Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle
Birthday: 1887-03-22
Place of Birth: Smith Center, Kansas, USA
Biography: Roscoe Arbuckle (March 24, 1887 - June 29, 1933), widely known to audiences as “Fatty” Arbuckle, was an American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. He started at the Selig Polyscope Company and eventually moved to Keystone Studios, where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd as well as with his nephew, Al St. John. He also mentored Charlie Chaplin, Monty Banks and Bob Hope, and brought vaudeville star Buster Keaton into the movie business. Arbuckle was one of the most popular silent stars of the 1910s and one of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood at the time. In one of the earliest Hollywood scandals, Arbuckle was the defendant in three widely publicized trials between November 1921 and April 1922 for the rape and manslaughter of actress Virginia Rappe. Rappe had fallen ill at a party hosted by Arbuckle at San Francisco's St. Francis Hotel in September 1921, and died four days later. A friend of Rappe accused Arbuckle of raping and accidentally killing her. The first two trials resulted in hung juries, but the third acquitted Arbuckle. The third jury took the unusual step of giving Arbuckle a written statement of apology for his treatment by the justice system. Despite Arbuckle's acquittal, the scandal largely halted his career and has mostly overshadowed his legacy as a pioneering comedian.
Movies
The Masquerader
Charlie plays an actor who bungles several scenes and is kicked out. He returns convincingly dressed...
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Hollywood
Angela comes to Hollywood with only two things: Her dream to become a movie star, and Grandpa. She l...
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Back Stage
Roscoe and Buster give a bullying Strongman the what-for, but after the performance troupe quits it'...
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The Bell Boy
At the Elk's Head Hotel bellhops torment the lobby, each other and guests. The elevator is powered b...
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Coney Island
Arbuckle escapes the watch of his domineering wife and heads for Coney Island. Keaton arrives that s...
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Good Night, Nurse!
Roscoe's wife, tired of his endless drunkenness, reads of an operation that cures alcoholism and has...
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His Wedding Night
Al and Roscoe, employees at a gas station, are rivals for Alice. When Buster delivers a wedding gown...
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Zip, the Dodger
Zip is a young man whose job is to dodge baseballs at a resort concession. To impress a young lady u...
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Out West
The story involves Arbuckle coming to the western town of Mad Dog Gulch after being thrown off a tra...
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The Hayseed
Buster manages the store while Roscoe delivers the mail, taking time out for hide-and-seek with Moll...
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The Rough House
Living under the same roof with his newly-wed wife and his mother-in-law, a careless Mr Rough sets t...
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Oh, Doctor!
Roscoe is a doctor who falls in love with a pretty woman whose boyfriend, in turn, falls in love wit...
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Moonshine
A feud between the Owens and the Gillettes ends when the last remaining Gillette is killed, but new ...
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The Cook
In an attempt at greater efficiency, the chef and waiter of a fancy oceanside restaurant wreak havoc...
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The Garage
Roscoe and Buster operate a combination garage and fire station. In the first half they destroy a ca...
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The Butcher Boy
Customers and clerks frolic in a general store. Roscoe walks out of the freezer wearing a fur coat, ...
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A Film Johnnie
The Tramp, a film Johnnie (someone who loiters near theaters or studios to meet stars or get a job),...
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Tango Tangles
In a dance hall, two members of the orchestra and a tipsy dancer fight over the hat check girl....
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His Favorite Pastime
A very plastered fella follows a pretty woman home, and proceeds to make a nuisance of himself....
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The Knockout
To show his girl how brave he is, Pug challenges the champion to a fight. Charlie referees, trying t...
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Mabel and Fatty's Wash Day
A henpecked husband's innocent friendship with a married woman leads to chaos....
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A Country Hero
Fatty plays a village blacksmith in “Jazzville,” an imaginary rural village. There is a rivalry betw...
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When Comedy Was King
A compilation featuring comedic stars of the silent era including Fatty Arbuckle, Charles Chaplin, B...
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Fatty and Mabel Adrift
Villains launch Fatty and Mabel's beachfront house into the ocean....
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Fatty's Tintype Tangle
Hubby and wifey are in love, but he's henpecked by her mother. A nip of whiskey gives him Dutch cour...
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Brewster's Millions
Monte Brewster learns that he has inherited $10 million from his late grandfather, but then learns t...
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Crazy Days
Narrator Hughie Green tells "jokes" over clips of old silent films. Including greats such as Fatty A...
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A Flirt's Mistake
When Fatty Arbuckle accidentally hits on the rajah, he declares, "Death to all flirts!" and hijinks ...
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Fatty Joins the Force
Fatty rescues the daughter of the police commisioner and is given a job as an officer as a reward, b...
