Busterness

An outlet for all things Keaton! The ravings of a die-hard Busterphile, silent film maven, and mental time-traveler. Just spreading the Busterness across cyberspace and looking forward to a little dinner and a show! From time to time, you'll find a few other things on my blog, like Boardwalk Empire & Richard Harrow. And stock car racing. And some music and stuff.

[busterness]

Hullo, my darlin' tumblr peeps!  I'm sooooo very sorry I haven't been around as much as I'd like to lately, but helping to helm the Damfinos and promote Buster Keaton's legacy takes a bunch of time, y'know?  As you've probably gathered, we've made a major find lately - an entire cache of lost photos and negatives taken behind the scenes of the making of The General in 1926.  

Y'know, tumblr, without you - this monumental silent film find would NOT have happened!  Once upon a time, a couple of us got together via tumblr and discovered that we had a shared interest - Buster Keaton. We got together and met in person. That simple post led to a life long friendship and a commitment to bring you all the undiscovered Buster info we could find! 

Here's where it starts, folks.  Via tumblr, we found stuff.  You can too!!  Wanna know how?  Just ask!  BTW - I love all y'alls.  (I'm from Texas - and that's how we say it).  --SB

[busterness]

Darlin, tumblr-ers:  we've just made an amazing discovery of photos and nitrate negatives of behind-the-scenes shots of Buster's THE GENERAL.  The photos and negatives were taken by a local photog in Cottage Grove, Oregon, and have remained hidden for all these years until recently discovered.  Help us celebrate this amazing find, and learn how YOU, TOO can find lost silent-film treasures!  See https://www.facebook.com/BusterKeatonSociety?ref_type=bookmark

Luy y'all.  Srsly.  You can find this stuff, too!

[busterness]

So I’ve been giving this some careful thought (which is pretty scary when I think about it).  See what you think…

Richard Harrow shows up on AMC’s The Walking Dead as a sort of benevolent, angst-ridden zombie who has somehow managed to retain his soul and conscience.  Half his face has already necrotized, but other than that he’s in pretty good shape.  He despises the other zombies, so he’s on a one-man mission to annihilate them (which he’s particularly suited for having been a lifetime NHRA member in his “human” life with a large collection of firearms).  Poor Zombie Richard despises himself for having to occasionally eat humans, but a zombie’s gotta do what a zombie’s gotta do.  Poor guy can’t even commit suicide because he’s already dead. 

When he’s not killing other zombies, he sits in a tent in the woods making beautiful collages out of dried leave and twigs and feathers. 

Whilst foraging for zombies to kill, Richard winds up in Daryl Dixon’s crosshairs, but Daryl recognizes the innate goodness in the half-man/half-zombie and befriends him.  Together they save the world and Richard finally finds love and happiness with Carol, kills The Governor, and acts as a foster parent to Carl (who really needs a strong, silent role model).

As a bonus, AMC could have Michael Pitt show up and join the gang at the prison. 

Take THAT, HBO!!!

[busterness]

Happy Thanksgiving, tumblr!!!

[busterness]

I was going to post something poignant and philosophical about the death of my beloved Richard Harrow - but I can’t.  I’m too busy alternating between sobbing into my Snuggie and beating myself up for being such a complete wuss over the demise of a fictitious television character.   

I do think I deserve some recompense from HBO for my emotional turmoil, however.  Therefore, I demand the following:  1)  that HBO finish the Roscoe Arbuckle biopic posthaste; 2) that Boardwalk Empire devote an entire epiode next season to having Van Alden and Capone discuss Buster Keaton’s “Sherlock Jr.” and;  3) HBO should arrange to have Jack Huston come to my house to personally comfort me in my time of grief. 

RIP, Richard.  You’ll live forever in my headcanon where you move the family to LA, get a good job as a film consultant, and come out of hitman retirement to take care of Louis B. Mayer.  

[busterness]

We interrupt our regularly scheduled Buster posts to bring you this strange observation that occurred before I had enough coffee this morning:

Richard Harrow is Max Linder's love child.  

That is all.

[busterness]

This photo post lovingly dedicated to Mr. & Mrs. Richard Harrow, Mr. & Mrs. Nelson-George-Mueller-Van Alden, and Mr. Terence Winter (who HAD to do a Buster Keaton reference in the same danged episode where Richard gets married).  Thanks.  Overload maximus rex.  Dain Bramage.  Error reading Drive I.  Tilt.

