My Articles

A handy compilation of my various writings, organized for your reading pleasure.

Learning To Love Silent Films–Tips for understanding and appreciating silents

How To Watch A Silent Film (If You’ve Never Seen One)
Getting Into Silent Films–Where To Begin?
Why You Should Learn To Stop Worrying And Start Loving The Title Cards
Check Those Sources!–A Handy Guide
The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly Of Movie Star Biographies
5 Examples Of How Silent Films Will Change Your Perspective
Thoughts Of A Twenty-Something, 21st Century Silent Film Fan
What’s Your Silent “Gateway” Film?

Thoughts On Various Films

Thoughts On: Aelita, Queen of Mars
…Back Stage
…Bangville Police
…The Bell Boy
…The Big Parade
…The Birth of a Nation
…The Butcher Boy
…The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
…The Cameraman
…The Cat and the Canary
…Chaplin (1992)
…Coney Island
…The Cook
…Ella Cinders
…Fatty and Mabel Adrift
…Faust 
…The Four Troublesome Heads (1898)
…Frankenstein (1910)
…The Freshman
…The Garage
…Ghosts Before Breakfast
…Good Night, Nurse
…Greed
…The Haunted House
…The Hayseed
…Hearts of the World
…His Wedding Night
…Hugo (2011)
…Intolerance
…The Kid
…Kid Auto Races At Venice
…The Knockout
…La La Land (2016)
…Le Roi des Champs-Elysees (1934)
…Menilmontant
…Moonshine
…Nanook of the North
…Nosferatu
…Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (1979)
…Oh Doctor!
…Our Dancing Daughters
…Our Modern Maidens
…Out West
…One Week
…Pandora’s Box
…The Passion of Joan of Arc
…Peter Pan
…The Phantom of the Opera 
…Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
…The Rough House
…The Sheik
…The Son of the Sheik
…Shoulder Arms
…Show People
…Soldier Man
…Synthetic Sin
…They Shall Not Grow Old (2018)
…Three’s a Crowd
…Tol’able David
…A Trip to the Moon 
…True Heart Susie
…Way Down East
…Why Be Good?
…Wings
…The Wizard of Oz (1925)

Obscure Films: Au Secours!
…Behind the Door 
…The Blue Bird
…Cripple Creek Bar-Room Scene
…The Female of the Species
…From Morn to Midnight (Von morgens bis mitternachts)
…Genuine: A Tale of a Vampire
…Hearts and Flowers 
…Her Sister From Paris
…His Wife’s Mistake
…The Hoodlum
…L’Inhumaine
…The Lucky Dog
…The Merry Frolics of Satan
…Moran of the Lady Letty
…The Portrait
…1776, or The Hessian Renegades
…Shot in the Excitement (1914)

Lost Films: A Country Hero
…Saved From the Titanic (1912)
…In the Year 2014 (1914)
…Flaming Youth
…Private Peat
…The Miracle Man

Personalities–More or less in alphabetical order

Clara Bow, The Eternal “It” Girl
The Quirky Charm of Charley Bowers
Lon Chaney, Hollywood’s Finest Character Actor
100 Years Of Charlie Chaplin–A Celebration Of The Cinema
Charlie, Doug and Mary–An (Almost) Ideal Friendship
The OTHER Artist Charles Chaplin
Segundo de Chomon–The Man You Think Is Melies
Mona Darkfeather, The “Indian Princess” of Hollywoodland
Louise Fazenda, Comic Venus
Gertie the Dinosaur!
Elinor Glyn And Her (Infamous) Three Weeks
The Extraordinary Talent of Robert “Bobby” Harron
Arthur Housman, Gloom Dispeller
Josie, Lige, “Pimple,” And Other Uber Obscure Comedians
Silent Boris and Silent Bela: The Early Careers of Two Horror Icons
Meet The Keystone Kops
Remembering Florence LaBadie
“The Biograph Girl”–The Career Of Early Star Florence Lawrence
Forever Debonair: The Enduring Legacy Of Comedy Pioneer Max Linder
Ormer Locklear, Hollywoodland’s Daredevil Of The Air
A Salute to Luke the Dog
The Funny (And Forgotten) Stick Figures of Norman Z. McLeod
Georges Méliès, Pioneer of Cinematic Spectacle
Colleen Moore, America’s Favorite Flapper
Polly, Minta and Louise: Three Unsung Keystone Ladies
Hats Off To Charlie Murray
Introducing Mirth-Maker Marcel Perez
Defending Jack Pickford
Will the Real Mary Pickford Please Stand Up?
RIP Mickey Rooney (1920-2014)
Sybil Seely, Buster’s Most Charming Leading Lady
Learning to Laugh at Larry Semon
Mack Sennett, King of Comedy
“Splashes of Fun and Beauty”–Sennett’s Famous Bathing Beauties
Fantabulous Ford Sterling
Buster’s Wife’s Relations: Getting to Know the Talmadge Family
A Mesmerizing Talent: The Life and Career of Conrad Veidt
Gladys Walton, A Forgotten Screen Flapper
The Muse of the Reel–The Pioneering Work of Director Lois Weber
Bert Williams, Vaudeville Superstar

