Marsha Chan, Mission College, Santa Clara, California, USA
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Check in your college/school district library system, in the public libraries, and in local video/DVD rental shops for A silent comedy. Some suggested titles with links to information (description, synopsis, etc.) follow.
The Gold Rush (1925) Starring: Charlie Chaplin, Mack Swain. Director: Charlie Chaplin. Summary: Charlie Chaplin's silent comic masterpiece centers on the hardships of life on the Alaskan frontier. The Little Tramp plays a pathetic, lonely prospector who journeys to the Klondike hoping to discover gold and make his fortune. Instead, he gets mixed up with some burly characters and falls in love with the beautiful Georgia (Georgia Hale). Includes both the silent 1925 original (newly restored) and the 1942 sound re-release.
Modern Times (1936) Starring: Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard. Summary: The Little Tramp battles it out with technology, unemployment, jail, burglars, demanding customers and more in this classic film. He wins some and loses more and in the end walks undaunted into the sunrise. Known as Chaplin's last silent film.
TV Guide review of Modern Times http://www.tvguide.com/movies/database/ShowMovie.asp?MI=7386
City Lights (1931). Starring: Charlie Chaplin Director: Charlie Chaplin. Synopsis: A tramp falls in love with a beautiful blind girl. Her family is in financial trouble. The tramp's on-and-off friendship with a wealthy man allows him to be the girl's benefactor and suitor.
The General, written and directed by Buster Keaton and Clyde Bruckman Publisher Gardena, CA : Swire Magnetics, c1985. Summary: A comedy based on true incident during the Civil War when the Union raiders stole a locomotive behind Confederate lines. Originally produced as silent film in 1926.
Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928).
Directed by: Charles Reisner and Buster Keaton. Writer: Carl Harbaugh. Summary:
Buster Keaton stars in the story of a college-educated young man who comes home
to help his father work on his Mississippi River steamboat and immediately demonstrates
just what a landlubber he is. What's worse, the woman he falls for is the daughter
of his father's worst rival, a bullying rich guy who wants to drive Buster's
boat out of business. Keaton's slapstick is inspired and precise, particularly
during an amazing sequence in which he tries to walk across town during a tornado.
Watch in amazement as the front of a building falls on Keaton and he walks away
without a scratch. B&W.
Review of Steamboat Bill, Jr: http://www.combustiblecelluloid.com/steambill.shtml
Comedy 101 The Complete History
of Funny in Film--Smore or Less, including Shhh...The Silent Era. Suggested
Viewing: Chaplin's The Gold Rush (1925), Modern Times (1936) and City Lights
(1931); Keaton's The General (1927), Steamboat Bill (1928) and Sherlock Jr.
(1924); the work of Harold Lloyd and Mack Sennett
Netflix Classic Comedies http://www.netflix.com/BrowseGenres/Comedy/307?lnktrk=GID_307
Marx Brothers Sound Bites
http://www.evl.uic.edu/pape/Marx/sounds/
Marx Brothers http://www.marx-brothers.org/
http://www.hollywoodlegends.com/marx-brothers.html
In the history of comic teams, none can match the wild antics of the movies'
favorite brothers -- Groucho, Chico, and Harpo. For the Marx Brothers no topic
was taboo, no person sacred, and they made fun of everybody and everything.
As youngsters the brothers began in vaudeville. A list of Marx Brothers movies
reads like a greatest hits list of Hollywood comedies. "The Cocoanuts,"
"A Day At The Races," "Animal Crackers," "Duck Soup,"
"Horse Feathers," "A Night At The Opera," and "A Night
In Casablanca" all show the wacky brothers in all their humorous glory.
Their pranks are timeless, and continue to enchant viewers of all ages.
The Great Chase / The Great Chase, Inc Publisher [New York] : Janus Films ; [Chicago, Ill.] : Distributed by Public Media Home Vision, 1963. Summary From the earliest days of motion pictures, the chase has been an integral ingredient for thrills and comic delight. Here is a cavalcade of the most hair-raising pursuits in film. This film traces the development of the chase, from its beginning, when motion pictures were a new form of entertainment
The Golden Age of Comedy Publisher New York : VidAmerica, 1981 (78 min.) : sd., b&w ; 1/2 in Note Featuring: Laurel and Hardy, Ben Turpin, Will Rogers, Keystone Cops, and many others Summary: Collection of excerpts from 1914-1929 comedies. Silent film with commentary
Choose any comedy movie clip or TV sitcom that you like. Many of the actors recommended in the previous activity made both silent and talking movies. Below are a few television sitcom suggestions; students will have other ideas.
The Cosby Show has very wide appeal.
It was TV's number-one show from 1985 to 1988, and stayed in the top 20 shows
for eight years. The Cosby Show's popularity was due to a variety of factors,
including its gentle humor and portrayal of an ideally close-knit family. Its
most enduring appeal is Bill Cosby himself. Nowadays, reruns are still shown
on television.
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=The+Bill+Cosby+Show+&btnG=Google+Search
http://www.tv.com/the-bill-cosby-show/show/649/summary.html
The I Love Lucy Show, starring Lucille Ball. During its broadcast from 1951 to 1957, this show was the number one rated TV show for four years: 67.3% of all American household with TVs were watching her show. Ball's dizzy redhead with the elastic face and saucer eyes was the model for scores of comic TV females to follow. Nowadays, reruns of the show are still shown on television, and the shows are available on videotape and DVD.
I Love Lucy Episode Guide with video
clip http://www.lucylibrary.com/Pages/ill-guide-1.html
Profile with QuickTime movie clips: http://www.time.com/time/time100/artists/profile/lucy.html
Job Switching: Lucy and Ethel struggle to keep up with a candy factory's assembly
line.
The Ballet: Desperate to perform in Ricky's nightclub, Lucy trains as a ballet
dancer.
Lucy Does a TV Commercial: Lucy takes one swig too many of elixir Vitameatavegamin.
Modern Times [Study guide]
I Love Lucy [Study guide]
Patch Adams [Study guide]
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