Comedy Films, Comedians - Biography, Actors & Actresses - Biography, Film Actors & Actresses - Biography - General & Miscellaneous, Comedians, Film Actors - Biography, Silent Films

Buster Keaton: Tempest in a Flat Hat

Name: Buster Keaton: Tempest in a Flat Hat
Author: Edward McPherson
ISBN: 9781557046642

by Edward McPherson

Available on Bookshop Write a review

Books.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.

Overview

This “appreciative biography that rolls as smoothly as a film reel” (Cleveland Plain Dealer) celebrates one of cinema’s greatest clowns, painting a detailed portrait of the man behind the mayhem and offering a fresh look at the classic comedies that defined the Golden Age of Silent Film.

Writer—and avowed fan—Edward McPherson takes the reader on a fascinating journey through Buster Keaton’s life and times, from the vaudeville stage to the glittering screens of early Hollywood, where he rivaled even Charlie Chaplin as the master of silent comedy.

Based on extensive research, this biography reveals Keaton in his prime as an antic genius—equal parts auteur, innovator, prankster, and daredevil—focusing on his glorious 1920s films, which “McPherson evokes with insight and enthusiasm” (Washington Post Book World).

Synopsis

In this biography introducing comic genius Keaton (1895-1966) to a new generation, a New York-based fan traces Keaton's career from his vaudeville days to fame as the actor-director of such silent classics as The General (1926). McPherson, who watched some 60 of Keaton's films as part of his research, also discusses the star's personal ups and downs but not much about his legacy. The book, whose title refers to Keaton's signature porkpie hat, includes photos and reference material. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

The New York Times - Jacob Heilbrunn

McPherson reveals the secret behind Keaton's flattened porkpie hat as well as the extent to which Keaton's love for mechanical tricks dated back to his childhood, when, among other things, he invented a collapsing outhouse. He captures Keaton's antic, madcap energy, in which ''the human body -- the permutations of the sinews, the shock of the limbs -- seems infinitely elastic, an unruly instrument to be wielded with a cheeky kind of grace.''

About the Author, Edward McPherson

Edward McPherson has contributed to The New York Times Style Magazine, The New York Observer, I.D. magazine, Esopus, and Talk. In preparation for writing this book, he immersed himself in more than 60 Keaton films, studying them intensely for a year and a half. He lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Reviews

There are no reviews yet. Log in to write one.

Editorials

Jacob Heilbrunn

Publishers Weekly

McPherson pays homage to Keaton's two-reelers and full-length movies by detailing the iconic filmmaker's plot lines and notable sight gags. Between 1920 and 1929, Keaton rivaled Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin as one of Hollywood's silent masters. Grabbing his title from Keaton's signature porkpie hat, McPherson, who's written for I.D. magazine and the New York Observer, has culled the narrative of the star's personal and professional life from earlier biographical works. His contribution is to adroitly describe the extraordinary visual lunacy Keaton produced on screen to achieve cinema art. Responsible for writing, acting, editing and directing, Keaton took what he knew-"the ingenuity, athleticism, and wit of vaudeville-and applied it to a burgeoning medium." On-screen physical catastrophes were his trademark, though many of his most treasured films, such as The General, were not initially well received. McPherson also remarks on Keaton's disastrous marriage to Natalie Talmadge (her sister, Norma, was a major star), his adjustment to talkies and his descent into alcoholism, a demon he battled for decades. In his prime, Keaton lived a life of luxury, but he paid for his excesses. When his films lost favor, he was reduced to taking studio day jobs. Yet he saw his silent classics reissued and achieved happiness with his third wife, a sunny ending for this loving tribute. 40 b&w photos. (May) FYI: The book was published in the U.K. last year by Faber & Faber. Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Now universally acknowledged as one of the greatest comic silent film actors, Buster Keaton lived a life of extreme ups and downs-sometimes literally (he was thrown around as a member of his family's vaudeville troupe). After teaming up with popular comic Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, he struck out on his own and for most of the 1920s was a triumph in two-reel shorts and then features. Keaton's fall in the early 1930s was almost equally as dramatic, with both his personal and professional lives coming apart. Two decades later, he was triumphantly rediscovered and for the remainder of his life enjoyed well-deserved recognition. In his first book, magazine writer McPherson chronicles Keaton's life and synopsizes each silent short and feature in considerable detail; he fails to mention, however, most of the comedian's sound shorts and features, apparently considering them unworthy of the artist's silent oeuvre, and omits a filmography. This is basically a rehash of information widely available in books like Marion Meade's excellent Buster Keaton: Cut to the Chase (1995). McPherson puts forth very little effort in analyzing Keaton's genius and, when he does, is often trite and unconvincing (e.g., "The flat hat was an outward manifestation of Keaton's interior cool"). Recommended only for libraries with no other Keaton material.-Roy Liebman, formerly with California State Univ., Los Angeles Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.