Thoughts on how we all need a Topeka, plus 'Why Worry?' in Wilton, N.H. on Sunday, 3/3

Harold Lloyd has big shoes to fill in 'Why Worry?' (1923).

Today's headlines getting you down? Then see a film from yesterday called 'Why Worry?' (1923), which I'm accompanying on Sunday, March 3 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H.

Lots more info about this Harold Lloyd comedy in the press release pasted in below. With silent film, the audience is an important part of the show, so hope to see you there!

For now, here's a report from this year's Kansas Silent Film Festival, which took place on Friday, Feb. 23 and Saturday, Feb. 24 on the campus of Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. 

This was the 25th consecutive year I've attended this festival, which includes the pandemic year of 2021 when I staged my own version of it, "The Kansas Silent Film Festival in New Hampshire." 

Why have I done this for so many years? Well, besides the films and the people, I think it represents hope and renewed possibilities, at least on a personal level.

Setting up: Larry Stendebach and Brian Sanders hang the banner on the White Concert Hall.

I first attended it quite by random in the year 2000, just prior to co-founding a successful publishing business that's been a big part of my life ever. Something about the accidental nature of it all triggered something in me to move ahead with all this.

And not long afterwards, the Kansas festival prompted me to embark on my own silent film journey—one that's involved creating music for silent film screenings for nearly 20 years now. 

For a lot of us, our life path involves finding our own way to what we become. And for some of us, the path has to include random detours to make it uniquely our own. 

It's one thing to follow a good example and learn from the paths that others have taken, to stand on the shoulders of those who came before you. But it's such a human thing to want to explore and find your own way—to pioneer, to discover, to learn and experience for yourself.

So returning to Topeka once a year in late February has become something of a pilgrimage for me, with its own interior rituals such as fried pickles on Saturday morning at the Hanover Pancake House—itself a symbol of renewal, having risen from the rubble of the F5 tornado that roared through town in June 1966.

(Interesting fact: a local TV reporter in Topeka at the time the tornado hit is credited with saving lives by sternly warning viewers, "For God's sake, take cover!" The reporter was a young Bill Kurtis, today the announcer for NPR's 'Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me.')

And for me, Topeka has become a sort of Midwest version of Brigadoon: a distant community conjured out of the mist just once a year, a place where like-minded people gather to celebrate something most people don't understand or appreciate—and a place where I can pause and ponder what I've done, and what I can still do, to be the best version of myself. 

We all need a Topeka. In my case, it actually happens to be Topeka.

Well.

For a comprehensive round-up of this year's films, I point you to a wonderfully detailed write-up by longtime attendee Bruce Calvert of Texas. 

Accompanist Ben Model provides music for 'Mabel's Blunder' (1914), a short Keystone comedy.

For me, among the highlights was getting to hear other accompanists do their stuff for a wide range of films, and with large and appreciative audiences. 

A special treat was to finally meet and hear Donald Sosin, one of the big names in the field, who was making his first appearance in Kansas.

I had the privilege of chauffeuring Donald to the Kansas City Airport (at 5 a.m.!), and we got chatting about a wide range of topics. I was surprised to find Donald was in the audience for my stuff, and he shared some useful observations.

And then just like that, it was over—until next year. 

But until then, I'll continue with my own little circus, including Harold Lloyd's comedy 'Why Worry?' on Sunday, March 3 at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton.

More info below!

*   *   *

A vintage lobby card promoting Harold Lloyd's comedy 'Why Worry?' (1923).

 

TUESDAY, FEB. 20, 2024 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Silent comedy 'Why Worry?' with live music at Town Hall Theatre on Sunday, March 3

Harold Lloyd finds himself caught up in south-of-the-border revolutionary hilarity in inventive 1920s farce

WILTON, N.H.— He was the bespectacled young man next door whose road to success was often plagued by perilous detours.

He was Harold Lloyd, whose fast-paced comedies made him the most popular movie star of Hollywood's silent film era.