History & Culture–Historical background, context, and forgotten trends

What Is The World’s Oldest Film?
The Addictive Fun Of Reading Old Fan Magazine Letters
Some Crazy Flapper Slang (That You’ve Never Heard Before)
1920s Teens And Their Favorite “Pictures”
A Reminder Of The Edwardian Era (And Why It’s Important)
So Just What Exactly Was German Expressionism?
Timelessly Cool: The Art of 1920s Soviet Film Posters
The History of Those Darn Banana Peels
How Do Silent Films Become “Lost”?
From Magic Lanterns to Fred Ott’s Sneeze–Cinema Begins
Tiny Pennants, Satin Pillow Tops, And Other Early Movie Merchandise
Vamps! Your Great-Grandfather’s Femme Fatales
What Are The World’s Oldest Horror Movies?
“Make Next Halloween Sane!” How 1920s Theater Owners Helped Curb Kids’ Vandalism
Silent Film Makeup: What Was It Really Like?
Georges Méliès And The Féerie
How To Throw An AUTHENTIC Roaring Twenties Party
Silent-ology’s Handy Tips For (Accurate) Roaring Twenties Costumes
Silent Cinema And The Lasting Impact Of World War I
From Pie Throwing To Polished Farce: How Silent Comedy Evolved In Under Two Decades
The Eleventh Hour Of The Eleventh Day
Homme Fatales and Hair Grease: The Phenomenon of the 1920s “Sheik”

Exploring the Silent Era–Trivia, analysis, and some fresh perspectives

Buster Keaton and the Minnesota State Fair
The Comique Films: Roscoe Arbuckle’s Masterpieces
“Skyscraper”–The Silent Film Buster Keaton Almost Made
Eisenstein on Chaplin
Why Tim Burton Should Thank Pola Negri
“He Really Can Smile”–A Charming 1921 Buster Keaton Interview
Batman, Superman And Douglas Fairbanks
Were Chaplin And Keaton Rivals?
Learning to Love the Keystone Film Company
My Favorite Scene In All Of Silent Comedy (Yes, All)
“What’s the matter with the Talmadges?”–Some Fan Magazine Letter Drama
The Scandalous Secret of Lew Cody’s Door
What It Costs To Be a Well-Dressed Clubman
The Most Famous Curls in the World
The Power of Greed…And McTeague
How I Learned To Love Intolerance (And So Can You!)
Should We Judge Stars By Their Personal Lives?
John Barrymore’s Amazing Transformation In Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
Do We Pre-Judge Mary Pickford?
Harold Lloyd’s Magnificent (Year-Round!) Christmas Tree
“Natalie Marries Buster Keaton”–An Interesting Book Excerpt
There’s Hope Out There, Silent Film Fans!
Was Chaplin Really That Sentimental?
Watching Silent Films With Our Grandparents
The Great Chaplin-Pickford-Fairbanks Liberty Loan Tour of ’18
In Defense Of “The Big Four” Of Silent Comedy

Listicles!