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Fatty and Mabel at the San Diego Exposition
Fatty and Mabel go to the San Diego Exposition....
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Leading Lizzie Astray
A city slicker tries to woo a country girl while her boyfriend fixes his tire....
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Fatty's New Role
Fatty gets kicked out of a bar, and then the place gets a bomb threat....
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Murphy's I.O.U.
Murphy, the cop, gives his I. O. U. to the money-lender. Pressed for payment, he gives up his wife's...
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Love and Bullets
Charlie is trying to impress Minnie, who is interested in another fellow, but having trouble with hi...
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A Suspended Ordeal
Screwball slapstick with Fatty and Minta mixed up in zany adventures....
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Fatty and the Heiress
Fatty hopes to marry for money but thanks to many slapstick complications his plan doesn't go as smo...
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A Brand New Hero
Tramp Roscoe Arbuckle saves a girl from drowning in a pond and is given a job on the police force. A...
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Fatty Again
Fatty experiences several reverses of fortunes in this boarding house story. He is first ejected for...
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A Village Scandal
Hitchcock comes to a small town, where the chickens and pigs run about the streets as numerous as th...
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Buzzin' Around
Fatty invents a liquid with flubber-like properties which makes objects resilient and unbreakable. U...
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Mabel's New Hero
Fatty rescues Mabel twice: first, from the unwelcome attentions of a masher, then from a runaway obs...
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Peeping Pete
This early Keystone has Pete spying on his neighbor's wife through one of those little knotholes in ...
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A Bandit
Willy is a rather effeminate young man, and is abused by the town bully. He suspects that the bully ...
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The Other Man
Roscoe writes of his love and announces that he will call on Irene with the ring and ask her parents...
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A Creampuff Romance
A Creampuff Romance is a 1916 comedy short starring Fatty Arbuckle....
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Listen Lena
Al St John loves Lena, but he also loves to sleep. Will he get out of bed soon enough to take Lena f...
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My Stars
Johnny tries hard to impress his girl, but she seems to be much more interested in movie stars....
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Miss Fatty's Seaside Lovers
When a mothball magnate checks into a hotel with his family, the mashers come out of the woodwork to...
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Those Country Kids
Although Mabel’s parents disapprove of Roscoe and Mabel’s relationship, the two still secretly court...
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Fatty's Magic Pants
'Fatty' is looking forward to attending a formal occasion. But in order to go, he has to be properly...
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Mabel’s Wilful Way
Mabel sneaks away from her parents for some mischievous fun at the fairgrounds with a pair of improm...
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Wished on Mabel
Mabel and her mother visit the park. She sees her boyfriend, Roscoe, and asks him to join them. Afte...
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A Glimpse of the San Diego Exposition
In 1915-16, San Diego's Balboa Park was the scene of an exposition to mark completion of the Panama ...
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Fatty’s Chance Acquaintance
Fatty and his domineering wife visit the park, where they encounter a pair of pickpockets....
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When Love Took Wings
Three men in love with the same woman contend with each other and with her father, until one of them...
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That Little Band Of Gold
A happy young couple become engaged, and soon afterwards they are married. But after their marriage,...
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The Little Teacher
The new school teacher fresh from the city struggles with her unruly bumpkin students, while she awa...
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Mabel, Fatty and the Law
When Mabel catches her husband flirting with their maid, it leads to a sharp dispute. As part of mak...
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Fatty’s Reckless Fling
Left alone by his wife, Fatty joins a poker game across the hall from his apartment and is left to f...
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Fatty and Mabel’s Simple Life
Fatty is a farm hand at Mabel's father's place. He and Mabel love each other, but dad wants to marry...
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Mabel and Fatty’s Married Life
When a woman's husband leaves town, she begins to see odd things happening in her house. Afraid that...
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Fatty’s Plucky Pup
Four bad men have kidnapped Fatty's girlfriend and plan to kill her. Fatty's dog knows where she is,...
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Fatty’s Faithful Fido
Fatty and Al are Minta's suitors. After Fatty sics his dog on him, Al marks Fatty for roughing up by...
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He Did and He Didn’t
A doctor, very much in love with his beautiful wife, comes to suspect that her visiting childhood fr...
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Love
"Fatty", a poor good hearted farm boy is deeply in love with Winifred, a farmer's daughter. A rich n...
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Leap Year
A young man, heir to his misogynistic and millionaire uncle, and in love with a nurse, gets in troub...
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Fatty and Minnie He-Haw
Fatty steals a ride on a train, discovered, and put off in the middle of nowhere. He stumbles along ...
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A Scrap of Paper
Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle confronts the Kaiser in his headquarters, and tells him that he will be be d...
