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American Slapstick Disc 1 (Caught in the Rain / Laughing Gas / The Submarine Pirate / Cupid's Rival / The Bond) (1914)
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| Starring: | Charles Chaplin, Mack Swain, Alice Davenport, Alice Howell, Fritz Schade, Joseph Sutherland, Slim Summerville, Billy West, Oliver Hardy, Leo White, Bud Ross, Edna Purviance, Syd Chaplin, Henry Bergman, Wesley Ruggles, Harold Lloyd |
| Director: | Charles Chaplin, Billy West, Syd Chaplin |
| Genre: | Silent, Comedy, Short Subject |
| Year: | 1914 |
| Studio: | All Day Entertainment |
| Length: | 92 minutes |
| Released: | November 21, 2006 |
| Rating: | NR |
| Format: | DVD |
| Misc: | NTSC, Black & White |
| Language: | English(Original Language) |
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SYNOPSIS:
CAUGHT IN THE RAIN • Charlie Chaplin • 1914, 13 min
The legendary story goes like this: Mack Sennett hired a young comedian named Charlie Chaplin in 1914 to play opposite his then-biggest star, Mabel Normand. “Creative disagreements” ensued, and Normand wanted Chaplin out. Sennett called Chaplin into his office, planning to fire the young upstart, but received a frantic telegram from NY booking agents begging for more Chaplin films. So, instead of firing him, Sennett allowed Chaplin to start directing his own films. CAUGHT IN THE RAIN is (more or less) the first shorts Chaplin directed. It features elements both distinctive to Chaplin (such as his drunk act, a mainstay of his early films) and to Mack Sennett’s Keystone (yup, we get an appearance of the fabled Keystone Kops).
LAUGHING GAS • Charlie Chaplin • 1914, 11 min
Chaplin’s years at Keystone are his least celebrated period. Keystone already had one breakout star, Mabel Normand, when Chaplin came along and taught them what true stardom was all about. The rapid pace of production gave Chaplin a crucial platform on which to develop, test, and refine his comic identity—honing his talent over the course of 35 films. These early works are seminal if crude: the comedy is rough, in all senses of the word. This is one of Chaplin’s most violent films.
A SUBMARINE PIRATE • Syd Chaplin • 1915, 26 min
Syd Chaplin was a trained seaman who joined Fred Karno’s touring company, and then did the most important thing he would do in his entire life: introduce younger half-brother Charlie to the world of acting. Charlie soon overtook him, and everyone else, but Syd continued to appear in Charlie’s films (such as THE BOND) and manage his brother’s business affairs. Keystone produced a handful of Syd’s solo efforts, of which this rarely seen gem is often cited as the best.
CUPID’S RIVAL • Billy West • 1917, 28 min
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Charlie Chaplin must have been quite flattered by the likes of Lupino Lane, Billie Ritchie, and Harold Lloyd’s “Lucky Luke.” Of these, Billy West was remarkable for mimicking Chaplin’s mannerisms so precisely as to fool many audiences. Chaplin told West, “You’re a damned good imitation but that’s all you are.” West has fallen into obscurity—ever see a Billy West DVD Collection?—but he was a truly gifted, if unoriginal, comic talent. Here he co-stars with a young Oliver Hardy as a jealous, cross-dressing artist. Is it Keystone or is it Memorex?
THE BOND • Charlie Chaplin • 1918 9 min
A promotional short in which Charlie (with his regular costars Mack Swain and Edna Purviance) does his part for the US effort in World War I.
BONUS FEATURE:
- Bonus Compilation Getting Ahead (5 min)
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