See for yourself why Lloyd was the top box office attraction of the 1920s in a revival of 'Why Worry?' (1923), one of his top-grossing comedies.

'Why Worry?' will be screened with live music on Sunday, March 3, 2024 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre, 40 Main St., Wilton, N.H.

The screening was originally scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 18, but was moved to Sunday, March 3 due to a scheduling conflict.

Admission is free; donations are accepted, with $10 per person suggested to defray expenses.

The screening, the latest in the venue's silent film series, will feature live accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based composer who specializes in creating music for silent films.

Lloyd's go-getter character proved immensely popular throughout the 1920s, with fans following him from one adventure to the next.

Lloyd searches for footwear in 'Why Worry?' (1923).
 

In the political satire 'Why Worry?', Harold plays a wealthy hypochondriac traveling abroad who gets caught up in a local uprising.

Thrown into prison, Harold is forced to use his wits to escape and rescue his nurse from the clutches of a dangerous revolutionary leader.

Regarded as one of Lloyd's most surreal movies, 'Why Worry?' features a cast that includes an actual real-life giant—8-foot-tall John Aasen, discovered in Minnesota during a national talent search.

Rapsis will improvise a musical score for 'Why Worry?' as the film screens. In creating accompaniment for the Lloyd movies and other vintage classics, Rapsis tries to bridge the gap between silent film and modern audiences.

"Creating the music on the spot is a bit of a high-wire act, but it contributes a level of energy that's really crucial to the silent film experience," Rapsis said.

'Why Worry?' (1923) will be screened with live music on Sunday, March 3, 2024 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre, 40 Main St., Wilton, N.H.

Admission is free; donations are accepted, with $10 per person suggested to defray expenses. For more information, call the theater at (603) 654-3456.

Up next: Harold Lloyd's 'Why Worry' (1923) at Grange Hall in Danbury, N.H. on Saturday, 3/18

In 'Why Worry?', Harold Lloyd demonstrates the basic comedy principle of 'Big shoes are funny.'

Okay, on to the next venue in the high-profile jet-setting life of this silent film accompanist: the Blazing Star Grange Hall in Danbury, N.H. 

 There—where the portrait of President Woodrow Wilson still hangs proudly—I'll do live music for a screening of Harold Lloyd's 'Why Worry?' on Saturday, March 18.

More details on the show are in the press release pasted in below. 

The Grange screening was a homecoming of sorts. I did annual "mud season" silent film programs in Danbury for quite a few years until 2020, when the screening was cancelled due to the pandemic.

Now, three years later, the tradition is being revived by the Blazing Star Grange, one of very few chapters still active in New Hampshire. 

Why 'Why Worry?' Because it's one of Harold's funniest comedies, I think, and also because this year marks the 100th anniversary of its release.

It shares that distinction with Lloyd's 'Safety Last' (1923), which is far better known due to its famous building-climbing climax. 

So for its 100th anniversary, I've accompanied 'Safety Last' three time already this year, with more to come, and so I suggested 'Why Worry' in the interest of equal time. 

If you're in the area, hope you can join us, as a packed house is good for comedy. And good for you!

And despite the small-town nature of most of my work, I'm pleased to report that recently we've staged satisfying screenings of some pretty big-time pictures.

Last night in Plymouth, N.H., a completely improvised score for John Ford's 'Hangman's House' (1928) was one of those times where I had all the right material at just the right moments. 

The only thing I knew in advance that I would use was a lively tune for the big horse-racing scene. Other than that, I played and watched, and watched and played.

What came out were melodic lines with a slightly modal flavor and rhythmic catches that to me made them sound vaguely "old country," which I think fit the story, the setting, and the film's visual style.

I wouldn't say it was specifically Irish, because my knowledge of Irish music is limited to the tune in the old "Irish Spring" soap commercials. ("Manly, yes, but I like it, too.")

