LAME BRAINS & LUNATICS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE FORGOTTEN OF SILENT COMEDY (paperback)

      ISBN 9781593932688 Silent Film Comedy was a fortuitous combination of art and technology, wherethe physical comedy skills and artistry passed down from the Commediadell'Arte, English music hall, and American vaudeville were captured forposterity by the newly created motion picture camera. While the Chaplins,Keatons, and Laurel & Hardys are still remembered and celebrated, this bookprofiles unsung practitioners such as Billie Ritchie, Marcel Perez, LigeConley, and George Rowe, with special focus on the neglected comediennesAlice Howell, Gale Henry, Fay Tincher, and Josie Sadler. Popular icons onthe order of Mack Sennett, Marie Dressler, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, and W.C.Fields are re-examined, plus detailed histories of silent comedy teams andkid's comedies are offered. The book also includes selected filmographiesand is lavishly illustrated with more than 225 rarely-seen photographs andadvertising images.Steve Massa is a leading enthusiast of silent comedy, who has devoted 45y