While I love Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd, sometimes it is nice to talk about the silent movie comedians who don't get the same amount of attention. One of these is the great Max Davidson. Part of the reason he is probably so overlooked is that his character clearly belongs to another time period. He is Jewish and retains quite a bit of the stereotypes that populated Jewish characters of this time period. However, if this character was just a stereotype and nothing else than there would be little sense of talking about or recommending his films today. Luckily there is much more than this. His character is someone we would be glad to know or call our friend. This is because there is a warmth and humanity behind this character that makes him feel real. Film curator, Paolo Cherchi Usai once said of Max's movies, “That his films parody ethnic particularities without even a tinge of racism is what bestows Davidson with greatness. As is the case with all truly intelligent film comedies, the parody also mocks cultural and ethnic prejudices.” One could debate whether or not this excuses the obvious stereotypes, but it is hard to deny that his films are still very entertaining and charming today. In fact, in 1997 the London Jewish Film Festival ended with quite a few of his classic comedies and they were meant with almost unanimous praise. In his time Max was incredibly popular with movie audiences and Hal Roach gave him his own series of short films. These shorts, entitled "Max Davidson Dialect Comedies" were some of the popular films coming from the studio at that time. Call of the Cuckoo is a perfect example of why this is.
Exhibitor's Herald, 1927
In this movie Max is having trouble with his neighbors (Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, James Finlayson, Charley Chase, Charlie Hall), who are driving him crazy with their zany attempts at radio announcing. This eventually gets so bad that Max decides he and his family have to move, but that seems to cause even more trouble. From this simple story idea comes a wealth of top-notch silent comedy. The slapstick involving Max is not only very clever but downright hilarious and you can easily see that he delivers slapstick comedy right up with the best of them. While the idea of the neighbors training to be radio announcers is a bit odd for a silent film, it works remarkably well, heavily due to a cast of comedy greats playing these characters. The film also moves at a fast pace quickly going from one great gag to another without missing a beat. The story is very zany, but in the most charming and irresistible way. Max is as likable as ever and while he is the butt of many of the slapstick gags, there is no doubt that we really get to care for him in this short.
If this film is remembered or talked about at all today, it is for having Laurel and Hardy in supporting roles. By the time of this movie, the two had only been officially teamed for a short time. They had first appeared together in The Lucky Dog (1921), but they were clearly not team and certainly did not play the familiar Stan and Ollie characters at this time. They would not appear in the same film again until 45 Minutes to Hollywood (1926). As they started to appear in films together regularly in 1927, their characters and their relationship with each other would change from movie to movie. They would sometimes work together as a team, while other times they would work against each other and other times they would hardly interact at all. The first official film in the Laurel and Hardy series would be The Second Hundred Years (1927), which finished shooting right before the duo's scenes in this picture were shot. The Second Hundred Years had been a prison picture and because of that the boys still had shaved heads here. George Stevens (who was working at the Hal Roach studios) at this time later stated, "The were so tremendous in the convict picture that the studio grew impatient for their hair to grow in. Finally, it was decided that there was no use in waiting. The boys were too good to be kept inactive, so they were put almost right away into the next picture brush cut and all."
Exhibitors Herald and Moving Picture World, 1928
This marked the first time Clyde Bruckman directed Laurel and Hardy. He would later direct the duo in two of their most famous silent shorts Putting Pants on Phillip (1927) and The Battle of the Century (1927). He is best known today for his work with such comedy greats as Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, W.C. Feilds and The Three Stooges. Max's son is played by Specs O' Donnell who was a regular in Max Davidson films around this time, often playing his son. Disney fans may know him for appearing in multiple Alice Comedies.
If you wish to watch this film, it is on YouTube.
Also be sure to listen to Patrick (from the Laurel and Hardy blog) and entertainment historian Randy Skretvedt talk about this movie below.
Resources Used
https://laurel-and-hardy-blog.com/2018/10/11/call-of-the-cuckoos-1927/
Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies by Randy Skretvedt.
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