Out of that developed two licks that ended up carrying a lot of the dramatic freight: one originally played for the despised Judge who dies early in the film, but whose demise casts a shadow over  the piece, and another for the villain. 

I was able to use these two lines to build up dramatic tension, adding more insistent rhythmic patterns underneath as things intensified. It all fell together marvelously, I thought, and helped build to a terrificly cinematic climax.

Prior to that, last Sunday I had a great time doing music for Marion Davies in 'Little Old New York' (1923) at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H. 

And the week before that, for Lillian Gish in 'Annie Laurie' (1925), a big drama of big emotions and the kind of picture that my method of accompaniment seems best-suited for. Plus a screening of 'Wings' (1927) in Greenfield, Mass. that went well, and a kick-ass 'Caligari's Cabinet' (1920) for students at UNH.

Why the hot streak? Who knows? Probably just that like many other things (cooking, bowling, stilt-walking), doing it a lot tends to improve one's batting average. (Baseball, too!) 

Also, right now there's way too much going on in my non-silent-film life. So when it's time to lose myself in creating music for a screening, it comes as a relief and there's a lot of pent-up energy ready to go.

And after focusing on live film accompaniment  for 15 years (more than 100 shows per year, so over 1,500 performances), I think I've gradually developed a fluency in a certain kind of musical language and a comfort level in using it. It's just what I do.

Plus, I steal from the best! Sometimes without knowing it. Just this morning on the radio, I heard the Polonaise from Tchaikovsky's opera 'Eugene Onegin,' and it starts with dotted-note up-and-down scales in the strings that are pretty much exactly what I used in a movement of my Kilimanjaro Suite.Ooops!

(Which, by the way, I really enjoyed hearing played live in concert a few years ago by the N.H. Philharmonic. And one of the highlights was the end of this movement. The piece is a musical depiction of a Westerner trying to respond to the other-worldly beauty of Africa and Kilimanjaro, and in this case the movement finishes by breaking into an all-out Sousa-like march (complete with trombone lines from the 'Washington Post March') that's very much in the spirit of Charles Ives, and which makes a heckuva racket when played in a concert hall rather than modest computer speakers. Anyway...)

Well, for whatever reason, it's been a good month so far. I'm looking forward to continuing the streak with 'Why Worry?' this coming Saturday night. See you at the Blazing Star Grange! And then on Monday, March 20 in the big city, when I'll accompany Buster Keaton's 'The Navigator' (1924) at the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline, Mass., just over the line from Boston.

*   *   *

Promotional art for Harold Lloyd in 'Why Worry?'

MONDAY, FEB. 20, 2023 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Harold Lloyd stars in 'Why Worry?' on Saturday, March 18 in Danbury, N.H.

Public welcome: Blazing Star Grange to screen classic feature-length silent comedy with live music

DANBURY, N.H.—He was the bespectacled young man next door whose road to success was often paved with perilous detours.

He was Harold Lloyd, whose fast-paced comedies made him the most popular movie star of Hollywood's silent film era.

See for yourself why Lloyd was the top box office attraction of the 1920s in a revival of 'Why Worry?' (1923), one of his best comedies.

The Blazing Star Grange will host a 100th anniversary screening of 'Why Worry?' on Saturday, March 18 at 7 p.m. at the historic Blazing Star Grange Hall, 15 North Road in Danbury.

The show is open to the public, with a suggested donation of $5 per person.

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

Lloyd's go-getter character proved immensely popular throughout the 1920s, with fans following him from one adventure to the next.

Harold Lloyd plays a rich hypochondriac in 'Why Worry?'

In the political satire 'Why Worry?', Harold plays a wealthy hypochondriac traveling abroad who gets caught up in a local uprising.

Thrown into prison, Harold is forced to use his wits to escape and rescue his nurse from the clutches of an evil Revolutionary.

Regarded as one of Lloyd's most surreal movies, 'Why Worry?' features a cast that includes an actual real-life giant—8-foot-tall John Aasen, discovered in Minnesota during a national talent search.

