Greatest silent movie comedy actors?

Worztron

Who was your favorite silent movie comedy actor?

Skerries

Other –*please post in a comment

i always loved the Harold Lloyd films and also Buster Keaton but didn't watch as much of his stuff
Charlie Chaplin never did it for me

Phony Scott

Charlie Chaplin

Buster Keaton by a wide margin. He's heavily influenced every comedian ever since from Woody Allen to Jim Carrey and beyond.

Nolanger

Harry Langdon - he only made 3 good features but they were copied by Harold Lloyd (hanging off that clock) and Paul Newman (standing on that bike).

mike65

Other –*please post in a comment

Harold Lloyd for me but Buster Keatons poker face in the face of imminent disaster was notable!

losthorizon

They were better known for their talkies but they had some very funny silent films as well - Laurel & Hardy.

For me though comedy doesnt really work in the silent movies. The best ones are usually Horror, dramas or docs.

The Mad Hatter

I admit I'm not as up on silent comedy as I'd like to be, but I've never seen anything quite like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMyDYyg0FBA

The Sparrow

Charlie Chaplin

losthorizon wrote: »

For me though comedy doesnt really work in the silent movies.

:eek: Have you seen any Buster Keaton silent movies?

I haven't seen as much Harold Lloyd as I would like, but Buster Keaton was an absolutely amazing performer. This thread needs some clips.

Keaton dreamed up and did all of his own stunts. During the filming of Sherlock Jr. he actually broke his neck and didn't realise until much later when a doctor commented that his broken neck had healed remarkably well. Some of his stunts like this sequence from Sherlock Junior are truly breathtaking

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgvFm4-FeMM

He also had absolutely impeccable comic timing as you can see from this clip also from Sherlock Junior.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ech3Syf41LE

Keaton was also one of the great cinematic innovators. This is one of the greatest scenes in cinema history as Keaton plays a projectionist who falls asleep at his post and dreams of being in the movies. For 1924, the effects are just amazing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYGVoQwR2Bc

And some of the amazing train sequences from Keaton's masterpiece, The General

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3xh108cLbo

And finally, he never lost it as this clip from Candid Camera in his later years proves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VH7pkgAExoo

Buster Keaton - the Michaelangelo of Silent Film

The Mad Hatter

The Sparrow wrote: »

:eek: Have you seen any Buster Keaton silent movies?

I haven't seen as much Harold Lloyd as I would like, but Buster Keaton was an absolutely amazing performer. This thread needs some clips.

Keaton dreamed up and did all of his own stunts. During the filming of Sherlock Jr. he actually broke his neck and didn't realise until much later when a doctor commented that his broken neck had healed remarkably well. Some of his stunts like this sequence from Sherlock Junior are truly breathtaking

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgvFm4-FeMM

He also had absolutely impeccable comic timing as you can see from this clip also from Sherlock Junior.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ech3Syf41LE

Extraordinary. We don't have anyone now who can match up to this stuff.

Worztron

Other –*please post in a comment

Nolanger wrote: »

Harry Langdon - he only made 3 good features

What were those three?

Nolanger

Strong man, Tramp tramp tramp, and Long pants.

Here's one of his most famous scenes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcXRNYufWSM

sensibleken

Max Linder was the greatest in my opinion. His skits are fantastic and many were coppied by Harold Loyd and the like.

His main character was the dapper Max who was a well turned out, dapper fool (as opposed to chaplins tramp which followed him) who often drunk would make fool of himself

Aspects of his life are fascinating too. He was a despatcher in WWI, married a 17 year old and formed a successful suicide pact with his wife in 1925