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His Wife's Mistakes
Roscoe begins work on his new job as janitor of the Shortacre Building in New York. While performing...
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Fatty's Jonah Day
Fatty's Jonah Day is a 1914 short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle....
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In the Dough
A cafeteria owner has problems with gangsters and gets more trouble by hiring 'Fatty' Arbuckle and c...
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The Gangsters
An amusing burlesque of gang fighters. The police go after them, one by one, and each guardian of th...
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A Voice from the Deep
Percy and Harold are rivals and both take the object of their affections for an outing....
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Alas! Poor Yorick!
A mentally deranged sanatorium patient imagines that he is the world's greatest actor....
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The Sanitarium
A young man transforms his uncle's palatial residence into a sanitarium only to end up paying back t...
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Ben's Kid
Buck Minor was the most detested man in Wolf Hollow, partly because he was quarrelsome and treachero...
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Mrs. Jones' Birthday
If all husbands have had similar experiences, it is too bad to harrow them up with the telling of th...
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Passions, He Had Three
Henry is a big, fat country boy with three passions. He likes eggs, milk and girls. He steals the eg...
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Making It Pleasant for Him
A comedy drama which clearly portrays the adventures of a country chap who falls into the hands of t...
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The Speed Kings
Race-car drivers pursue Mabel Normand, whose father has a clear favorite....
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Help! Help! Hydrophobia!
The professor does not approve of his daughter's suitor. His disapproval is so marked that it is fin...
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The Waiters' Picnic
Louis, the chef and Oscar, the head waiter, are in love with Mabel the pretty cashier. The Waiters' ...
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A Noise from the Deep
Mabel and Roscoe love each other, but her father likes another boy. A rather sissified young man. Ro...
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Love and Rubbish
Two groundskeepers compete for the attention of a pretty park visitor. When the woman’s daughter goe...
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Professor Bean's Removal
Professor Bean's Removal is a 1913 movie starring Ford Sterling and Mabel Normand....
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Love and Courage
Love and Courage is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Mabel Normand....
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For the Love of Mabel
A presumably lost film starring Mabel Normand and Roscoe Arbuckle....
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Almost a Rescue
Almost a Rescue is a 1913 movie starring Donald MacDonald and Roscoe Arbuckle....
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Rastus and the Game Cock
Rastus and the Game Cock is a 1913 movie starring Ford Sterling and Mack Sennett....
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The Telltale Light
The Telltale Light is a 1913 movie starring Mabel Normand and Roscoe Arbuckle....
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The Riot
When a girl delivering expensive garments loses them to some Irish shanty town kids, her boss, a Jew...
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Mabel's Dramatic Career
A young man falls in love with his mother's kitchen maid, Mabel. But his mother objects strongly, an...
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The Fatal Taxicab
The Fatal Taxicab is a 1913 movie starring Mabel Normand and Ford Sterling....
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Fatty's Day Off
Fatty's Day Off is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Charles Avery....
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The Gypsy Queen
The Gypsy Queen is a 1913 movie starring Mabel Normand and Roscoe Arbuckle....
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When Dreams Come True
A husband who has spent a convivial night is sleeping off the effects in bed while his devoted wife ...
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Mother's Boy
Mother's Boy is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Alice Davenport....
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A Quiet Little Wedding
The scene is laid for a quiet little wedding. The guests are waiting for Fatty and an ancient maid t...
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Two Old Tars
Two old tars, retired from service, live alone in a cottage by the sea. They sail along on an even k...
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Fatty at San Diego
Fatty induces wife to let him take a day off to go to the celebration at San Diego. He has a wonderf...
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A Small Time Act
A Small Time Act is a 1913 movie starring Ford Sterling and Roscoe Arbuckle....
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A Ride for a Bride
A Ride for a Bride is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Virginia Kirtley....
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His Sister's Kids
His Sister's Kids is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Minta Durfee....
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He Would a Hunting Go
Count Chicori is perused by a bear whilst visiting at a hunting lodge....
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Fatty's Flirtation
Fatty's Flirtation is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Mabel Normand....
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The Woman Haters
The Woman Haters is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Nick Cogley....
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In the Clutches of the Gang
In the Clutches of the Gang is a 1914 movie starring Ford Sterling and George Nichols....
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Twixt Love and Fire
Twixt Love and Fire is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Peggy Pearce....
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Rebecca's Wedding Day
Rebecca's Wedding Day is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Billy Gilbert....
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The Under-Sheriff
The Under-Sheriff is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and George Nichols....
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A Robust Romeo
A Robust Romeo is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Emma Bell Clifton....
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A Misplaced Foot
A Misplaced Foot is a 1914 movie starring Mabel Normand and Roscoe Arbuckle....