Rapsis will improvise a musical score for 'Why Worry?' as the film screens. In creating accompaniment for the Lloyd movies and other vintage classics, Rapsis tries to bridge the gap between silent film and modern audiences.

"Creating the music on the spot is a bit of a high-wire act, but it contributes a level of energy that's really crucial to the silent film experience," Rapsis said.

The short Harold Lloyd comedy 'Number, Please' (1920) will also be included in the program.

‘Why Worry?’ will be shown on Saturday, March 18 at 7 p.m. at the historic Blazing Star Grange Hall, 15 North Road in Danbury.

The show is open to the public with suggested $5 donation.
 

Harold Lloyd in 'Why Worry?', not to be confused with another Lloyd feature, 'Hot Water' (1924).
 

Harold Lloyd's 'Why Worry?' in Plymouth, N.H.: a perfectly titled comedy for troubled times

Harold's giant friend sports vertical stripes to make him seem even taller!

Next up: Harold Lloyd's surreal south-of-the-border fantasy 'Why Worry?' (1923), which I'm accompanying on Wednesday, Aug. 26.

Wow, talk about a title that ought to resonate with today's audiences, 97 years after its original release.

Showtime is 6:30 p.m. at the Flying Monkey Moviehouse, 39 S. Main St., Plymouth, N.H. 

More info below. But first, an update on recent screenings.

Last week, with so many performing venues still not open, I may have been the busiest silent film accompanist on the planet. 

Why? Because a local independent theater temporarily gave up on showing first-run films. Instead, every night from Monday through Friday, the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H. ran silent comedy programs with live music.

Rather than limp by with Hollywood's meager diet of current titles, we feasted on Chaplin, Keaton, and Lloyd. (And with a side helping of Harry Langdon.) 

And the audiences came! Attendance ranged from 50 people for Keaton's 'The General' (1927) to about a dozen for Langdon's 'Tramp Tramp Tramp' (1926).

Those are not exactly full houses. But they're a heckuva lot better than, say, Steve Carell in 'Irresistible' (2020), which on several nights last month at the same theater attracted exactly ZERO patrons.

Part of this, of course, is that with Covid-19 among us, many people still aren't ready to return to experiencing cinema in its natural environment — in a darkened room filled with strangers.

But the Town Hall Theatre, like other venues in my part of the world, has been required to take steps to minimize the risk. Seating is limited to half capacity (in this case, from 216 to 108), face-coverings must be worn, and so on.

And I have to say, attendance at the Town Hall Theatre's silent film shows so far has struck a pretty good balance: there's enough people to create that sense of an audience being present, but also still plenty of room to spread out and achieve social distancing.

I also have to say: I much prefer New Hampshire's Covid-19 theater rules to the way things are in Massachusetts, where theaters of any size are limited to just 25 people. 

Still, even with that constraint, brave venues are testing the waters. A Buster Keaton double feature — ('The Cameraman' (1928) and 'Sherlock Jr.' (1924) — last Sunday marked my first screening south of the border since things closed last March.

Held at the Center for the Arts in Natick, the 25-person limit wasn't a factor, as the screening attracted all of eight people. Still, a great time was had by all (I can say that conclusively because afterwards I talked with each person) but maybe Bay Staters aren't yet ready to get out and about. The first wave was a lot more serious down there.

Back to my five-shows-in-a-row experience: Being at the keyboard every night, it felt a little like what it must have been like to be an actual working movie theater musician in the silent era. One exception: one then had to worry about forgetting to turn off his or her phone prior to the show. 

Okay, more comedy on the way in the form of 'Why Worry?' next week up in Plymouth, N.H. And don't worry, here's the press release.

*   *   *

Let's hope Harold isn't suffering from Covid-19 in 'Why Worry?' (1923).

MONDAY, AUG. 17, 2020 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Harold Lloyd stars in 'Why Worry?' on Wednesday, Aug. 26 in Plymouth, N.H.

