I'm just back from two weeks in France, but never mind about that.
More important: a shout-out to all my friends in Vermont, who are right now grappling with some really bad flooding.
I do a lot of shows in the Green Mountain State, and over the years I've gotten to know a lot of terrific people who live in some equally terrific small cities and towns.
One of those towns is Ludlow, Vt., where next month I'll make my annual appearance as part of their monthly movie series at the Ludlow Town Hall Auditorium.
So it was more than a little disconcerting to see today's New York Times home page carry an image of a flooded downtown Ludlow that included the very building where the movies get shown!
Wow! All best wishes to everyone for a quick drying out and fast recovery.
Okay, up next in this summer's silent film hit parade: Buster Keaton in two states—Maine and (I hope) Vermont!
On Wednesday, July 12, I'll accompany 'Our Hospitality' (1923) at the Leavitt Theatre in Ogunquit, Maine. More details in the press release below.
And on Saturday, July 15, it's 'The General' (1926) at the Brandon (Vt.) Town Hall and Community Center.
Brandon was hard hit by flooding caused by Hurricane Irene in 2011. I haven't heard from anyone up there yet, but I assume the show is still on. Will update if needed.
If the show is a go, I expect a strong reaction, because by Saturday I think all Vermonters will be in need of a laugh.
Here's info 'Our Hospitality' on Wednesday, July 12 at 6 p.m. in Ogunquit, Maine. See you there!
* * *
TUESDAY, JUNE 20, 2023 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com
Buster Keaton stars in 'Our Hospitality' on Wednesday, July 12 at Leavitt Theatre
Classic feature-length silent comedy to be screened on the big screen with live music
OGUNQUIT, Maine—He never smiled on camera, earning him the nickname of "the Great Stone Face."
But
Buster Keaton's comedies rocked Hollywood's silent era with laughter
throughout the 1920s, and remain popular crowd-pleasers today.
See
for yourself with a screening of 'Our Hospitality' (1923), one of
Keaton's landmark features, on Wednesday, July 12 at 6 p.m. at the
historic Leavitt Theatre, 259 Main St., Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine.
(Please note the start time of 6 p.m. is earlier than in prior seasons.)
Admission
is $12 per person. Live music will be provided by accompanist Jeff
Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based performer who specializes in creating
music for silent film presentations.
Buster Keaton and friend in 'Our Hospitality' (1923).
Set in the 1830s, 'Our
Hospitality,' tells the tale of a
young man (Keaton) raised in New York City but unknowingly at the center
of a long-running backwoods family feud.
Highlights of the
picture include Keaton's extended journey on a vintage train of the era,
as well as a climatic river rescue scene.
The film stars
Keaton's then-wife, Natalie Talmadge, as his on-screen love interest;
their first child, newborn James Talmadge Keaton, makes a cameo
appearance, playing Buster as an infant. Keaton's father also plays a
role in the film.
'Our Hospitality' is part of the Leavitt
Theatre's silent film series, which aims to show early movies as they
were meant to be seen—in high quality prints, on a large screen, with
live music, and with an audience.
"All those elements are
important parts of the silent film experience," said Rapsis, who will
improvise a musical score for 'Our Hospitality.'
"Recreate those conditions, and the classics of early Hollywood leap back to life," he said.
Keaton entered films in 1917 and was quickly fascinated with
them. After apprenticing with popular comedian Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle,
Keaton went on to set up his own studio in 1920, making short comedies
that established him as one of the era's leading talents.
A
remarkable pantomime artist, Keaton naturally used his whole body to
communicate emotions from sadness to surprise. And in an era with no
special effects, Keaton's acrobatic talents enabled him to perform all
his own stunts.
In 1923, Keaton made the leap into full-length
films with 'Our Hospitality,' which proved popular enough for him to
continue making features for the rest of the silent era.
• Wednesday, July 26 at 6 p.m.: 'Zaza' (1923) starring Gloria Swanson. Romance set in France in which Swanson plays a hot-tempered provincial actress who gets entangled with a married diplomat.
• Wednesday, Aug. 16 at 6 p.m.: 'The Pilgrim' (1923) starring Charlie Chaplin. As a convict on the lam, Chaplin impersonates a man of the cloth, with unexpected results.
• Wednesday, Aug. 23 at 6 p.m.: 'A Woman of Paris' (1923). Chaplin's drama about a kept woman (Edna Purviance) who runs into her former fiancé and finds herself torn between love and comfort.
Accompanist Jeff Rapsis will create musical scores for each film live during its screening, in the manner of theater organists during silent cinema's peak years in the 1920s.
"For most silent films, there was never any sheet music and no official score," Rapsis said. "So creating original music on the spot to help the film's impact is all part of the experience."
"That's one of the special qualities of silent cinema," Rapsis said. "Although the films themselves are often over a century old, each screening is a unique experience — a combination of the movie, the music, and the audience reaction."
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