Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

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Joe Thompson
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Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Joe Thompson » Mon Jul 08, 2013 8:45 am

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Walter Kerr was born 100 years ago today, on 08-July-1913. He was most famous as a theater critic and a character in his wife Jean Kerr's book Please Don't Eat the Dasies. I remember him as the author of the book The Silent Clowns, which I first came across at the Anza Branch library in San Francisco. I later bought a hardcover copy. Kerr wrote beautifully about movies which I had seen and movies which I had not seen. This book and Kevin Brownlow's The Parade's Gone By greatly influenced my thinking about silent movies.

Happy birthday, Mr Kerr.
Regards,
Joe Thompson ;0)
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Roseha
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Roseha » Tue Jul 09, 2013 12:21 am

I remember buying the book also. He appeared on TV to discuss the silent clowns with Dick Cavett right around the time I was discovering them and silent film in general. Fine introduction.
- Rosemary
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Lokke Heiss
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Lokke Heiss » Tue Jul 09, 2013 7:49 pm

Walter Kerr also wrote the excellent Tragedy and Comedy, which I enjoyed reading as it was assigned in David Shepard's silent film class at USC.
"You can't top pigs with pigs."

Walt Disney, responding to someone who asked him why he didn't immediately do a sequel to The Three Little Pigs
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Big Silent Fan
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Big Silent Fan » Thu Jul 11, 2013 7:25 pm

For those of us who don't know the name (many people live past 100), Walter Kerr died nearly 17 years ago.

Walter Francis Kerr (July 8, 1913 – October 9, 1996)

Copies of his book live on at Amazon and other sources.
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BenModel
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by BenModel » Thu Jul 11, 2013 8:12 pm

Just picked up a hardback edition on eBay for 12 bucks. I have a few; I give them to younger people (kids) I meet who have become fans of silent film comedy.
Ben Model: website | emails | performances | podcast
Undercrank Productions - rare silents on Blu-ray, DVD, and DCP
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syd
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by syd » Tue Sep 10, 2013 8:50 pm

If only Walter Kerr could've lived
long enough to see what has become
available. He could watch Senorita
now. He opined the "loss" of it in the book.
There is a full page still of Bebe Daniels
evading daggers in TSC.
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Doug Sulpy
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Doug Sulpy » Wed Sep 11, 2013 7:22 am

"The Silent Clowns" is also one of my favorite books on silent comedy.
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Jim Roots
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Jim Roots » Wed Sep 11, 2013 11:39 am

Lokke Heiss wrote:Walter Kerr also wrote the excellent Tragedy and Comedy, which I enjoyed reading as it was assigned in David Shepard's silent film class at USC.
How much of that book deals with silent comedy, or early sound comedy such as the Marxes, Fields, Benny, etc.?

Jim
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Doug Sulpy
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Doug Sulpy » Wed Sep 11, 2013 3:51 pm

I think the only sound films he talks about are those in which Chaplin, Lloyd, Keaton etc. appeared.
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by BenModel » Wed Sep 11, 2013 9:01 pm

He was a definitely a Fields fan, I know. He had most of Fields sound features in his 16mm collection, as well as "It's the Old Army Game". Also had prints of the Paramount Marx films.

Ben
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Jim Roots
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Jim Roots » Thu Sep 12, 2013 6:06 am

Doug Sulpy wrote:I think the only sound films he talks about are those in which Chaplin, Lloyd, Keaton etc. appeared.
So you're saying Tragedy and Comedy includes a lot of discussion about silent comedy?

Jim
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Doug Sulpy
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Doug Sulpy » Thu Sep 12, 2013 7:40 am

My mistake! I was talking about "The Silent Clowns." Somehow I missed that you were asking about the other book (that I haven't read).

Sorry for the confusion,
Doug
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Jim Roots
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Re: Walter Kerr 100 -- The Silent Clowns

Post by Jim Roots » Thu Sep 12, 2013 8:45 am

Doug Sulpy wrote:My mistake! I was talking about "The Silent Clowns." Somehow I missed that you were asking about the other book (that I haven't read).

Sorry for the confusion,
Doug
That's okay. I would go an extra mile to read anything Kerr has to say about silent comedy.

Jim
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