Friday, September 26, 2014
Filed under: Contemporary Variety, Music, PLUGS, Singers Tagged: Hunter College, Jolson, Lang Recital Hall, mark York, My Dad & Me, Walter Willison, Ziegfeld Society
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:04AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Buster Keaton talking feature Sidewalks of New York (1931), co-directed by Jules White and Zion Myers. This movie was Keaton's own leas…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:14AM[SHARE]Thursday, September 25, 2014
Earlier this summer I was interviewed by Barry Mitchell of CUNY-TV’s  Arts in the City at the Coney Island Museum. We talked about Coney, my most recent book Chain of Fools, silent …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:42PM[SHARE]Filed under: Burlesk, Contemporary Variety, PLUGS Tagged: New York Burlesque Festival, NYBF
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:18AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Hal Roach silent comedy Sailors, Beware! (1927). As you can see from the post, it’s a Stan Laurel starring vehicle, with Ol…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:02AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date one of Charlie Chaplin’s last comedy shorts The Idle Class (1921). Though a straight up slapstick comedy, The Idle Class is also one …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:28AM[SHARE]Wednesday, September 24, 2014
I don’t know if you’ve caught wind of this, but a certain social media website upon which many or most of have come to rely for online communication has recently announced that t…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:50PM[SHARE]Tonight, one of my favorite NYC companies The Irish Rep starts previews for its revival of Conor McPherson’s Port Authority. I had the privilege of interviewing Mr. McPherson a few …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:14AM[SHARE]Today marks the anniversary of the original German release date of The Hands of Orlac (1924), the first and probably the best of the “evil hand” movies. This kind of story …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:37AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of Buster Keaton’s first feature length film The Three Ages (1923). Keaton cleverly designed it as a parody of D.W. Griffith's Intole…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:58AM[SHARE]Today is the birthday of Billy Bletcher (1894-1979) Because of Bletcher’s small size and basso profundo voice, his was a rare career that embraced both visual comedy and voice ov…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:12AM[SHARE]Today is the 100th anniversary of the release date of the Charlie Chaplin comedy The New Janitor. In this Keystone comedy, Charlie plays a janitor at a bank, a situation he would revi…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 06:24AM[SHARE]Tuesday, September 23, 2014
If ya live long enough, you start to see little rivulets from your past converge into the rolling, muddy Mississippi of your existence (you may quote me). Long time Trav S.D. watchers (are t…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:33PM[SHARE]Â Because I’ve had occasion to mention this franchise many times on this blog and in other writings, and it’s pretty important to film comedy history, I thought it fitting to …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:50AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Harold Lloyd talking feature Movie Crazy (1932). I think this is a terrific movie, as good as Lloyd’s best silents. Movie Craz…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:40AM[SHARE]Monday, September 22, 2014
Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Laurel and Hardy film The Big Noise (1944), directed by Mal St. Clair. This is one of the team’s last and worst films. They pl…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:57AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of Buster Keaton’s comedy The Cameraman (1928). The Cameraman was Keaton’s first film as an MGM contract player. The change …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:37AM[SHARE]Sunday, September 21, 2014
Filed under: Contemporary Variety, PLUGS Tagged: Cobra Club, Force Majeure, Sara vaentine, Tanya Solomon
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 12:44PM[SHARE]Tomorrow morning on Turner Classic Movies: films set at the opera! They’ll be showing: 6am (EST): The Phantom of The Opera (1925) This is handily one of the first silent movies I…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:16AM[SHARE]Ha! I didnt know until yesterday but some of my collaborations with Jim R. Moore will be screened tonight at 8:30pm in NY New York Clown Theater Festival at the Brick Theater: Â some of ou…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:04AM[SHARE]Today is the birthday of Bill Murray (b. 1950), the Saturday Night Live alumnus whose cinematic career is by far — light years — the most distinguished (unless  you want to in…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:24AM[SHARE]Tonight, TCM will be showing a pair of films calculated to appeal to show biz buffs: 8pm (EST): Neptune’s Daughter (1949) Unfortunately has nothing to do with the silent Annette …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:43AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of Mae West's third starring feature Belle of the Nineties (1934), directed be Leo McCarey. The film is kind of a "might have been", one that one…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:10AM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of the very early Laurel and Hardy talkie short They Go Boom (1929), directed by James Parrott. This is one of their comedies with a…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:45AM[SHARE]It’s the first day of Autumn! And here to ring it in for us are Fibber McGee and Molly (Jim and Marian Jordan) in a 1953 episode of their radio program entitled Autumn Leaves Drive …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:25AM[SHARE]Saturday, September 20, 2014
Today is the birthday of Melvin “Slappy” White (1921-1995). Comedian White was a little too young to have come up through black vaudeville, but he did spend much  time in its …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 05:38PM[SHARE]Today is the birthday of the legendary comedy director Norman McLeod (sometimes billed as Norman Z. McLeod, 1895-1964). A Michigan native, McLeod had been a fighter pilot in WWI, experience …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 12:39PM[SHARE]Today is the anniversary of the release date of Harold Lloyd’s feature length comedy The Freshman (1925). The Freshman is up there with Safety Last as being one of Lloyd’…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:54AM[SHARE]Filed under: BROOKLYN, Comedy, Hollywood (History), Movies, PLUGS, Silent Film Tagged: BROOKLYN, City Reliquary, silent movies, Slapstick Under the Stars
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:53AM[SHARE]Today is the birthday of Blanche Payson (Mary Elizabeth Bush, 1881-1964). Payson’s near-giant proportions (6’4″, 238 lbs) made her highly useful in silent comedy, and Mack …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:18AM[SHARE]Friday, September 19, 2014
Tomorrow morning on Turner Classic Movies, two comedy classic starring Jack Benny. 7:00am (EST): The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945) The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945) was Jack Benny’…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 05:12PM[SHARE]Loading more stories…
