On Wednesday, April 29: Buster Keaton's 'The General' at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, Mass.

Buster and his co-star in 'The General' (1926).

I'm back on the road this week to the Regent Theatre in Arlington, Mass., where they're screening Buster Keaton's 'The General' (1926) on Wednesday, April 29, with music by me.

It's the third visit to the Regent this month, as the venue pursues a mini-series of silent screenings that included Cecil B. DeMille's 'King of Kings' (1927) and Harold Lloyd's 'Safety Last' (1923).

'Safety Last' was part of a 110th anniversary show (the Regent opened in 1916) that included live stage acts. It's the first time I've ever shared the bill with a belly-dancer, a bag-piper who could flip a hat from his foot onto his head, a Judy Garland impersonator, a man who could play three recorders at once, and a visibly pregnant hula-hoop artist.

They were all fantastic, by the way. Collectively, it was a tough act for Harold to follow. But 'Safety Last' never fails to grab an audience, and that's what happened at the Regent last Friday night.

No stage acts are planned for Wednesday night's screening of 'The General,' unless someone convinces me to do my trick of flinging coins balanced on my elbows, and then catching them before they hit the ground. I'll bring some Kennedy half dollars (which work the best) just in case.

For now, more info about Wednesday's screening can be found in the press release pasted in below. See you at the Regent!

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Buster Keaton in 'The General' (1926).

MONDAY, APRIL 20, 2026 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Buster Keaton's 'The General' with live music at Regent Theatre on Wednesday, April 29

100th anniversary screening! Civil War railroading comedy/adventure film lauded as stone-faced comic moviemaker's masterpiece 

ARLINGTON, Mass.— 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.

See for yourself with a 100th anniverary screening of 'The General' (1926), one of Keaton's landmark feature films, on Wednesday, April 29 at 7:30 p.m. at the Regent Theatre, 7 Medford St., Arlington, Mass.

General admission is $25 per person, with discounts for seniors/veterans. Tickets available at the door or online at www.regenttheatre.com.

The screening will feature live music by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based composer who specializes in creating music for silent films.

The screening is a chance to experience this landmark film as it was intended to be seen: in a high quality print on the big screen, with live music and with an audience.

'The General,' set during the U.S. Civil War, tells the story of a southern locomotive engineer (Keaton) whose engine (named 'The General') is hijacked by Northern spies with his girlfriend on board.

Keaton, commandeering another train, races north in pursuit behind enemy lines. Can he rescue his girl? And can he recapture his locomotive and make it back to warn of a coming Northern attack?

Critics call 'The General' Keaton's masterpiece, praising its authentic period detail, ambitious action and battle sequences, and its overall integration of story, drama, and comedy.

It's also regarded as one of Hollywood's great railroad films, with much of the action occurring on or around moving steam locomotives.

Accompanist Jeff Rapsis will improvise an original musical score for 'The General' live as the movie is shown, as was typically done during the silent film era.

"When the score gets made up on the spot, it creates a special energy that's an important part of the silent film experience," Rapsis said.

With the Regent Theatre's screening of 'The General,' audiences will get a chance to experience silent film as it was meant to be seen—in a high quality print, on a large screen, with live music, and with an audience.

"All those elements are important parts of the silent film experience," Rapsis said. "Recreate those conditions, and the classics of early Hollywood leap back to life in ways that can still move audiences today."

Keaton, along with Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd, stands today as one of the silent screen's three great clowns. Some critics regard Keaton as the best of all; 

Roger Ebert wrote in 2002 that "in an extraordinary period from 1920 to 1929, (Keaton) worked without interruption on a series of films that make him, arguably, the greatest actor-director in the history of the movies."

A remarkable pantomime artist, Keaton naturally used his whole body to communicate emotions from sadness to surprise. And in an era with no post-production special effects, Keaton's acrobatic talents enabled him to perform all his own stunts.

Critics review 'The General':

"The most insistently moving picture ever made, its climax is the most stunning visual event ever arranged for a film comedy."
—Walter Kerr, author of 'The Silent Clowns'

"An almost perfect entertainment!"
—Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

"What makes the film so special is the way the timing, audacity and elegant choreography of its sight gags, acrobatics, pratfalls and dramatic incidents is matched by Buster's directorial artistry, his acute observational skills working alongside the physical élan and sweet subtlety of his own performance."
—Time Out (London)

Keaton on location shooting 'The General' (1926) near Cottage Grove, Oregon.

The Keaton films are a great introduction to silent films for modern audiences, accompanist Rapsis said.

"Keaton's comedy is as fresh today as it was a hundred years ago — maybe more so, because his kind of visual humor is a lost art," Rapsis said.

‘The General’ (1926) starring Buster Keaton will be shown with live music on Wednesday, April 29 at 7:30 p.m. at the Regent Theatre, 7 Medford St., Arlington, Mass.

General admission is $25 per person, with discounts for seniors/veterans. Tickets available at the door or online at www.regenttheatre.com. For more information, call the theater at (781) 646-4849.