bat Carnahan. Cohen and Hopey take their newfound wealth to New York, where they check into a swank hotel and their uncouth behavior makes them sorely stand out. But Hopey finds a date when he helps out Viola (Viola Richardson), who has just been fired from her job as a telephone operator. Cohen finds his own girl, Martha (Martha Sleeper), under similar circumstances. They go out for dinner, and their lack of social skills infuriates the manager. When he berates the guys, Hopey throws a creampuff at him. In typical Hal Roach fashion, this escalates into an all-out food fight. The fracas finally comes to an end and Cohen and Hopey are ordered to pay for the damage done. The manager brags that he managed to get through the ordeal unscathed, but he's spoken too soon -- a new tray of pies is delivered and Cohen and Hopey make sure they find their mark. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- 1939
This Civil War comedy, related in flashbacks, depicts the misadventures of Buster Keaton as he tries to avoid getting killed by both Confederate and Union soldiers. When news of the outbreak of war reaches his family, Keaton and his brother Cyrus (Monty Collins) go off to enlist. But when they return home, they're in different uniforms: Keaton has joined the Confederacy and Cyrus the Union. As opposing armies sweep through the land, the brothers keep changing uniforms to blend in. Ultimately, Keaton is able to warn the Confederate forces and rescue them from the Union army. Note that producer/director Jules White remade this script (written by longtime Keaton collaborator Clyde Bruckman) as the 1946 Columbia two-reeler Uncivil Warbirds starring the Three Stooges. ~ Nicole Gagne, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton
- 1944
In this musical romance, a young couple is still in love, but find themselves facing insurmountable turmoil in their relationship. They separate and head for Vegas for a quickie divorce. The wife is counseled by another that to save the union, she must make her husband jealous. She does, romantic mayhem ensues, and in the end, they reunite to form a rock-solid, happy marriage. Songs include: "A Dream Ago," "Moon over Las Vegas," "Faithful Flo," "So Goodnight," "A Touch of Texas," "You Marvelous You," "Oklahoma's One with Me," and "My Blue Heaven." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Gwynne, David Bruce, (more)
- 1932
Movie Crazy was Harold Lloyd's best-received sound film. It is the semi-autobiographical tale of an idealistic aspiring movie star who exchanges the quiet life in his sleepy Kansas hometown for the glamour and excitement of Tinseltown where he mistakenly believes he has been selected for a screentest. Unfortunately, the test is a series of slapstick bungles. The studio heads busily review the strange audition and while waiting for their verdict, Lloyd falls in love with a pretty actress who unfortunately is totally in costume when they meet. He doesn't recognize her in her street clothes, but still cant help falling in love with her. The actress knows he doesn't recognize her and has some fun with that. Lloyd's success is further assured when the studio moguls sign him up as their newest comedian. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harold Lloyd, Constance Cummings, (more)
- 1940
Nothing But Pleasure was hardly any pleasure at all. The third of Buster Keaton's ten two-reel comedies for Columbia went absolutely nowhere fast despite a good set-up. Keaton and wife (Dorothy Appleby) combine a car-buying spree in Detroit with what they assume will be a pleasant drive home. Naturally, the trip turns into a nightmare. Veteran Keaton collaborator Clyde Bruckman borrowed pieces of business from his distant past, including W.C. Fields' The Man in the Flying Trapeze and Keaton's own Spite Marriage (1929). From the latter Bruckman lifted a famous gag where Buster carries a drunken woman to bed. Hysterically funny back in 1929, perhaps, less so ten years and a long struggle with alcoholism later. Former B-Western star Addison Randall (aka Jack Randall) and future MGM lead Robert Sterling appeared in bit parts. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton
- 1923
Buster Keaton's third starring feature (discounting 1920's The Saphead, which was not conceived with Keaton in mind), Our Hospitality is a boisterous satire of family feuds and Southern codes of honor. In 1831, Keaton leaves his home in New York to take charge of his family mansion down South. En route, Keaton befriends pretty Natalie Talmadge (Keaton's real-life wife at the time), who invites him to dine at her family home. Upon meeting Talmadge's father and brothers, Keaton learns that he is the last surviving member of a family with whom Talmadge's kin have been feuding for over 20 years. The brothers are all for killing Keaton on the spot, but Talmadge's father (Joe Roberts) insists that the rules of hospitality be observed: so long as Keaton is a guest in the house, he will not be harmed. Thus, Keaton