Smile When the Raindrops Fall: The Story of Charley Chase

Front Cover
Scarecrow Press, Dec 23, 1997 - Performing Arts - 320 pages
At the age of ten, Charley Chase was singing and dancing on the street corners of Baltimore. Charley eventually became a local vaudeville attraction, but Baltimore could not contain the ambitious young man. After a brief, but memorable, stint in New York, Chase finally landed in Los Angeles in 1912. His timely arrival coincided with the birth of the film industry, and Charley Chase became a major force in the shaping of motion picture comedy.

A human dynamo, Charley's talent and creativity seemed inexhaustible. As a writer/director/actor, Charley started out at Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios. Working with Fatty Arbuckle and Charlie Chaplin, Chase quickly became one of Sennett's top directors. Later, at other studios, he directed, then starred in his own series of funny and inventive two-reelers. Behind the scenes, Charley Chase was instrumental in shaping the careers of both Laurel & Hardy and The Three Stooges.

Chase's personal life paralleled his film work. At first he was energetic and optimistic—as was the infant film industry itself. As the movie grew up, Charley got older too. Chase's career, marred by family problems and alcoholism, mirrored the decline of the short film. Includes photographs and a detailed filmography.

From inside the book

Contents

Its a Lovely Day for Something
135
Sons of the Desert
143
On the Wrong Trek
153
Have you ever seen anything so Beautiful
159
Columbia
163
A Firehouse Mouse
169
On the Hill
179
Epilogue
185

The Follies of Culver City
57
Fancy Pants and Droopy Drawers
67
Jimmy Jump and Leo the Lawyer
73
OneTake Charley
81
An Occupational Hazard
93
The Talkers and a Severe Cold
105
Gangway Charley
117
Rough Seas
129
A Note about the Films
187
Charley Chase Filmography
191
Sony Credits
239
Bibliography
243
Index
247
About the Authors
255
Copyright

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About the author (1997)

Brian Anthony is an independent filmmaker and served as writer/producer/director of the award-winning feature film "Victor's Big Score." He is a veteran motion picture historian and film preservationist.

Andy Edmonds has worked as a writer, producer, and investigative reporter in the Los Angeles area for the past eighteen years. She has authored five books, including Frame-Up! The Untold Story of Fatty Arbuckle.

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