When one watches the silent film The Rounders, one will notice two prominent male characters on the screen. One is a short man with a small mustache, ill-fitting clothes and a cane. He is instantaneously recognized as Charlie Chaplin; a name synonymous with the early film industry. The second man, however, may not be as recognizable to the average viewer. He is a rather large man (in height and weight), with a baby face and nimble feet. This same man can be seen in the film The Bell Boy. He is seen alongside a slender, supple man that many would recognize as Buster Keaton, another great of the silent film comedy era. However, the heaver man may still be unrecognizable to most. The biggest reason for this being that, due to a high profile scandal, this man was banned from the industry and his films left in terrible condition, unable to be viewed in the same quality as the films of Chaplin and Keaton. The large man was a comedic actor whose talents made him is as popular, if not more popular, than the other two mentioned during this era of film. He was even, at one point, one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood up until his unfortunate demise. This man was Roscoe C. Arbuckle but in his films he was referred to as “Fatty” Arbuckle.
Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle was different from most heavy actors of his time. Heavy actors would often use their weight in gags, getting stuck in tight places, unable to fit into clothes and other tropes of the “fat guy”. However, these were gags Arbuckle tried to avoid in his films, using his athleticism to combat the fat guy norm. He was creative in not just in acting style, but in the fact that he had directed and even wrote many of the films in which he starred. He was known by many of his collogues as one of the hardest working me in Hollywood, turning out multiple films a year, many at the same time. By the 1920’s he was at the height of his career when he was accused of the rape and death of a young actress. Even after his acquittal he was ban from Hollywood, only beginning to pick up his career a decade later. Unfortunately, Arbuckle passed away before he could gain a substantial return to the screen. Roscoe Arbuckle was a comedic artist that is often underrated in his significance and contribution to early film. He was talented, creative and overall influential to many larger, physical comics that we know today.
Roscoe Arbuckle was born the youngest of a large family in 1887. Arbuckle never knew much of his father other than he was a heavy drinker and often absent. When his mother died when he was twelve, he was sent to stay with his father. But when young Roscoe arrived at the hotel his father was to be working, he was informed that he no longer worked there. Stuart Oderman described the ordeal in his book Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle: A Biography of the Silent Film Comedian 1887-1933. He states that the situation was quite common during this era and that “…If the youngster was old enough and could fend for himself, he might do menial chores to pay for his room and board"(Oderman 5).This was exactly what the young Arbuckle did. While living at the hotel, he became friends with the hotel musician. According to Oderman “…she [the pianist] allowed him to entertain the guests on quiet nights, keeping whatever tips he got. At her suggestion, he also used his weight to learn comedy routines involving juggling and tumbling” (Oderman 5). This encouraged Arbuckle to enter into community amateur nights, leading him to Community Theater and eventually Vaudeville. Not enjoying the traveling aspect that Vaudeville entailed, he went to California to try his hand at an up and coming area of entertainment: Film.
It was in California where his met his first wife Minta Durfee (Arbuckle). The two had traveled in vaudeville acts and she was with Arbuckle when he made some of his first, very small, roles in film. She, years later, described the moment Arbuckle was noticed by director Mack Sennett to the LA Times in 1970. She stated that Sennett called to Arbuckle, saying “…'You, big boy. Be here at 8-and how do you know someday you won't be a great star!'."(LA Times 4). Arbuckle was cast in the famous Keystone Kops, a trademark to the Keystone production company. Transitioning from stage to film proved difficult at first for Arbuckle. According to James L. Neibaur in his book Arbuckle and Keaton, he states that Arbuckle “…was not familiar with the working method for movies. He did not understand retakes, expressing himself without dialog or how to take proper direction from film acting" (Neibaur 12). Because of this, Arbuckle was almost fired, and it was only his first day on the job. It was not until Arbuckle met Mable Normand, a silent film comedienne, that he found ease in his acting abilities. The two were known for their “Fatty and Mable” series of films that depicted the humor and simplicity of marriage (some say it was the inspiration for The Honeymooners decades later). Arbuckle was soon introduced to new actor and slapstick Brit, Charlie Chaplin. The two collaborated on film and were rivaled in popularity in their primes. It was at Keystone that Arbuckle also met up and coming comedian Buster Keaton.