spends the next few reels alternately planning to sneak out of the mansion without being noticed, and contriving to remain within its walls as long as possible. The dilemma is resolved when Keaton rescues Talmadge from a raging waterfall (a dummy stood in for Talmadge; Keaton used no doubles, and nearly lost his life as a result). Beyond the brilliant sight gags in the closing scenes, the most memorable sequence in Our Hospitality is the bumpy train ride taken by Keaton and Talmadge in an 1831-vintage Stephenson Rocket. This 7-reel silent film represents the only joint appearance of Buster Keaton and Natalie Talmadge; Keaton hoped that by spending several weeks on location with his wife, he could patch up their shaky marriage (it didn't work). Also appearing in Our Hospitality are two other members of the Keaton family: Keaton's ex-vaudevillian father Joe (who performs an eye-popping "high kick") and his son Joseph Keaton IV, playing Buster as a baby. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton, Natalie Talmadge, (more)
- 1940
Whether in the newsroom or on board a speeding train, aspiring reporter Buster Keaton creates havoc in this funny short. To get Keaton out of his hair, the city editor (Vernon Dent) assigns him to shadow a wealthy woman (Dorothy Appleby) who is taking the train to Reno to divorce her mobster husband (Richard Fiske). Keaton travels with his parrot Clarice, and because its cooing sounds like the wife, the jealous gangster attacks Keaton in his berth. A wild chase ensues which ends with Keaton trussing up the gangster in the train's emergency chord, thus winning himself a spot on the newspaper as a star reporter. Note that producer/director Jules White remade this script (written by longtime Keaton collaborator Clyde Bruckman) as the 1947 Columbia two-reeler Rolling Down to Reno starring Harry Von Zell. ~ Nicole Gagne, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton
- 1939
The first, and best, of ten comedy two-reelers Buster Keaton was to make for the Columbia short subject department, Pest From the West featured Keaton as a millionaire vacationing in Mexico. He falls for a beautiful señorita (Lorna Gray, later known as Adrian Booth), who plays along in order to make her employer, Gino Corrado, jealous. In a scene reminiscent of Keaton's best work, he serenades an irascible Bud Jamison in the mistaken belief that he is Gray. Keaton strums his ukulele, oblivious to the flying crockery that punctuates every note, and blithely warbles "In a Little Spanish Town." Like most entries in the series, Pest From the West was penned by veteran Keaton collaborator Clyde Bruckman. Reportedly, Keaton was hired for his onscreen presence only and apparently didn't contribute any gags himself. Although dismissed by modern Keaton fans, the Columbia two-reelers were popular in their day. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton
- 1938
Harold Lloyd plays a professor of Egyptology, frightened by the notion that he has fallen under an ancient Egyptian curse. Lloyd has the opportunity to join an archeological expedition to search for a missing tablet that will determine his fate, but he has to travel from Los Angeles to New York before the party sails to Egypt. Alas, Lloyd is also required to appear in court to answer charges of "indecent exposure" (it's a long story). The rest of the film is a frantic chase with the authorities pursuing the fugitive professor across the country, highlighted by a daredevil sequence atop a moving train. Most of the individual gags are funny, but Professor Beware is several notches below the standard set by Harold Lloyd's silent films. The lukewarm boxoffice response to this film would convince Lloyd that he should retire from performing--which he did, returning to the screen only for 1947's Sins of Harold Diddlebock. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Welch, Raymond Walburn, (more)
- 1927
Although Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy and producer Hal Roach all name Putting Pants on Phillip as the first true Laurel and Hardy film, the comic pair had appeared in films together for The Roach Studios over a dozen times previously. In addition, while this two-reeler helped establish many of the classic Laurel and Hardy reactions, they are not playing the characters for which they later became famous. Oliver Hardy is Piedmont Mumblethunder, who is at dockside, waiting for the arrival of his nephew from Scotland, Phillip (Laurel). An exceedingly quirky man in a kilt comes off the ship and becomes the subject of ridicule amongst a crowd of onlookers. With horror, Piedmont realizes that it's his nephew. Piedmont haughtily instructs Phillip to follow him down the street of his town. Phillip, however, is distracted by a pretty girl (Dorothy Coburn), who he pursues. He also loses his underwear, and a gust from a ventilator shaft blows his kilt up. The sight causes several women to faint and a policeman to exclaim, "That dame ain't got no lingerie on!"