Public welcome: Flying Monkey to screen classic feature-length silent comedy with live music

PLYMOUTH, N.H.—He was the bespectacled young man next door whose road to success was often paved with perilous detours.

He was Harold Lloyd, whose fast-paced comedies made him the most popular movie star of Hollywood's silent film era.

See for yourself why Lloyd was the top box office attraction of the 1920s in a revival of 'Why Worry?' (1923), one of his zaniest comedies.

'Why Worry?' will be screened with live music on Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at the Flying Monkey Moviehouse and Performance Center, 39 S. Main St., Plymouth, N.H. General admission $10 per person.

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

Lloyd's go-getter character proved immensely popular throughout the 1920s, with fans following him from one adventure to the next.

Harold tries on political revolution (and some boots) in 'Why Worry?' (1923).

In the political satire 'Why Worry?', Harold plays a wealthy hypochondriac traveling abroad who gets caught up in a local uprising.

Thrown into prison, Harold is forced to use his wits to escape and rescue his nurse from the clutches of an evil Revolutionary.

Regarded as one of Lloyd's most surreal movies, 'Why Worry?' features a cast that includes an actual real-life giant—8-foot-tall John Aasen, discovered in Minnesota during a national talent search.

Rapsis will improvise a musical score for 'Why Worry?' as the film screens. In creating accompaniment for the Lloyd movies and other vintage classics, Rapsis tries to bridge the gap between silent film and modern audiences.

"Creating the music on the spot is a bit of a high-wire act, but it contributes a level of energy that's really crucial to the silent film experience," Rapsis said.

At the reopened Flying Monkey, accommodations will be made to keep patrons safe in the Covid-19 era.

Face-coverings are required to enter the theater, and should remain on at all times until movie-goers take their seats. Capacity will be limited to 50 percent; audience members are asked to observe social distancing in choosing seats.

"These comedies were designed to be seen with an audience, and it's totally safe to do so," said Rapsis. "Plus, we need all the laughs we can get, which makes a film titled 'Why Worry?' particularly timely.

'Why Worry?' continues a monthly series of silent film programs at the Flying Monkey that include comedy, plus drama, horror, and an unusual Russian documentary. On the schedule:

• Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 6:30 p.m.: 'Man With A Movie Camera' (1928). Russian director Dziga Vertov's celebration of daily life in the Soviet Union. Experimental documentary with no story and no actors, but filled with eye-popping visuals that anticipate later music/image films such as 'Koyaanisqatsi.'

• Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 6:30 p.m.: The original 'Nosferatu' (1922). Celebrate Halloween by experiencing the original silent film adaptation of Bram Stoker's famous 'Dracula' story. Still scary after all these years—in fact, some critics believe this version is the best ever done, and has become creepier with the passage of time.

• Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 6:30 p.m.: 'Broken Blossoms' (1919). Can two outcasts in Edwardian London find peace and happiness in a cruel world? Will Lillian Gish overcome her abusive father? Can Richard Barthelmess find love in a forbidden relationship? Great D.W. Griffith drama, with stellar performance from iconic silent actress Gish.

• Wednesday, Dec. 30 at 6:30 p.m.: Planes, Trains and Monty Banks. Rediscover forgotten silent comedian Monty Banks, born "Mario Bianchi" in Italy. In 'Flying Luck,' (1927), hapless aviator joins the U.S. Army Air Corps, with hilarious results. Preceded by an excerpt from 'Play Safe' (1927), a hair-raising chase sequence set aboard an out-of-control freight train.

‘Why Worry?’ will be shown with live music on Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at the Flying Monkey Moviehouse and Performance Center, 39 S. Main St., Plymouth, N.H. General admission $10 per person. For more info, visit www.flyingmonkeynh.com or call (603) 536-2551.

For more info on the music, visit www.jeffrapsis.com.

Coming up: a double bill of Harold Lloyd's 'Why Worry?' (1923), 'Speedy' (1928) in 35mm

A poster for our double-feature on Sunday, Aug. 2, which includes 'Why Worry?' (1923).