It is believed that the reason why the films of Arbuckle that remain are in great condition were because they were the first appearances of Keaton. Dean Budnick in his academic thesis on the trial of Arbuckle “Directed Verdict: The Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle Trial Discourse”, describes the relationship of Arbuckle and Keaton. “Keaton immediately grew enamored of Arbuckle…resulting in a screen partnership which yielded more than a dozen two-reelers. In these shorts, Keaton’s stone-faced persona contrasted well with Arbuckle's expressive countenance, just as their physical forms differed” (Budnick 5-6). The two starred together in films such as The Butcher Boy, Coney Island and The Bell Boy. These films not only showcased the chemistry between Arbuckle and Keaton, but it also showed the creativity of Arbuckle. In these films, Roscoe Arbuckle was agile and could move surprisingly well for a man his size. He was also the writer and director of these three films.
Mack Sennett let Arbuckle express his creativity visions through directing and Arbuckle proved too have an eye for film. In her article “Both Sides of the Camera: Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle’s Evolution at Keystone”, Joanna Rapf described Arbuckle’s directing style as using “… long durational takes with depth of field--the important action take[ing] place in the back of the fame…visual information that makes the mise-en-sene a lot interesting…”( Rapf 350). She also notes that Arbuckle was a “…generous director, allowing [the costars] to shine in individual comic routines” and quotes Arbuckle as saying that “… 'An actor doesn't lose anything by effacing himself once in a while'…" (Rapf 343). His directing, however, was not what Arbuckle was known for in his films. To viewers, he was known for being the large man with surprising agility. His style is noted in Stephen Rossner’s article “Fat and Thin actors, Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle 1887-1933”. Arbuckle would “… do stunts that were surprisingly advanced for his body shape. Arbuckle would drop through a sky light on to a table, roll of a roof into a pool and walk twisted into telephone wires high up above the ground. Arbuckle insisted on doing these stunts himself” (Rossner 538). These talents that Arbuckle possessed acquired him noticed not only on the big screen, but by big studios.
In 1920 Roscoe Arbuckle was signed to a contract by Paramount studios to do feature length films. This was an exciting time for Arbuckle, who by then was the highest paid actor in Hollywood, the first to earn 1 million a year. To celebrate, Arbuckle held a party Labor Day weekend in San Francisco at the St. Francis Hotel. The party, amidst prohibition, was filled with alcohol, music, dancing, celebrities and aspiring actors and actresses. One of these was Virginia Rappe. By the end of that week, Rappe was dead and Roscoe Arbuckle was arrested for allegedly raping and murdering the young actress. The defense of the case for Arbuckle backed his account, stating that he found Rappe ill in the bathroom and tried to aid her. However, the prosecution pursued the account that Arbuckle locked the door and forcibly raped Virginia Rappe, his weight rupturing her bladder, which lead to her death. The case proved to be a difficult one for Arbuckle, not by fact of evidence and ruling, but by the opinion of the public. Willian Randolph Hearst, a prominent newspaper owner, contributed to a smear campaign that led to Arbuckle’s demise. Alan J. Bilton in his article “Nobody loves a Fat man: Fatty Arbuckle and Conspicuous Consumption in Nineteen Twenties America”, quotes Hearst as boasting that “Fatty sold me more papers than the sinking of the Lusitania…" (Bilton 61). Budnick quotes Minta Durfee Arbuckle and the issue of aggressive headlines, stating that they “…tried to keep all of the headlines away from [Roscoe]. He read them for a few days but his doctors advised…that it was of no use because he had to be calm and he had to be well'" (Budnick 27). His large size as compared to the petite Rappe was another factor in his career’s demise. "… 'Arbuckle's weight will damn him,” Bilton quotes lawyer Earl Rogers. “He is charged with an attack on a young girl which resulted in her death. He will no longer be the roly-poly, good-natured, funny, 350 pound fat man everybody loves. He will become a monster" (Bilton 62).