This is the last straw for Piedmont, and he drags his nephew to a tailor's to be outfitted with pants. Ultimately Piedmont has to use force to measure Phillip, and Phillip's resulting look of hurt and violation is sublimely memorable. The Scot leaves the tailor's to chase after the same pretty girl he pursued earlier, catching up with her in front of a puddle. He gallantly removes his kilt and lays it on the puddle (luckily he's obtained some underwear). She laughs at him, jumps over the kilt, and goes on her way. Piedmont, however, insists on stepping on that confounded kilt himself and sinks completely into the mud-hole. When he emerges, the camera closes in for that soon-to-be-classic Oliver Hardy look of chagrin. While not the Laurel and Hardy that made film history, the duo's characterizations in Putting Pants on Phillip nevertheless give it a timeless humor. The idea for this film was Stan Laurel's -- it was loosely based on a true experience related by a friend during Laurel's music-hall days. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
This is the last straw for Piedmont, and he drags his nephew to a tailor's to be outfitted with pants. Ultimately Piedmont has to use force to measure Phillip, and Phillip's resulting look of hurt and violation is sublimely memorable. The Scot leaves the tailor's to chase after the same pretty girl he pursued earlier, catching up with her in front of a puddle. He gallantly removes his kilt and lays it on the puddle (luckily he's obtained some underwear). She laughs at him, jumps over the kilt, and goes on her way. Piedmont, however, insists on stepping on that confounded kilt himself and sinks completely into the mud-hole. When he emerges, the camera closes in for that soon-to-be-classic Oliver Hardy look of chagrin. While not the Laurel and Hardy that made film history, the duo's characterizations in Putting Pants on Phillip nevertheless give it a timeless humor. The idea for this film was Stan Laurel's -- it was loosely based on a true experience related by a friend during Laurel's music-hall days. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
Buster Keaton plays a young lawyer who will inherit $7 million at 7 o'clock on his 27th birthday--provided he is married. Long before discovering this, Keaton has pursued a lifelong courtship of Ruth Dwyer, whose refusals have become ritualistic over the years (the passage of time is amusingly conveyed by showing a puppy grow to adulthood). He proposes again, but this time she turns him down because she thinks (mistakenly) that he wants her only so that he can claim his inheritance. The doleful Keaton is thus obliged to spend the few hours left before the 7 PM deadline in search of a bride--any bride. He has no luck whatsoever until his pal T. Roy Barnes prints the story of Keaton's incoming legacy in the local newspaper. As a result, literally hundreds of women, bedecked in veils and bearing bouquets, chase Keaton through the busy streets of Los Angeles. When Keaton's producer Joseph M. Schenck bought the film rights to the Roi Cooper Megrue stage play Seven Chances, Keaton opted to forego most of the play's plot complications, devoting his energies to the bride-hunting vignettes and the climactic slapstick chase. The final scenes originally laid an egg with preview audiences--until the sequence was saved by "three little rocks." During the closing moments of the chase, Buster accidentally dislodged three small stones in the ground, which rolled after him as he escaped the thundering herd of would-be brides. The audience laughed immoderately at the tiny rocks, thereby inspiring Keaton to reshoot the ending, utilizing scores of huge, rolling boulders. The extra effort worked beautifully; while not his best silent feature, Seven Chances contains one of Keaton's most hilarious finales. Watch for Jean Arthur in a bit as a receptionist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buster Keaton, Ruth Dwyer, (more)
- 1945
Joan Davis, the daughter of a famed woman detective, has inherited none of her mother's deductive prowess. Nonetheless, Joan teams with patrolman Leon Errol to solve a series of blowgun murders. The two erstwhile Sherlocks track down the alleged murder weapon to a theatre, where it is being used as a prop in a play. After disrupting the performance, Davis determines that the murders weren't committed by blowgun, and that the culprit is a mild-mannered gentleman to whom murder is a "hobby." The title She Gets Her Man clues us in on the finale, and also refers to the shaky but affectionate relationship between Joan Davis and Leon Errol. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
