Secret Cinema presents W.C. FIELDS SHORT FILMS
Philadelphia native son W.C. Fields is often acclaimed as one of the greatest comedians of the movies, and Fields feature films such as IT'S A GIFT and THE BANK DICK are rightfully hailed as masterpieces.
Lesser known are the short films that launched Fields' career in talkies -- which began AFTER he appeared in ten silent features, those following a long run as a top-billed star of international stages, in vaudeville, and acting in Broadway shows. By the time sound motion pictures were developed, Fields had already finely tuned his unique characterization and delivery of comic dialogue (most of it self-penned).
On Thursday, November 14, the Secret Cinema will return to The Rotunda for a gathering of some of Fields' funniest films. W.C. FIELDS SHORT FILMS will include nearly all of the short films starring this unique funnyman.
These will include the following:
Mack Sennett Comedies (1932-33) - The four sound two-reelers made for Sennett comprise some of Fields' best work, and show some experimentation with gags and story ideas that would wind up in his better known features. THE DENTIST includes scenes and double entendres that are outrageously "pre-code" in their sexuality (most famously, the orgasmic moans and writhing of one unusually responsive female patient, which were edited out of some prints). THE BARBER SHOP places Fields in another profession with plenty of opportunities for gags and dark humor, and helps set the pattern for his character being troubled by a shrewish wife, pesky children, and unfriendly customers. THE PHARMACIST, with Fields as a small-town shopkeeper, contains trial runs for many of the bits featured in the feature that many consider his greatest, IT'S A GIFT (some gags in both films were already used in the 1926 feature IT'S THE OLD ARMY GAME). THE FATAL GLASS OF BEER, was perhaps the most ahead of its time. Completely deadpan satire -- likely the first such instance of that on the screen -- mercilessly lampoons corny stage melodramas, sentimentality and cost-cutting stock footage use, not to mention the Temperance movement (when the film was released, prohibition was still in force in some states). THE FATAL GLASS OF BEER was universally disliked by audiences and exhibitors on its initial release, but can now be seen as a black comedy classic.
POOL SHARKS (1915) - The British Gaumont studio contracted W.C. Fields, already a star of vaudeville and the Ziegfeld Follies, to appear in his first film (shot in New York). Miraculously (and unlike several other silents that Fields starred in), the film survives, rediscovered via a single nitrate print in the mid-1960s. POOL SHARKS begins with some awkward slapstick, but soon turns into a showcase for one of Fields' signature stage routines, showing his skill making trick shots on a pool table (it was as a juggler that he first came to prominence). Film historian William K. Everson wrote: "POOL SHARKS must surely rank as one of the most auspicious debuts made by any of the major screen comedians…a minor masterpiece when viewed in the context of its period, and certainly a major milestone in the early evolution of screen comedy."
Plus a surprise, bonus film!
There will be one complete show at 8:00 pm. Admission is FREE.
As usual, all Secret Cinema presentations are projected in 16mm film on a giant screen (not video, not digital, all analog!).
This screening is part of the Rotunda's ongoing "Bright Bulb Screening Series," which offers free movies on the second Thursday of every month, throughout the year.