Run Time: 30 minutes. Studio: Joe Rock Comedies. Director: Joe Rock. Titles: Tay Garnett. Producer: Joe Rock. Main Cast: Stan Laurel, Julie Leonard, Lew Meehan. Cinematographer: Edgar Lyons. Assistant Director: Edgar Lyons.
The early silent solo shorts of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy before they teamed up hold a special place in my heart. That is because they were my introduction to silent movies. As a kid (I am in my early 30's now), my grandpa figured since I was a fan of classic cartoons like Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry and Popeye that I would also enjoy the classics of movie comedy. So, he got me cheap public domain DVDs (DVDs made of low-quality prints of the films that were in public domain) of Abbott and Costello, Three Stooges (luckily some of the best Stooges shorts are in public domain) and Laurel and Hardy. The Laurel and Hardy DVDs consisted of the Laurel and Hardy feature films Utopia (or Atoll K.) (1951) and The Flying Deuces (1939), the short film Tree in a Test Tube (1942) and a plethora of early silent solo comedy shorts of either Stan Laurel or Oliver Hardy. In hindsight these low-quality prints with random (and often ill-fitting) ragtime music for scores probably wasn't the greatest introduction to silent films. However, having just been introduced to them, I didn't know the difference. Though it would be a while until I became a true silent film enthusiast, I loved these films as a kid. They definitely firmly planted the seeds for a tree that would blossom later in my life. For this I will forever be grateful to those DVDs and these short films. One of my favorites of these shorts was the Stan Laurel short, West of Hot Dog (1924).
In this delightful western spoof, Stan inherits The Last Chance Saloon. However outlaw Bad Mike will inherit it if something were to happen to Stan. Naturally Bad Mike and his cronies try to kill Stan in order to get the saloon. Like many of the short films Stan Laurel made around this time, this was a parody of a popular movie. In this case that movie was West of the Pecos (1922) starring and directed by screen cowboy Neal Hart (who had worked at a wild west show before his movie career).
This is a fast paced and very entertaining short. While it may not be filled wall to wall laughs like an actual Laurel and Hardy short, there are some legitimately funny moments. One of my favorite bits is Stan's reaction to the stagecoach robbery. Stan's obliviousness to what is actually going on and his playfulness comes off as precursor to the character (though it is far from fully formed here) and comedy style that Stan would later become known for. This short also has some delightful little slapstick gags. One involving him ducking out the window always puts a smile on my face. Even when the gags don't inspire big laughs, they still help give this film a great comedic momentum. This is an unashamedly silly and cartoon-like comedy and there is something just incredibly fun and charming about that. The story is very basic, but it works as a perfect setup for all the comedic set pieces.
This director of this film was Scott Pembroke. Pembroke directed quite a few of the Stan's solo films both for the Joe Rock and Hal Roach studios. His work with Stan Laurel includes such shorts as Kill or Cure (1923), Short Orders (1923), Rupert of Hee Haw (1924), Mandarin Mix-Up (1924), Monsieur Don't Care (1924), Pie-Eyed (1925), The Snow Hawk (1925) and probably the best Stan solo short Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde (1925). Pembroke also directed some few silent movie serials including Winners of the West (1921), The Adventures of Tarzan (1921), The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1922) and The Social Buccaneer (1923) as well as some silent westerns starring cowboy star Bob Custer. His talkie work would include the early Jack Benny movie, The Medicine Man (1930) and the John Wayne B-Westerns The Lawless Nineties (1936) and The Oregon Trail (1936).
This film's producer was Joe Rock. Born in New York in 1891, Rock had begun his movie career as a stunt double for Mary Pickford. In 1916 he worked at Vitagraph as part of a comedy team with Earl Montgomery. Though these short comedies proved quite popular, they only lasted about four years when Vitagraph started to have the two comics appear in separate films. When Vitagraph let him go, Joe Rock started his own production company and started to produce comedies in which he would star. It wasn't long before Rock he was producing comedies starring other comedians including Jimmy Aubery and in 1924 Stan Laurel. As well as producing comedies with Stan and Jimmy, Joe Rock also produced a series of comedies called A Ton of Fun, which starred a trio of heavy-set comics ("Fat" Karr, "Tiny" Alexander and "Kewpie" Ross. The series of Joe Rock produced Stan Laurel shorts ended when Stan Laurel returned to the Hal Roach Studio. Rock was willing to let Stan go if Stan would not take any leading roles on screen. When Stan eventually appeared in starring roles in Roach shorts, this was brought to court. This caused Joe Rock's studio to become inactive as his assets were put into suspension. Luckily for Rock, Stan Laurel eventually asked for the case to be dismissed. Rock would later win an Academy Award for the short documentary film Krakatoa (1933). The documentary was about the island of Krakatoa both before and after the volcano eruption in 1883. He wouldn't pick up the award for 40 some years after winning it. Rock passed away on December 5, 1984, in Sherman Oak, California.
