I am watching an old Buster Keaton movie, he was so cute with his deadpan expression and long hair!

In "The Cameraman" there's a scene where Buster gets into a swimsuit in a cramped changing room an there's a glimpse of his tightly muscled torso. Only a glimpse, alas.

Buster in the noods, almost

The General is terrific but his best is Steamboat Bill Jr. He did his own stunts of course, and Steamboat Bill Jr included his greatest.

Steamboat Bill is brilliant.

One of my all-time favorite stars.

He worked out most of his gags and did all of his own stunts.

He was the master at starting a visual joke out small and building it and building it until the whole world came falling down on him.

Pure genius and a hunk to boot.

he's adorkable

He was in Sunset Blvd, right? At the bridge game?

Right. He and Mary Astor I believe.

I never realized how good looking he was until I watched Steamboat. I'm happy I started to get into the older movies.

Beautiful man, talented guy!

It wasn't Mary Astor in the bridge game it was Anna Q. Nillson. The fourth was H.L . Warner.

I'm a big silent movie fan and you might be surprised at how many gorgeous looking guys there were in the early days of film. Some would put today's movie idols to shame. But getting back to the subject of the thread, yes, Buster was very handsome and had a lean, muscular body which was shown off in a few movies.

"College" shows Buster at possibly his most athletic.

If you want to see late-in-life Buster with a railway cart (no athletic stunts, sorry!), watch National Film Board of Canada's "The Railrodder", available on YouTube.

R13, which ones do you suggest? I'm just starting to get into silent movies. After Show People, The Circus, Mickey and Steamboat, any suggestions would be appreciated.

"The General" is one of those films that we watch the whole way through, regardless of how many times we've seen it. The pace and scenes are attention-locking.

Cottage Grove, Oregon is where "The General" was filmed. There's a very good cafe named for BK, its outside gigantic mural depicts long-haired Buster as Johnny Gray in front of his train. A mini-shrine/museum is behind the cafe, free tours for the asking. Next to the cafe the hotel where the cast and crew stayed.

r15 "Wings" has the very pretty duo of Richard Arlen and Buddy Rogers. I just saw "The Cardboard Lover" last week with Nils Asther co-starring with Marion Davies. Marion's niece Pepi Lederer is in some early scenes.

I'm not r13 but I also love silent films.

TCM used to sponsor a competition to compose scores for silent films, and the winner one year (maybe the only year?) did a fantastic job with The General. If you ever come across the film with that score it's worth watching just for the music.

Somewhere there's a great old interview with Buster where he talks about his trademark straw boater hats. He had to cut regular hats down himself and glue them back together, and given how many he went through and gave away, he was spending an insane amount of time just making his hats at the peak of his career.

R15 for a good silent drama, I'd highly recommend "Sunrise: A Song of Two Hyumans" which is often regarded as one of the best movies, regardless of age. It stars Janet Gaynor and the very handsome George O'Brien. (O'Brien is worth googling as he was well know for showing off his physique, both in movies and in real life, and there are lots of photos of him shirtless.)

R15, I'll list the titles of some well regarded ones and then you can look them up and see if they interest you,

"The Crowd"

"Sunrise"

"The Wind"

"Sparrows"

"The Thief of Baghdad"

"Orphans of the Storm"

"My Best Girl"

"Safety Last"

"The Black Pirate"

Thank you all!

You're welcome...and have fun watching!

I recommend Buster's early two-reelers for Metro. "Neighbors", "Daydreams", "The Balloonatic," "The Goat," "Cops", "One Week", "The Electric House," "The Scarecrow", and what is left of "Convict 13" and "Hard Luck." Delicious black humor, had Buster.

"Cops" is hilarious.

Did Buster have big dick face?

Discuss.

Even Buster is scared shitless about Trump!

I forgot about "Battling Butler" for shirtless Keaton, and for general guffaws the shorts "The High Sign" and "The Boat."

Even though he was a shrimp (5'5"), Louise Brooks referred to him as the most beautiful man in Hollywood in the 1920s. (You have to look past the makeup).

This is a link to a touching bit about Keaton, with some lovely photos.

His contract specified that he would never be photographed smiling.

For starter silents you must see Chaplin's "City Lights" right away!

There's a great scene in "Go West" - another Keaton must see - where he's playing cards against a tough cowboy, who demands he smile and Buster tries and just can't.

Didn't we pretend 'Buster Keaton - whose had him?' was a real thread in 'Pretend to be an Eldergay thread'?

Buster jumping over a cliff, he was really something.

My great-great aunt and her husband were friends of Keaton's parents during their vaudeville days. My great-great aunt would hold Buster, as a baby, when his parents were onstage.

Huge Keaton fan. I can't search right now, but there is a great shot from Fatty at Coney Island with BK, Roscoe, and Al St. John on top of one another where Buster is at his swooniest.

(See if this works)

Trying again

some of his best stunts

Buster Keaton - The Art of the Gag

The Playhouse

Anybody else think Buster in drag looks like Maggie Smith?

He was a beautiful man!

R37, here is the same shot, just from a different perspective.

Bit of trivia - Who named him Buster?

Supposedly Houdini...but probably not.

The amazing and amazingly dangerous falling house stunt from Steamboat Bill Jnr. A genius. Too fond of the booze though.

If you watch the clip from Steamboat Bill Jr., you can tell that either Buster's mark or the house frame was off by a little bit because the window frame just brushes his sleeve. A bit more in the wrong direction and the stunt would have gone horribly wrong.

Buster Keaton, The best chase ever - 1925

Thanks, R49!

Laughed out loud several times.

I saw The Cameraman on Saturday night, with live Wurlitzer accompaniment. It is painful for me to watch slapstick, but I was impressed with how attractive Buster Keaton was. I was expecting some Tubitha Von Fatpants, so Buster was a pleasant surprise. The music was the best part, however.

Why did the fat guy not just wait his turn to change?

The General is one of my favorite movies. Buster was amazing and I always felt sorry he didn't get the same recognition that Chaplin got.

The first of his movies that I saw was Seven Chances. I think that's my favorite. Keaton's style appeals to me more than Chaplin, who can get too sentimental for me.

I read a biography and he had kind of a sad life. He peaked early, then for a while he couldn't get arrested in Hollywood. Then for a long time he scraped by as a gag writer and occasional character actor. At least he lived long enough to see his films get rediscovered.

Was Buster hung?

He and Fatty Arbuckle raped women and then made up lies about how the women were whores so they'd get away with it.

Even back then Hollywood covered it up, blaming women and making them the scapegoats.

Always thought Elijah Wood would be good casting for a biopic. Same height, good physique under the dorky tshirts, good at quirky personalities, and actually quite beautiful at certain angles.

No love for Sherlock Jr.? Also, the waterfall stunt in Our Hospitality is maybe the all time greatest.

He was full of himself, but he never raped a girl, then made her get an abortion and killed her, then paid three juries off till he found one that would find him 'not guilty' instead of just being a 'hung jury.'

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He mentored Lucille Ball.