Phew! Just completed a four-day mini-marathon of silent film screenings that ended yesterday with a bang.

Or actually, many bangs, as there was plenty of gunfire in 'The Great K & A Train Robbery' (1926), a Tom Mix action adventure and the latest installment of this summer's "train melodrama" series at the Wilton (N.H.) Town Hall Theatre.

I don't know what it is about these railroad films, but they've been packing them in. We must have had 100 people at Sunday afternoon's screening—amazing considering it was an unusual date (we're usually the last Sunday of each month) and it was totally gorgeous mid-summer weather in these parts.

Even in the form of a somewhat blurry transfer (the best available), people were primed to cheer on Mix and Tony the Wonder Horse as they battled the evil gang bent on robbing the K & A.

It's not the longest film ever made (at 53 minutes, I'm thinking it must be descended from a Kodascope show-at-home print or something similar) but still holds the screen very effectively.

And it's a great film for music, too. I had some good basic train material, a fanfare/march for Tom and Tony, a love theme, and some "bad guys" music, all of which come together really well, I thought.

One reason attendance has been strong could be that I've reached out to non-silent-film people by posting info about the series on railfan messageboards.

And I have seen some new faces at these screenings, including a couple who came up to me after Sunday afternoon's screening to say how much they enjoyed it.

They'd never been before, but came because "we love trains," the woman said. And their unsolicited comment was music to my ears: "We forgot there was someone playing the music," she said.

I hope I have an easier time abroad than Harold in 'Why Worry?'

Looking ahead: I'm traveling out of the country for the rest of the month, but will return in time for a double bill of Harold Lloyd features on Sunday, Aug. 2 at the Somerville Theatre.

In a program that starts at 2 p.m., we're screening 'Why Worry?' (1923) and 'Speedy' (1928), using 35mm prints from the Harold Lloyd Trust.

More than most, I think, the Lloyd pictures are tooled to work with a large audience. Because we tend to get upwards of 150 people for comedy programs at the Somerville, I'm really looking forward to the Aug. 2 program.

It's a great chance to experience Lloyd's work as his original audiences did: in a theater, on the big screen, and surrounded by people all reacting together.

It makes a huge difference. Must be something about crowd psychology loosening up and intensifying our own reactions. Anyone doing a doctoral research program on this?

And I'm especially excited by 'Speedy' because I've just seen where silent film location detective John Bengston identified an appearance of Lou Gehrig in the scenes with Babe Ruth shot outside the original Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

Look! There's Lou Gehrig in Babe Ruth's 'Speedy' cameo. (Enlargement of detail on right.)

Bengston posted info about this a few years back, but I came across it only recently. Makes you wonder what else might be lurking in films that we think of as familiar.

Well, come see if you can spot any more members of the 1927 Yankees on Sunday, Aug. 2 at 2 p.m. at the Somerville.

More info is in the press release pasted in below. Hope to see you there!

* * *

Harold rides the NYC Subway.

MONDAY, JULY 13, 2015 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis at (603) 236-9237 • e-mail jrapsis@gmail.com

Somerville Theatre to screen back-to-back Harold Lloyd silent comedies in 35mm with live music on Sunday, Aug. 2

Program includes political satire 'Why Worry' (1923) and 'Speedy' (1928), shot on location in 1920s NYC featuring extended Babe Ruth cameo

SOMERVILLE, Mass. — He was the bespectacled boy next door whose road to success was often paved with perilous detours.

He was Harold Lloyd, whose fast-paced comedies made him the most popular movie star of Hollywood's silent film era.

See for yourself why Lloyd was the top box office attraction of the 1920s in a double feature revival of two of his best movies: 'Why Worry?' (1923) and 'Speedy' (1928).

Both films will be screened using archival 35mm prints on Sunday, Aug. 2 at 2 p.m. at the Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Square, Somerville, Mass. General admission is $15; seniors/students $12.