The early silent solo shorts of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy before they teamed up hold a special place in my heart. That is because they were my introduction to silent movies. As a kid (I am in my early 30's now), my grandpa figured since I was a fan of classic cartoons like Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry and Popeye that I would also enjoy the classics of movie comedy. So, he got me cheap public domain DVDs (DVDs made of low-quality prints of the films that were in public domain) of Abbott and Costello, Three Stooges (luckily some of the best Stooges shorts are in public domain) and Laurel and Hardy. The Laurel and Hardy DVDs consisted of the Laurel and Hardy feature films Utopia (or Atoll K.) (1951) and The Flying Deuces (1939), the short film Tree in a Test Tube (1942) and a plethora of early silent solo comedy shorts of either Stan Laurel or Oliver Hardy. In hindsight these low-quality prints with random (and often ill-fitting) ragtime music for scores probably wasn't the greatest introduction to silent films. However, having just been introduced to them, I didn't know the difference. Though it would be a while until I became a true silent film enthusiast, I loved these films as a kid. They definitely firmly planted the seeds for a tree that would blossom later in my life. For this I will forever be grateful to those DVDs and these short films. One of my favorites of these shorts was the Stan Laurel short, West of Hot Dog (1924).
In this delightful western spoof, Stan inherits The Last Chance Saloon. However outlaw Bad Mike will inherit it if something were to happen to Stan. Naturally Bad Mike and his cronies try to kill Stan in order to get the saloon. Like many of the short films Stan Laurel made around this time, this was a parody of a popular movie. In this case that movie was West of the Pecos (1922) starring and directed by screen cowboy Neal Hart (who had worked at a wild west show before his movie career).
This is a fast paced and very entertaining short. While it may not be filled wall to wall laughs like an actual Laurel and Hardy short, there are some legitimately funny moments. One of my favorite bits is Stan's reaction to the stagecoach robbery. Stan's obliviousness to what is actually going on and his playfulness comes off as precursor to the character (though it is far from fully formed here) and comedy style that Stan would later become known for. This short also has some delightful little slapstick gags. One involving him ducking out the window always puts a smile on my face. Even when the gags don't inspire big laughs, they still help give this film a great comedic momentum. This is an unashamedly silly and cartoon-like comedy and there is something just incredibly fun and charming about that. The story is very basic, but it works as a perfect setup for all the comedic set pieces.
 |
| Moving Picture World, 1925 |
This director of this film was Scott Pembroke. Pembroke directed quite a few of the Stan's solo films both for the Joe Rock and Hal Roach studios. His work with Stan Laurel includes such shorts as Kill or Cure (1923), Short Orders (1923), Rupert of Hee Haw (1924), Mandarin Mix-Up (1924), Monsieur Don't Care (1924), Pie-Eyed (1925), The Snow Hawk (1925) and probably the best Stan solo short Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde (1925). Pembroke also directed some few silent movie serials including Winners of the West (1921), The Adventures of Tarzan (1921), The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1922) and The Social Buccaneer (1923) as well as some silent westerns starring cowboy star Bob Custer. His talkie work would include the early Jack Benny movie, The Medicine Man (1930) and the John Wayne B-Westerns The Lawless Nineties (1936) and The Oregon Trail (1936).
This film's producer was Joe Rock. Born in New York in 1891, Rock had begun his movie career as a stunt double for Mary Pickford. In 1916 he worked at Vitagraph as part of a comedy team with Earl Montgomery. Though these short comedies proved quite popular, they only lasted about four years when Vitagraph started to have the two comics appear in separate films. When Vitagraph let him go, Joe Rock started his own production company and started to produce comedies in which he would star. It wasn't long before Rock he was producing comedies starring other comedians including Jimmy Aubery and in 1924 Stan Laurel. As well as producing comedies with Stan and Jimmy, Joe Rock also produced a series of comedies called A Ton of Fun, which starred a trio of heavy-set comics ("Fat" Karr, "Tiny" Alexander and "Kewpie" Ross. The series of Joe Rock produced Stan Laurel shorts ended when Stan Laurel returned to the Hal Roach Studio. Rock was willing to let Stan go if Stan would not take any leading roles on screen. When Stan eventually appeared in starring roles in Roach shorts, this was brought to court. This caused Joe Rock's studio to become inactive as his assets were put into suspension. Luckily for Rock, Stan Laurel eventually asked for the case to be dismissed. Rock would later win an Academy Award for the short documentary film Krakatoa (1933). The documentary was about the island of Krakatoa both before and after the volcano eruption in 1883. He wouldn't pick up the award for 40 some years after winning it. Rock passed away on December 5, 1984, in Sherman Oak, California.
According to historian Robert Stone, this comedy was filmed in October 1924 at Universal Studios.
The following are some exhibitor's reviews from Exhibitors Herald. "WEST OF HOT DOG: Stan Laurel— The film on this was good out of Milwaukee Exchange. Judging from the way the crowd laughed this must have been a good comedy. We didn't think much of it. Two Reels. - W.T. Davis & Son. Rialto theatre, Sharon, Wis. - General Patronage." " WEST OF HOT DOG: Stan Laurel— This was not so good. Didn’t have much appeal. Copyright 1924. Films good. Rating 60. Two Reels. - J.W. Ryder, Jewel theatre, Verdale, Minn, Small Town Patronage." "WEST OF HOT DOG: Stan Laurel - Fair comedy. Two Reels. - Nicolaides Brothers, Amercian theatre, Scofield, Utah. General Patronage."
For anyone interested in seeing this film, you can watch it below on YouTube. It can also be found on numerous public domain DVDs.
Resources Used
A-Z of Silent Film Comedy by Glen Mitchell.
https://www.lordheath.com/menu1_193.html
https://mediahistoryproject.org/
No comments:
Post a Comment