After three trials, Roscoe Arbuckle was acquitted from the rape and manslaughter charges. It is largely believed that the cause of death for Virginia Rappe was a ruptured bladder due to a botched abortion. The jury, after the ordeal, even issued a statement which is accounted for in the thesis by Budnick:
“‘Acquittal is not enough for Roscoe Arbuckle. We feel that a great injustice has been done to him. We feel also that it was only our plain duty to give him this exoneration, under the evidence, for there was not the slightest proof adduced to connect him in any way with the commission of a crime. He was manly throughout the case, and told a straightforward story on the witness stand, which we all believed. The happening at the hotel was an unfortunate affair for which Arbuckle so the evidence shows was in no way responsible. We wish him success, and hope that the American people will take the judgment of fourteen men and women who have sat listening for thirty-one days to the evidence, that Roscoe Arbuckle is entirely innocent and free from all blame’” (Budnick 60).
But the acquittal was not the happy ending that it should have been for Arbuckle. During his time on trial, William H. Hays was appointed head of a new committee, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America or MPPDA. The purpose of the committee was to censor films and clean up the immorality that ‘plagued’ Hollywood. The most obvious and easy target in this conquest was the defeated Arbuckle. Hays banned Roscoe Arbuckle from Hollywood and his films soon followed, being banned across the nation from being viewed. Broke from court fees and jobless, Arbuckle went on ten years, black listed form the screen. This did not fully stop Arbuckle. During this time, he still directed films, using the pseudonym William B. Goodrich or ‘Will B. Good’. It was not until the 1930’s that Arbuckle was hired by a production company to appear in films once again. He stared in short ‘talkies’, being one of few to transition well from silent screen to sound. But this stent of fame was short lived, for in 1933, Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle died of a heart attack in his sleep at the age of 46.
Roscoe Arbuckle was a large man with a large amount of talent. His talent influences not only the actors during his time, such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, but he also influences many large, ‘fat guy’ actors came along after. His influences can be seen in Oliver Hardy of Laurel and Hardy, Curly in The Three Stooges, and Jackie Gleason in The Honeymooners, to actors many know of today such as actor/comedian John Candy, to Saturday Night Live Alums John Belushi and Chris Farley (Farley was actually considered to play the role of Arbuckle in a proposed Bio pic, but died before the film could be made). His creativity, physicality and persona on and off the camera make Roscoe Arbuckle one of the most interesting silent film comedians of his era. He changed the style of the ‘fat comedian’ and influenced actors, fat and thin alike. Though his time in Hollywood came to an abrupt and unfortunate end, his films can still be noted as some of the most significant films of the early screen and of early comedy.
Works Cited
Bilton, Alan J. "Nobody Loves a Fat Man: Fatty Arbuckle and Conspicuous Consumption in
Nineteen Twenties America." Amerikanstudien/ American Studies 57.1 (2012): 61-62. Jstor.org. Jstor, 2012. Web. 06 Apr. 2016. <https://www.jstor.org/stable/23509458>.
Budnick, Dean. "Directed Verdict: The Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle Trial Discourse." Thesis.
Harvard University, 2000. 5-6, 27, 60. WorldCat.org. WorldCat. Web. 14 Apr. 2016. <http://www.worldcat.org/title/directed-verdict-the-roscoe-fatty-arbuckle-trial-discourse/oclc/45335938>.
"Leading Lady" LA Times 29 Oct. 1970: 4. Print. Gish Film Theater Collection (MS 741), Box 5,
Folder 1. Center for Archival Collections, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green Ohio.
Neibaur, James L. Arbuckle and Keaton: Their 14 Film Collaborations. Jefferson, NC:
McFarland, 2007. 12. Print.
Oderman, Stuart. Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle: A Biography of the Silent Film Comedian, 1887-
1933. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1994. 5. Print.
Rapf, Joanna. "Both Sides of the Camera: Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle’s Evolution at Keystone."
Quarterly Review of Film and Video (2009): 343, 350. Taylor & Francis. 23 July 2009. Web. 16 Apr. 2016. <http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10509200802118886>.
Rossner, Stephen. "Fat and Thin Actors, Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle 1887-1933." Obesity Reviews
(2014): 538-39. ResearchGate. 2014. Web. 06 Apr. 2016. <http://www.researchgate.net/publication/261880944_Fat_and_thin_actors_Roscoe_Fatty_Arbuckle_1887-1933>.
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