Smile When the Raindrops Fall: The Story of Charley ChaseAt 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. |
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Page 35
... comedian Hank Mann away from Sennett and , with Mann as its star , created the Fox Film Comedy unit . Unfortunately ... comedians of the day . The other unit included directors Walter C. Reed and Harry Edwards and featured the company's ...
... comedian Hank Mann away from Sennett and , with Mann as its star , created the Fox Film Comedy unit . Unfortunately ... comedians of the day . The other unit included directors Walter C. Reed and Harry Edwards and featured the company's ...
Page 36
... comedians on the lot . Fox routinely raided the Sennett lot for talent , including Chester and Charles " Heine ... comedian Sid Smith . Jimmy directed the Smith series sporadically through the fall of 1919 . Henry Lehrman had left ...
... comedians on the lot . Fox routinely raided the Sennett lot for talent , including Chester and Charles " Heine ... comedian Sid Smith . Jimmy directed the Smith series sporadically through the fall of 1919 . Henry Lehrman had left ...
Page 37
... comedian was Billy West , considered the best of Chap- lin's numerous imitators . Chaplin imitators were quite the rage in 1917 and could be seen everywhere from the stages of vaudeville to the films of second - rate comedy producers ...
... comedian was Billy West , considered the best of Chap- lin's numerous imitators . Chaplin imitators were quite the rage in 1917 and could be seen everywhere from the stages of vaudeville to the films of second - rate comedy producers ...
Page 40
... comedian named Harry Mann ( no re- lation to Hank Mann ) was hired as West's replacement . This left Mann in the unfortunate position of having to imitate a Chaplin imitator , with predictable results . Mann looked like Chaplin but ...
... comedian named Harry Mann ( no re- lation to Hank Mann ) was hired as West's replacement . This left Mann in the unfortunate position of having to imitate a Chaplin imitator , with predictable results . Mann looked like Chaplin but ...
Page 44
... comedians . The round - eyed , droopy - mustached Snub Pollard had provided splendid support in the Lloyd films and was rewarded with his own series in 1919. A small staff of actors , writers and directors were added to the roster , and ...
... comedians . The round - eyed , droopy - mustached Snub Pollard had provided splendid support in the Lloyd films and was rewarded with his own series in 1919. A small staff of actors , writers and directors were added to the roster , and ...
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 |
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 |
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Common terms and phrases
actors Angeles Anita Garvin Art Lloyd Arthur Seid BeBe Billy Gilbert Billy West Bud Jamison Chaplin Charles Parrott Charley Chase Charley's Charlie Hall Chase and Hugh Chase comedies Chase series Chester Conklin Columbia comedian Del Lord Dialogue by H. M. director Edgar Kennedy Edited by Richard Edited by William Elmer Raguse Elwood Ullman feature Filmed circa funny gags girls H. M. Walker Hal Roach Harold Lloyd Harry Bernard Harry Bowen Henderson Hollywood Hugh McCollum James Finlayson James Parrott Jimmy Parrott Jimmy's Keystone Leo McCarey Leo Willis Love Marvin Hatley movie Music Nick Cogley Noah Young NOTE Oliver Hardy one-reelers Paul Parrott performed Photographed by Art play Polly produced ranch Recording Engineer reels Richard Currier Richard Jones Roach lot Roach Studios scene Snub Pollard Song Stan Laurel star Stooges Story and screenplay Supervised by F theater Thelma Todd Titles by H. M. two-reelers vaudeville William Terhune