[busterness]

Did you know that Buster's 1936 Educational Short "Blue Blazes" was filmed at the fire station that still stands in Astoria, Queens?  It's one of the few instances where we have a behind-the-scenes shot of the actual filming of one of Buster's post MGM shorts!  

Not too many of Buster's filming locations survive on the east coast, so here's your chance to visit one.  Don't forget to thank the wonderful FDNY folks who work there for their hard work and bravery!

[busterness]

Happy Halloween, tumblr!  

[pbsamericanmasters]

Forty-one years later, when Keaton was considered a “has-been” by Hollywood, a Wilmington newspaper recounted that impressive debut:

"Quite the image of his father, Buster, wearing a bald fright wig, chin whiskers, cutaway coat, baggy pants and slapshoes, had hurried across the stage and later,...

[busterness]

"Has been?"  I think NOT!  And, BTW, we now have record of Buster being billed (by name) as part of the act in 1896 - long before Dockstader's.  It's not likely that he was paid (at age 11 mos.), so perhaps it wasn't a "professional" debut - but by golly, he was billed as a "low comedian!"  (pun intended, I guess).

PS - How y'all been?  I've been a tad busy lately.  Buster is a great boss!

[busterness]

Need to chill?  Need to remind others to chill?  Check out the new t-shirts available from www.busterstuff.com!  

http://www.busterstuff.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=21

[busterness]

your preference: chaplin or lloyd?

Harold Lloyd.  He's infectious, lighthearted, animated and a consummate athlete.  I prefer all-out physical comedy to pratfalls mixed with pathos, so Lonesome Luke and the Glasses Character fit the bill for me.  

[busterness]

RIP Cliff Edwards.  (June 14, 1895 – July 17, 1971).  When you wish upon a star ---- thank Cliffie.

[utsukushiki-ohgonki]

A Buster Keaton signed photograph

A gelatin silver inscribed and signed photograph by Buster Keaton on a movie set, riding a comical vehicle: "To My Friend Whitey From Buster Keaton." Matted, a few small tears, condition overall fair. 9 1/2 x 6 1/4 in

[utsukushiki-ohgonki]

Bonhams

[busterness]

NOT Buster's signature/handwriting.  Be careful when purchasing autographs, gang - even the most prestigious auction houses don't always do their homework.  

[spatscolombo-deactivated2022030]

Has anybody ever written a paper on Buster Keaton’s reappropriation of standard pinup/objectifying poses for women in order to mock the male gaze and concepts of gender performativity? If so, could someone point me toward it? (If not, could someone write one?)

Honestly I’m curious as to whether this habit of his was (proto)-feminism or just self-deprecation—i.e., part of the problem, as in “haha, I’m behaving like a girl, how stupid of me." What do you think? Can anybody who knows more about Keaton’s relationship to women and/or feminism weigh in?

[busterness]

My 2-cents.....

Buster certainly had no objectifying motive.  He was simply carrying on a VERY old theatrical tradition of cross-gender portrayal.  Back to the ancient Greeks, there were no female actors in the theater - so men took the women's roles as well, with the goal of a convincing portrayal (not a parody).  Until the early 1800's, you didn't see many women on the stage.

Gender impersonators gained popularity in the earliest variety theater - the English music halls.  By the turn of the century, there were actually more women portraying men on stage - and their acts were so popular that major Vaudeville performers imported them to the New York stage.  Look up Vesta Tilley, Bessie Bonehill, Vesta Victoria, et al - and you'll see what I mean. 

Of course, the men (mostly the comedians) were starting to add "drag" sketches to their acts, as well.  There was rarely any sexual connotation to such acts - they made the audience laugh and applaud, and since popularity with the masses with the coin of the Vaudeville realm, many major acts perfected their skills in imitating the opposite sex (Julian Eltinge, Neil Burgess, Bothwell Brown, et al).

Buster was in a unique position to have grown up watching and learning from all the very best performers on the boards - the men, women and the impersonators.  Naturally, he picked up the skills necessary to portray a female character, and like everything else Buster did - he did it well.  In his early years, there was no "agenda" attached to such characterizations - WE are the ones who now want to look through a feminist/sexual lens at such theatrical devices when none actually existed.

Hope this helps!

[certain-obscure-things]

everyone needs to be watching this right now

THIS IS HISTORY IN THE MAKING

[busterness]

Happy Birthday to Cliff Edwards!