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Hi

We are looking at silents and the early talkies in our Film and Literature class

I was thinking of doing my assignment about Fatty Arbuckle but is that too cliche?

If you mean is it too much covered, that's a matter of academic politics that I doubt few of us could comment on meaningfully. Why not ask your instructor if it a good subject?

It is a compelling story and there is a lot of research to be conducted on the subject with many ways to consider the subject. It could well be that it's too large and complex for a homework assignment!

Bob

Whether or not any subject is worthy of treatment depends for the most part on the originality of the treatment. One interesting aspect of Arbuckle's career could be the question of why Arbuckle, after his fall from favour, failed to resurrect his career despite retaining the friendship of many prominent figures (viz. Hearst/Davies in The Red Mill). Arbuckle was by no means alone in this respect - several faded silent stars, despite retaining the goodwill of their peers, failed to climb all the way back. In what proportions was Arbuckle's failure due to the man himself, the strength of American public opinion in the 20s/30s or to our own misconceptions as to who really held the balance of power in early Hollywood?

It really depends on the objective(s) of your assignment. When looking at silents and early talkies, that's a very broad subject matter. Roscoe was certainly a force in silent comedy, but he was just one of many key players in silent films. His fall from grace was tragic and sad, but was more about politics than the art of film making. There are many things you can consider researching and writing about - acting styles, the "business" side of Hollywood, the changing dynamics of film making when transitioning to sound (sound guys had enormous power and influence). So again, I would recommend you consider the primary objective of your assignment and go from there.

Please refer to him as Roscoe Arbuckle, not "Fatty". That was only used for studio poster ads, etc and film titles. Those who knew him personally always referred to him as Roscoe.

When you're writing papers/doing projects for school, no project is too cliched. All that matters is that you learn something from the process. (And I'm not even talking about learning something about Arbuckle.) Don't worry about whether the instructor saw similar projects last semester, last year, or every year for the last ten.

A former teacher

A few times I have seen postings elsewhere that are made just to lure people into making comments. I think this subject posting is one such attempt at humor at the expense of anyone who bothers to respond. A "film and lit" class. What's that? Well, if this first time poster here is trying to pull a fast one, no good will come of it.

A Film and Literature class at my high school here in Australia.
I really don't appreciate being called a liar.

I did not call you a liar. I said that sometimes people make bogus postings. Anonymous people can claim anything on this site for a first time. Leave it at that or take my comment anyway you want. It's a free country, for now.

momsne wrote:It's a free country, for now.

You have plans?

Jim

A high school offering film and lit - cool! Makes a change from the Latin and Greek I was forced to do.

I didn't realise I was replying to a school student so please ignore the flippant first line in my original response which I have now edited.

My Uncle Jack (a university professor) had a saying: "If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there."

I think it's wonderful that you're studying silents and early talkies in high school! The first term paper I wrote in high school English class was on the coming of sound in the movies, and it set me on the course I'm still exploring today. I still feel it's the most fascinating period in film history, and I would encourage you to explore it from all angles.

If you're just now getting your feet wet in film history, NOTHING is "too cliché." But you have to know where you are, and where you want to go. Start with what you like, and proceed from there.

Since you want to write about Roscoe Arbuckle, I'm assuming you have already seen some of his films. What did you like about them? Why? What aspect(s) of his life and career are you aware of, and what do you want to know more about? Let your curiosity be your guide, and I guarantee you'll go far.

I would also encourage you to do most of your research in the media of the period -- the actual books, newspapers and magazines of the early 20th century. Don't depend too much on contemporary material, unless you can verify it through these earlier sources.

Good luck with your project -- and let us know how it turns out!

alistairw wrote:A high school offering film and lit - cool! Makes a change from the Latin and Greek I was forced to do.

Well, I don't know how old you are, Alistair, but I took a course in film and literature in high school, and that was back in 1970. Latin stopped being mandatory the year before that.

Jim

You actually have a few years on me Jim but I was educated in Scotland where trends always take a century or two to arrive. You guys in North America had the good sense to dump the English at the first opportunity - we're only getting round to voting on it next year.

alistairw wrote:You actually have a few years on me Jim but I was educated in Scotland where trends always take a century or two to arrive. You guys in North America had the good sense to dump the English at the first opportunity - we're only getting round to voting on it next year.

We dumped the English? Try telling that to Quebec!

(And BTW, she's still the Queen of Canada as well as of Scotland. Ugh...)

Jim