Awards

• Winner of The Huffington Post: Best Film Books of 2014.

Overview

The silent film era featured some of the most revered names of on-screen comic performance, from Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton to Harold Lloyd, Douglas Fairbanks, and Laurel & Hardy. Besides these giants of cinema, however, there are other silent era performers-both leading actors and supporting players-who left an enduring legacy of laughter. In The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians, James Roots ranks the greatest performers based on a scorecard that measures each comic's humor, timelessness, originality, and teamwork. Far more than just a listing, this is an idiosyncratic and entertaining review of the men and women who created the golden age of comedy. As a critic and deaf viewer, Roots brings a truly unique perspective to the evaluation of these performers and their work. He has viewed thousands of silent comedies and offers some assessments that run contrary to the standard list of performers. While many obvious names are placed in the top echelon, the author also champions performers who have been neglected, in part because their work has not been as visible. Each entry includes *a filmography *a scorecard *an evaluation of the artist's overall work *an assessment of representative films *DVD availability With the increased availability of films on DVD, as well as Internet access, more and more silent performers are being discovered by film fans. Supplemented by an appendix of comedians who missed the cut, as well as an annotated bibliography, The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians will be an invaluable resource to anyone wanting to know more about the brilliant entertainers of the silent era.

Full Product Details

9781442236493

Table of Contents

Reviews

In one of the most interesting and important books on film history to be released this year, author James Roots offers a fascinating look at the development, the substance, and the significance of 100 comedians who starred in silent comedies. In an era when so many of the more obscure comedians' work is readily available on DVD, a book like The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians fills a genuine need. The book is essentially a primer, introducing people to an era of film history that has received a lot of attention, but mostly focusing on comedy buffs that already have an initial interest and some background knowledge. Gathering 100 silent comedians, ranking them as to how funny, timeless, and substantial their work is, and listing them accordingly is the perfect starting point for anyone wanting to get an initial understanding as to how vast and versatile screen comedy's history has been. This is not to say that the book is limited to newcomers. Old, grizzled comedy buffs will also find a great deal of merit in Roots' study. Within the author's subjective opinions there lurks a great amount of historical detail that is especially interesting when discussing some of the lesser known comedians on the long end of the list...The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians is value packed with historical and critical information, not only stats and trivia, but enough assessment and discussion to make it an extremely effective primer for those with a developing interest in comedy film's rich history. This book is obviously recommended to silent film buffs, as even the most learned will likely gain even more knowledge, especially on the lesser known comedians. However, this book is an absolute must for any library or research center that attempts at being at all comprehensive. If a younger viewer moves past the master works of Chaplin or Keaton and discovers some of the lesser-known comedians on DVD or cable television, and it inspires a subsequent interest in knowing more about them, this book is the perfect introduction. The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians is an extensive, thorough, fascinating look at one of the most interesting periods, and genres, in screen history. It receives the highest possible recommendation. The Examiner Most books about films are written by film critics, historians or theorists. '100 Silent Film Comedians' is different in that it is written by a self-confessed film fan...Accompanying each actor is a (helpful) photograph acting as a reminder and a reference point as well as incomplete filmographies and comments on stand-out, representative or ill-judged films that they appeared in. As a reference book this is invaluable. Filmwerk

In one of the most interesting and important books on film history to be released this year, author James Roots offers a fascinating look at the development, the substance, and the significance of 100 comedians who starred in silent comedies. In an era when so many of the more obscure comedians' work is readily available on DVD, a book like The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians fills a genuine need. The book is essentially a primer, introducing people to an era of film history that has received a lot of attention, but mostly focusing on comedy buffs that already have an initial interest and some background knowledge. Gathering 100 silent comedians, ranking them as to how funny, timeless, and substantial their work is, and listing them accordingly is the perfect starting point for anyone wanting to get an initial understanding as to how vast and versatile screen comedy's history has been. This is not to say that the book is limited to newcomers. Old, grizzled comedy buffs will also find a great deal of merit in Roots' study. Within the author's subjective opinions there lurks a great amount of historical detail that is especially interesting when discussing some of the lesser known comedians on the long end of the list...The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians is value packed with historical and critical information, not only stats and trivia, but enough assessment and discussion to make it an extremely effective primer for those with a developing interest in comedy film's rich history. This book is obviously recommended to silent film buffs, as even the most learned will likely gain even more knowledge, especially on the lesser known comedians. However, this book is an absolute must for any library or research center that attempts at being at all comprehensive. If a younger viewer moves past the master works of Chaplin or Keaton and discovers some of the lesser-known comedians on DVD or cable television, and it inspires a subsequent interest in knowing more about them, this book is the perfect introduction. The 100 Greatest Silent Film Comedians is an extensive, thorough, fascinating look at one of the most interesting periods, and genres, in screen history. It receives the highest possible recommendation. The Examiner

Author Information

James Roots is currently Executive Director of the Canadian Association of the Deaf. A book reviewer for more than 20 years, he has written frequently on silent film, especially comedy.

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