Showing posts with label Stan Laurel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stan Laurel. Show all posts

Friday, December 29, 2023

Dumb Dora Does Her Daily Dozen -- December 29, 2023

Motion Picture News, 01-December-1923

Baby Peggy Montgomery was Century's biggest comedy star.

Motion Picture News, 15-December-1923

Baby Peggy's first feature film appearance was in The Darling of New York, which was directed by King Baggott.

Motion Picture News, 08-December-1923

Baby Peggy had recently signed a contract to make features for Sol Lesser's Principal Pictures. Her first production would be Captain January, an adaption of the book by Laura E Richards. Shirley Temple later starred in an adaption of the same book. 

Photoplay, December, 1923

Motion Picture News, 08-December-1923

Pal the Dog was another popular Century star. 

Film Daily, 22-December-1923

Christie advised exhibitors to stop stoking the egos of big producers and start entertaining their customers with well-made short films. 

Film Daily, 14-December-1923

Educational offered free ad mats for their short subjects. These could be run as stand-alone newspaper ads or inserted into larger ads. Dorothy Devore as "Dumb Dora Does Her Daily Dozen" in "Kidding Katie." Lots of Ds and Ks. I like the dog.

Film Daily, 28-December-1923

Motion Picture News, 08-December-1923

Educational released series of short comedies made by many different producers. Cameo Comedies were one-reelers.

Motion Picture News, 08-December-1923

"Laurel is making 'em all look to their laurels." That is an awful picture of Stanley. 

Motion Picture News, 08-December-1923

Motion Picture News, 22-December-1923

Motion Picture News, 22-December-1923

"Real people doing really funny things in a really human way." Hal Roach's Spat Family movies were situation comedies. 

Motion Picture News, 22-December-1923

Hal Roach's Our Gang pursues Baby New Year 1924. 

Motion Picture News, 15-December-1923

Motion Picture News, 08-December-1923

Snub Pollard appeared in a series of two-reelers for Hal Roach. 

Motion Picture News, 15-December-1923



Saturday, July 22, 2023

Happy Snappy Peppy - July 22, 2023

Motion Picture Magazine, July, 1923

Jocko, a stuffed animal, receives instructions from Baby Peggy.

Motion Picture News, 14-July-1923

A New York doll manufacturer made a deal with the Stern Brothers of Century Comedies to make a Baby Peggy doll. This is not related to the Baby Peggy dolls made by disabled artist Peggy Wheeler:

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

Fox promoted Imperial Comedies, their new brand of two-reelers. "Because of the standard set for these productions the distribution schedule is limited to 12 releases for the season."

Cine-Mundial, July, 1923

Al St John had his own series of two-reel comedies for Fox.

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

The Covered Wagon was the first epic western and an enormous hit. Many parodies followed, such as Hal Roach's "The Uncovered Wagon." Paul Parrott, Charley Chase's brother, was the star. JA Howe directed. 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

The hero and heroine escape from jeopardy by catching a streetcar which is running across the open prairie. 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

"...full of whimsey and good for a round of laughs."

Motion Picture News, 21-July-1923

This ad for Hal Roach's one-reel comedies features Paul Parrott, Stan Laurel and the Dippy-Doo-Dads. I see a dog sitting in a police vehicle, a monkey dressed as a fireman and a duck who appears to be in distress. 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

"Pick and Shovel," was directed by George Jeske and starred Stan Laurel.

Motion Picture News, 14-July-1923

In "Kill or Cure," Stanley played a patent medicine salesman whose product could be used as "a varnish, stove polish, or bug exterminator -- delightful after shaving."  Scott Pembroke directed. 

Motion Picture News, 28-July-1923

With Harold Lloyd having flown the coop, Hal Roach's biggest success was the Our Gang Comedies. 

Motion Picture News, 28-July-1923

"Lodge Night" was directed by Robert McGowan. 

Motion Picture News, 28-July-1923

Billy West started as a Chaplin imitator but later developed his own character. He starred in an Arrow series called Broadway Comedies. 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

Eddie Lyons starred in another series for Arrow. "The Love of Tut" was one of many films inspired by the recent discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun.

Motion Picture News, 28-July-1923

A bevy of performers from Christie comedies. 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

Snub Pollard appeared in a series of two-reelers for Hal Roach. I have always liked the title of Snub's film "The Courtship of Miles Sandwich."

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

Sid Smith was a veteran comedian. He starred in a new series of two-reel films distributed by Grand-Asher, which was a fairly new company. "The Joke Smith and Gloom Chaser." 

Motion Picture News, 28-July-1923

"The Boy That Packs Em In." "King of Komedies." 

Motion Picture News, 14-July-1923

Grand-Asher distributed series with Sid Smith and Monty Banks. "Happy Snappy Peppy."

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

Scenes with Sid Smith and Monty Banks. 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

"The Monarch of Mirth." "The Covered Schooner" was another parody of The Covered Wagon. 

Motion Picture News, 28-July-1923

"12 Two Reel Comedies/Every One a Knock-Out." 

Motion Picture News, 07-July-1923

Comic T Roy Barnes ("Do you know a man by the name of LaFong? Carl LaFong? Capital L, small a, Capital F, small o, small n, small g. LaFong. Carl LaFong.") signed with Grace Page Productions to star in a series of "two-reel domestic comedies." Domestic comedies usually went light on the slapstick. 

Paul Terry's animated Aesop's Film Fable was "The Covered Push-Cart." Another satire of The Covered 



Sunday, April 30, 2023

Christie Comedies -- New Ideas -- New Laughs -- April 30, 2023

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

Christie Comedies were becoming more ambitious. "Backgrounds from Hawaii to Alaska -- different in every picture. "Green as Grass," centered on horse racing, starred Jimmie Adams and was directed by Scott Sidney. "... a fast and thrilling race of laughs."

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

Jimmie Adams and Charlotte Herriam. 

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

Unfortunately, Christie chose to make "Roll Along" with his actors in black face. Scott Sidney directed The movie was shot along the Sacramento River but set along the Mississippi. Jimmie Adams played Rastus Jones. "Every actor in the picture will be in burnt cork, that is to say there will be no real colored folks in the piece..."

Motion Picture News, 07-April-1923

Century Comedies, which had produced short comedies like "Sky High" was going to feature their biggest star, Baby Peggy, in a feature-length movie. Elsie Jane Wilson was to direct, but King Baggott would end up with the credit.  

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

Doris Eaton became known as the "Last Surviving Ziegfeld Girl" before she died in 2010. She appeared in three editions of the Ziegfeld Follies between 1918 and 1920. Her husband Joe Gorham, a former director for Flo Ziegfeld, produced a revue called the Gorham Follies. Joe Gorham died six months after they married, leaving Doris a widow at 19. At least two short comedies in the Gorham Follies series were produced. 

Doris and her sisters Pearl and Mary, all beautiful, appeared in several editions of the Ziegfeld Follies.

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

Hal Roach was producing short comedies which alternated between Paul Parrot, brother of Charley Chase, and Stan Laurel. 

Motion Picture News, 28-April-1923

Hal Roach's new series, Our Gang, was a hit.

Motion Picture News, 28-April-1923

Snub Pollard had his own series of two-reelers for Roach.

Motion Picture News, 07-April-1923

Lloyd Hamilton had his own series released by Educational. "His unerring sense of comedy..."

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

"The majority of  'F. O. B.' was shot in a box car ... The cast of 'F. O. B.' has no women."

Motion Picture News, 14-April-1923

Educational released Mermaid Comedies, produced by Jack White and often starring Lige Conley. Note the lion.