-
Period: to
The History of Comedy Films
-
First Film Comedy
"Sneeze"
"Sneeze" was the first film comedy and it is of a man sneezing. The film is incredibly short and it shows how funny a cold can be when someone else has it. -
Chase Skits in London
A Daring Daylight Burglary Short, comedy chase skits were an important part of the motion pictures programs offered by the Egyptian hall in London. These short chase skits did not start in America and the films focused on the actual chase. They didn't focus a lot on the preliminary actions that led up to the chase scenes. A Daring Daylight Burglary is an example of a silent chase comedy. -
Period: to
World War I Films Comedies
World War I Films Comedies rarely stemmed from the actual war and used very similar comedy to slaptick comedy. These films were many times considered a form of comic art as due to the social and intellectual themes within these war comedies. These films used military "comic heroes" in the form of clowns to challenge authority within the democratic system and expose social corruption to their audiences.
(Isenberg, 1975) -
Charlie Chaplin's climactic chase scenes in comedies
Between a period of two years, Charlie Chaplin wrote, acted, and directed 12 two-reel works. Six of those films had a climactic chase. Chaplin took a huge step in comedy films and he only kept a small amount of gags in his chase scenes, but didnt take too much away from the chase itself. He knew how to keep the chase entertaining(Mccaffrey, Donald W. "The Evolution of the Chase in the Silent Screen Comedy." The Journal of the Society of Cinematologists 4/5 (1964): 1-8. JSTOR.) Web. 04 Nov. 2015. -
Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle accused of rape and death
Story on BBC
In 1921, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle was accused of rape and the death of a Hollywood party girl/ actress. She was said to have dies from a ruptured bladder.
(Milberg, Doris. The Art of the Screwball Comedy: Madcap Entertainment from the 1930s to Today. Jefferson: McFarland, 2013. Print.) -
Harold Lloyd's elaborate chase sequences in comedy
In 1922, Harold Lloyd's film "Grandma's Boy" stood out becuase of the elaborate chase sequence that came right before the climactic chase sequence. So this means that Lloyd put a fight with a rival in his movie. He really focused on building the motivation for the chase. (Mccaffrey, Donald W. "The Evolution of the Chase in the Silent Screen Comedy." The Journal of the Society of Cinematologists 4/5 (1964): 1-8. JSTOR. Web. 04 Nov. 2015.) -
Chaplin's contradiction of the capitalist society in his films
The collapse of 1929 was hard for so many Americans. The 20's and 30's were also very hard due to the world war, facism, racism, and Nazism. This was the time where Chaplin brought a new side to comedy. In Chaplin's movies, he is a "hero" because he never participates or listens to any new modes. (Ingrao, Pietro. "Chaplin: The Antagonism of the Comic Hero." Film Quarterly 35.1 (1981): 22-24. Web.) -
Screwball Comedies are first seen
Screwball comedies were warm and healing, which is what people needed especially during The Great Depression. Screwball comedies are still playing today. -
Charlie Chaplin's "Citly Lights" Satirizies the Coming of Sound
When the use of sound with film became successful publicly, Hollywood quickly adjusted to implement and accomodate it. Despite Hollywood's drastic shift as a result of the coming of sound, Chaplin refused to shift to this new medium and believed that "talkies" did not provide the artistry within silent films and rather created the silent film "City Lights" which satirizied the coming of sound. (Cott, 1975) -
"It Happened One Night"
"It Happened One Night" is often considered the first screwball comedy. It starred Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert and was directed by Frank Capra. The film had a typical screwball comedy plot with witty dialogue. (Londino, 2012) -
The Thin Man and Dialogue
Srewball comedies were made very popular after the dialogue from multiple movies. The lines were clever and had the audience laughing. This is one of the many examples of dialogue impressing the audience. (Milberg, Doris. The Art of the Screwball Comedy: Madcap Entertainment from the 1930s to Today. Jefferson: McFarland, 2013. Print.) -
Screwball's Physicality in the mid-1930s
In the mid-1930s, screwball comedies added another element to its films, which was battles and their physicality. There were a lot more marriage fights as well as more physical fighting. One example would be the fighting scene in Breakfast for Two. (Milberg, Doris. The Art of the Screwball Comedy: Madcap Entertainment from the 1930s to Today. Jefferson: McFarland, 2013. Print.) -
"The Bride Walks Out"
Sentimental comedy in Hollywood is demonstrated in RKO's film "The Bride Walks Out". The film alternates between comedy and drama and even mixes these tones within scenes. The film begins comically and becomes more dramatic as the film goes on. (Greene, 2012) -
Charlie Chaplin Gives into Sound
In the flilm, "The Great Dictator", Chaplin finally utilizes sound with the exception of a few scenes. Chaplin uses a soundtrack with dialogue and synced sound, while stil trying to maintain the stylistic aspects of silent comedy. (Warshow, 1977) -
Comedy of Equality is gone
Romantic comedies in the 1950s got rid of comedy of equality, which was one of its sub genres. They did this to go for a more traditional representation of men and women. (Woodward, Katherine. "COLLEGE COURSE FILE: AMERICAN FILM COMEDY." Journal of Film and Video 42 (1990): n. pag. University of Illinois Press. Web.) -
Some Like it Hot
This film introduced adult-oriented comedies that didn't address social issues. (Krutnik, 12-26) (Sfectu) -
New Comedy Stars
This decade saw the rise of new comedy stars such as Judy Holliday, Dean Martin, and Jerry Lewis. (Krutnik 12-26) -
Succes across the pond
"The Pink Panther (1963)"The 60s saw an increase in star packed comedies, also Peter Sellers reached international stardom with the success of The Pink Panther. (Dirks, 4) -
After the war
Black comedy makes an emergence with films like Catch 22 and MASH which discuss the after effects of the war and suicide. (Corliss, 53-57) -
New faces in the 80s
"Beverly Hills Cop"Stars like Eddie Murphy crossed over from stand up into film with hits like 48 Hrs (1982), Coming to America (1988) and the Beverly Hills Cop series (1984-1993) (Chute, 18-19) (Dirks, 4) -
Young teen audiences love "Gross Out" comedy
"One time at band camp.."Younger teen audiences flock towards a new and seemingly "tasteless" "Gross Out comedy" genre. (Dirks, 4) -
The Mockumentary
"Pamela, I'll give you your own plow!"Borat ushered in the re-emergence of black comedy, it uses cultural satire in a documentary style of film. (MacLeod, 111-132)