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A Bath House Beauty
Roscoe is a family man at the seaside, lumbered with a shrewish wife and an extremely annoying young...
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The Chicken Chaser
The Chicken Chaser is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Charles Avery....
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Barnyard Flirtations
Fatty tries to catch two "chickens" – one feathered, the other one wearing skirts....
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Where Hazel Met the Villain
Where Hazel Met the Villain is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Phyllis Allen....
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Go West
With little luck at keeping a job in the city a New Yorker tries work in the country and eventually ...
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A Reckless Romeo
Roscoe flirts with a girl in the park. Later he takes his wife and mother-in-law to the movies only ...
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Chaplin Today: The Gold Rush
African filmmaker Idrissa Ouedraogo (YAABA) discusses the influence that Charlie Chaplin has been on...
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The Waiters' Ball
Fatty and Al are competing to take the same girl to the Waiters' Ball, but the formal dress requirem...
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The Chaplin Puzzle
This rare two part documentary focuses on Charlie Chaplin's development at Keystone and Essanay. It ...
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Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema
Before the G, PG and R ratings system there was the Production Code, and before that there was, well...
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The Round-Up
A lovesick sheriff protects his town, embroiled in a feud between a crafty bandit leader and the fam...
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The Life of the Party
An attorney is thrust into wild adventures by an attractive young woman....
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The Dollar-a-Year Man
Hijinks surrounding the attendance of a Prince at a Yacht Club dinner....
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Traveling Salesman
A practical joke makes a man get off before his intended stop, leading to all sorts of trouble....
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The Fast Freight
Unreleased in America, this was one of Arbuckle's last starring roles in a feature film....
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So Funny It Hurt: Buster Keaton & MGM
A Turner Classic Movies (TCM) documentary about Keaton's discontented relationship with MGM and the ...
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Buster Keaton: From Silents to Shorts
A documentary short included as an extra with "The Buster Keaton Collection"....
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Days of Thrills and Laughter
An appreciative, uncritical look at silent film comedies and thrillers from early in the century thr...
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How've You Bean?
Roscoe gets into a lot of wacky troubles, some involving a misplaced box of Mexican Jumping Beans....
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Close Relations
Roscoe believes he is in line to receive a large inheritance, but the reality is considerably more p...
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Character Studies
Carter DeHaven announces that he will perform a series of "impressions." For each we see him applyin...
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Fatty's Debut
Fatty's Debut is a 1914 short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle....
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Fatty's Wine Party
Fatty's Wine Party is a 1914 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle....
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Buster Keaton The Shorts Collection 1917-1923
Includes all 32 of Keaton's extant silent shorts (thirteen of which were produced under the tutelage...
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Happy Times and Jolly Moments
This short film takes a nostalgic look at the Mack Sennett comedies of the silent cinema era....
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Looking for Mabel Normand
A documentary on the life and career of silent film star Mabel Normand....
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Mabel and Fatty Viewing the World's Fair at San Francisco
Frequent comedy co-stars Fatty Arbuckle and Mabel Normand take viewers on a tour of the 1915 Panama-...
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Arbuckle & Keaton, Volume Two
A collection of five silent comedy shorts co-starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Buster Keaton, and...
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Arbuckle & Keaton, Volume One
A collection of five silent comedy shorts co-starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Buster Keaton, and...
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Fatty and the Broadway Stars
Fatty and the Broadway Stars is a 1915 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arb...
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Camping Out
Camping Out is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. Fatty is ...
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The Sheriff
Roscoe Arbuckle plays a Douglas Fairbanks fan who becomes a rotund version of his hero. As "The Sher...
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The Bank Clerk
The Bank Clerk is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. The fil...
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The Pullman Porter
The Pullman Porter is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. The...
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A Desert Hero
A Desert Hero is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. The film...
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An Incompetent Hero
Fatty's flirting with neighbor Kennedy's wife, and he isn't happy about it. Al's a crook, Minta's a ...
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The Sea Nymphs
Fatty, his wife and mother-in-law are on a ferry to Catalina Island for an outing. So are Mabel and ...
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Lovers' Post Office
A short comedy in which two lovers post their letters in a box in a tree. The old man gets wise and ...
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Bright Lights
The manager of a small town hotel installs a cabaret in an attempt to achieve the standard set by re...
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The Alarm
A Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle & Mabel Normand comedy short. The film is considered lost....
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The Water Dog
The Water Dog is a 1914 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle....
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Screen Snapshots (Series 1, No. 20)
Intimate views of the movie stars of the Silent Era, at work and play; featuring Sessue Hayakawa, Li...
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Murders of Hollywood
Sensational and shocking stories from Hollywood are not always fiction. Beyond anything a screenwrit...
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