Live music will be provided by accompanist Jeff Rapsis, a New England-based composer who specializes in creating music for silent film presentations.

The 35mm prints are on loan from the Harold Lloyd Trust of Los Angeles, Calif.

"The Harold Lloyd program continues our commitment to screening movies using real film whenever possible," said Ian Judge, the Somerville's general manager. "This format is how these pictures were designed to be shown, and as time goes by, finding good 35mm prints and a theater with the know-how to handle them is getting harder to do."

Lloyd's go-getter character proved immensely popular throughout the 1920s, with fans following him from one adventure to the next. Designed for a large audience, Lloyd's pictures—with their potent mix of comedy, sentiment, and thrills—are legendary for their ability to stir an audience in a theater even today.

Lloyd and his 8-foot-tall co-star John Aasen in 'Why Worry?'

In the political satire 'Why Worry?', Harold plays a wealthy hypochondriac traveling abroad for his health who gets caught up in a local uprising. Thrown into prison, Harold is forced to use his wits to escape and rescue his nurse from the clutches of an evil Revolutionary.

Regarded as one of Lloyd's most surreal movies, 'Why Worry?' features a cast that includes an actual real-life giant—8-foot-tall John Aasen, discovered in Minnesota during a national talent search.

'Speedy,' Lloyd's final silent feature before the transition to talkies, finds Harold as a baseball-crazed youth who must rescue the city's last horse-drawn streetcar from gangsters bent on running it out of business.

Filmed almost entirely on location in New York, 'Speedy' features remarkable glimpses of the city at the end of the 1920s, including footage of Coney Island and the original Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

Lloyd with former Red Sox pitcher and then-current Yankee Babe Ruth in 'Speedy' (1928).

The latter scenes include an extended appearance by Babe Ruth, then at the height of his career during the team's storied 1927 season.

"In 'Speedy,' New York City is practically a part of the cast," Rapsis said. "In filming it on location, Lloyd knew scenes of New York would give the picture added interest to audiences across the nation and around the world. But what he didn't anticipate was that today, the location shots now provide a fascinating record of how life was lived in 1920s urban America."

Rapsis will improvise a musical score for both films as they're screened. In creating accompaniment for the Lloyd movies and other vintage classics, Rapsis tries to bridge the gap between silent film and modern audiences.

"Creating the music on the spot is a bit of a high-wire act, but it contributes a level of energy that's really crucial to the silent film experience," Rapsis said.

Other upcoming features in the Somerville's "Silents, Please" series include:

• Sunday, Sept. 13, 2 p.m.: 'The Matrimaniac' (1916) starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. An unusual program that contrasts this early Fairbanks marital farce with another picture released by the same studio after Fairbanks had moved on, but which uses material from the Fairbanks film to support an entirely different story.

• Sunday, Oct. 4, 2 p.m.: 'Tramp Tramp Tramp' (1926) starring Harry Langdon, Joan Crawford. The great silent film comedian Harry Langdon returns to the Somerville's big screen, this time with a very young Joan Crawford playing his love interest! His debut feature finds Harry entering a cross-country walking race to save the family business and impress the girl of his dreams.

• Sunday, Nov. 22, 2 p.m.: 'The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse' (1921) starring Rudolph Valentino. Sweeping drama of a divided family with members caught up on opposites sides during World War I. Breakthrough film for Rudolph Valentino, introducing the sultry tango and launching him to stardom.

All entries in the Somerville's silent film series are shown using 35mm prints, the native film format that few theaters are now equipped to run following Hollywood's transition to digital formats.

Harold Lloyd's ‘Why Worry?’ and 'Speedy' will be shown in 35mm and with live music on Sunday, Aug. 2 at 2 p.m. at Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Square, Somerville, Mass.

Admission to the screening is $15 or $12 seniors/students; general admission seating. For more info, call (617) 625-5700 or visit www.somervilletheatreonline.com. For more info on the music, visit www.jeffrapsis.com.