Classic Comics (Class A, B C)

With recent discussions touching on W.C. Fields, The Three Stooges & other comics, & the relative merit of each, I thought I would contribute the following ranking of great cinema comedians from the first half of this century. Here goes:

Class A Charlie Chaplin

I think every comic Azquints mentions belongs in group A along with a few others (Hannah mentioned Mabel Normand, I would include Charley Chase, etc.)

Group B would consist of Wheeler and Woolsey, Joe E. Brown, and other very funny people who unfortunately didn't have the level of filmmaking genius or longevity as the others.

Group C might extend to sidekicks and character players who never quite reached the top echelon, but still provided fun in supporting roles. Hannah mentioned Gabby Hayes. I would include the likes of Mack Swain, Eric Campbell, Edgar Kennedy, Symona Boniface, Margaret Dumont, et al.

I don't know where we would put someone like William Powell (whom Hannah also mentioned) in that he was an actor who did some comedy films, but not a comedian per se (same with Cary Grant, a few others).

Note to AZquints

AZquints wrote in part:

Harold Lloyd in the same class as The Three Stooges?!?

Ranking comedians is a utterly pointless exercise, as it is a question of personal taste. These people being damned funny should be, in itself, enough.

David B. Pearson Arbucklemania http://www.uno.edu/~drif/arbuckle Website of the Guy on the Rock Bottom of Mark's list

of personal taste. These people being damned funny should be, in itself, enough.<<

Well I agree with the latter statement wholeheartedly. The idea behind this post was to provide a format to discuss the relative merit of some of the NG's favorite comedians, a topic I thought there would be some interest in, given comments in various recent threads.

BTW, JimN & a few other posters mentioned some comics I didn't in my initial post, such as Charley Chase and Wheeler & Woolsey. I didn't rate anyone I wasn't reasonably familiar with. I've seen no W&W, very little Chase. I would be interested in seeing films from all he comedians mentioned in these posts, as well as more Arbuckle pictures. My mind is open 24 hours.

Mark stated in part:

I've seen no W&W, very little Chase

Thanks for the pointers on Chase, W&W. I'll check em out.

Mark- 'Eddie Brandt's Saturday Matinee', a video store in Los Angeles (perhaps the best video store in the country for silent movie buffs) has almost all of Wheeler & Woolsey's, and a great number of Chase's, films on tape...and they rent by mail...(818) 506-4242

Oh, and to keep it on topic...they have all of Chaplin's available movies, too

-Unka Denny

'Excuse me a minute, my ear is full of milk...' -Oliver Hardy

And to make it a little *more* on topic, Bert Wheeler does a very nice CC routine in the W&W film High Fliers.

True enough. My father always liked Ben Turpin, and my aunt favored Arbuckle and Harpo Marx.

Ranking comedians is basically an exercise in ranking their personalities according to your preferences. Ranking them as filmmakers and artists is another matter. Mark seems to be going a bit of both (and other things as well).

Connie K.

My impression of Chase is that if he had been born later, he would have been a natural in television. (I don't necessarily mean that as an insult. I'd rather seem him in a sitcom than Tim Allen.) I've enjoyed all of his films I have seen, but he never had, in my opinion, the charisma to be the center of a

You are completely right about Charley Chase here. His comedy shorts were one of the springboards that eventually became television's situation comedy. Had he lived, I am sure that he would have been very involved in television, most probably behind the scenes as a writer and director. If any of you have not been given an opportunity to see his work, I encourage you to do so.

Selfishly, I have been collecting his films for twenty years and have seen almost 175 of his films to date. I've been collecting reviews and articles on him for a book that I wanted to write for the past eight years and, perhaps some day, I shall. But I'm looking forward to seeing the new book on him. His daughter, June, will be in North Hollywood on Tuesday evening for a screening of some of her father's films.