5 (Very) Early Pickford Films
5 Silent Films That Would’ve Terrified Me As A Child
Living Cartoons: 5 Silent “Grotesque” Comedians
Ray Guns and Mechanical Monsters: 5 Obscure Sci-Fi Silents
7 Silent Christmas Movies (From The Horse-And-Buggy Era)
My Top Ten Favorite Silent Films (So Far)
My Top 5 Favorite Silent Stars
6 Things Méliès Did First
Silent Ireland: 5 Dramas From The Emerald Isle
The Villains of D.W. Griffith Films
6 Silent-Related Locations Still On My Bucket List
“Wake ‘Em Up!”–A Look At 8 WWI Propaganda Films
12 Spooky Films I Watch Every October
7 German Expressionist Films You Probably Haven’t Heard Of

Book & DVD Reviews

Keaton by Rudi Blesh
Like Any Other Monday by Binnie Brennan
Bebe Daniels: Hollywood’s Good Little Bad Girl by Charles Epting
The First King of Hollywood: The Life of Douglas Fairbanks by Tracey Goessel
Mabel Normand: The Life and Career of a Hollywood Madcap by Timothy Dean Lefler
The Silent Films of Marion Davies by Edward Lorusso
“Bare Knees” Flapper: The Life and Films of Virginia Lee Corbin by Tim Lussier
Slapstick Divas: The Women of Silent Comedy by Steve Massa
Tempest in a Flat Hat by Edward McPherson
The Ice Cream Blonde: The Whirlwind Life and Mysterious Death of Screwball Comedienne Thelma Todd by Michelle Morgan
1907 Chicago Projector Co.’s Entertainer’s Supplies Catalog No. 122 by Darren Nemeth
How To Film Moving Pictures in the 1910s by Darren Nemeth
Larry Semon, Daredevil Comedian of the Silent Screen by Claudia Sassen
Documentary: The Thanhouser Studio and the Birth of American Cinema
DVD: Found at Mostly Lost
DVD: The Roundup
DVD: London Symphony (2017)
DVD: Little Orphant Annie

Silent Films Today–Interviews, blogathons, film festival recaps, and more

Farewell, 2014: The Silent Community Year In Review
Goodbye, 2015: The Silent Community Year In Review
So Long, 2016: The Silent Community Year In Review
See Ya, 2017: The Silent Community Year in Review
Adieu, 2018: The Silent Community Year in Review
Silent-ology Turns One Today!
It’s Silent-ology’s 2nd Anniversary!
Silent-ology Is Three Years Old Today!
Silent-ology Turns Four Today!
San Francisco Silent Film Festival 2016: The Recap
San Francisco Silent Film Festival 2018: The Mighty Recap
My Recap of the 2019 San Francisco Silent Film Festival (And a Giveaway!) My Experience at the 2017 Buster Keaton Convention
Silent-ology Interviews Susan Buhrman About New The General Finds
Interview With Steve Massa, Author of Slapstick Divas
Happy Centennial of Buster Entering Films!!!
World War I in Classic Film: A Historical Blogathon
The First Annual Buster Keaton Blogathon
The Second Annual Buster Keaton Blogathon
The Third Annual Buster Keaton Blogathon
The Fourth Annual Buster Keaton Blogathon
The Fifth Annual Buster Keaton Blogathon

Travel & Research Tips

My Very First Visit To Hollywoodland
Silent-ology’s Handy Tips for Visiting (Silent) Hollywood
The Return To Hollywoodland
A Newbie’s Visit To The Margaret Herrick Library
My Review Of The TCM Movie Locations L.A. Bus Tour
Dining At The Musso & Frank Grill: A RESTAURANT Review
Check Those Sources!–A Handy Guide
The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly Of Movie Star Biographies

Fun Stuff!

The Theda Bara Sandwich Recipe–Try It Today!
Something I Noticed About Chaplin Discussions
Something I Noticed About Keaton Discussions
Rudolph Valentino’s “Secret” Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
How Silent Fans Feel About D.W. Griffith
The Most Awesome Keystone Screengrab Ever
How To Make A Genuine Silent Comedy Pie (For Throwing!)
Film Preservation Don’t Get No Respect
Some Fantastic Old-Timey Magazine Ads
The Silent Comedy Mustache Hall of Fame
Fan Magazine Fun: “If I Were a Man…”
…“Lips Cannot Lie”
…Odds And Ends From Film Fun
…A Brief Pause To Throw Pies At Huns
…“My goodness, don’t they look strange?”
…“The Haunted Home of Movie Ghosts”