A Fake Nose By Any Other Name By Christine G. Adamo
What is a Golden Age, how do we characterize it and how do related documentaries, films and essays shape our views of it? Let us take a cue from Daily Dose of Doozy #1 and explore these topics in greater detail.
Given the fact that silent films from 1912-1930 were among some of the earliest created and screened, I agree with James Agee and Robert Youngson's individual assessments that it comprised "comedy's greatest era" or Golden Age. That doesn't mean that I believe the work which was churned out, during that timeframe, should be held up forever as a model of perfection. It simply acknowledges the fact that the work was groundbreaking (especially given the technological constraints of the day) and historically significant.
Despite the fact that he utilizes a a brand of enthusiasm largely associated with propoganda reels, I would say that the narrator of "The Golden Age of Comedy" (Youngson, 1957) touches on a few important points - no doubt with the help of a carefully crafted script. Still, as with any endeavor or industry, making inroads requires a great deal of imagination and ingenuity. Heck! The sheer act of giving unproven methodologies and uncharted territory a go is enough to impress me. But visual gags do persist and certainly didn't wither up with the advent of talkies. Think Dana Carvey serving hors d'oeuvres, in mime, in "This Is Spinal Tap." Yet? Overly dramatic depictions (i.e., "completely visual" gags) are no longer a necessity.
Being a realist? I, for one, am grateful. When I watch a film - or even a snippet of a film - like Youngson's "The Golden Age of Comedy," I often cringe a bit. I feel as if I am being told what to think, believe, etc. There is little critical thinking involved. Though, maybe the fact that I recognize that they are intentionally inflated proves that they do, in fact, invoke and engage critical thinking skills. Better that than a completely veiled attempt at swaying my opinion. And, after the last clip has clipped on by, I completely agree that "action speaks louder than words."
Maybe therein lies the real beauty of slapstick: It offers us the freedom to exorcise the demons we so carefully hide in real life. Behind fake noses no less!
Daily Dose of Doozy #1: Comedy's Golden Age-The View from the 1950s
in OUCH! A Salute to Slapstick
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A Fake Nose By Any Other Name
By Christine G. Adamo
What is a Golden Age, how do we characterize it and how do related documentaries, films and essays shape our views of it? Let us take a cue from Daily Dose of Doozy #1 and explore these topics in greater detail.
Given the fact that silent films from 1912-1930 were among some of the earliest created and screened, I agree with James Agee and Robert Youngson's individual assessments that it comprised "comedy's greatest era" or Golden Age. That doesn't mean that I believe the work which was churned out, during that timeframe, should be held up forever as a model of perfection. It simply acknowledges the fact that the work was groundbreaking (especially given the technological constraints of the day) and historically significant.
Despite the fact that he utilizes a a brand of enthusiasm largely associated with propoganda reels, I would say that the narrator of "The Golden Age of Comedy" (Youngson, 1957) touches on a few important points - no doubt with the help of a carefully crafted script. Still, as with any endeavor or industry, making inroads requires a great deal of imagination and ingenuity. Heck! The sheer act of giving unproven methodologies and uncharted territory a go is enough to impress me. But visual gags do persist and certainly didn't wither up with the advent of talkies. Think Dana Carvey serving hors d'oeuvres, in mime, in "This Is Spinal Tap." Yet? Overly dramatic depictions (i.e., "completely visual" gags) are no longer a necessity.
Being a realist? I, for one, am grateful. When I watch a film - or even a snippet of a film - like Youngson's "The Golden Age of Comedy," I often cringe a bit. I feel as if I am being told what to think, believe, etc. There is little critical thinking involved. Though, maybe the fact that I recognize that they are intentionally inflated proves that they do, in fact, invoke and engage critical thinking skills. Better that than a completely veiled attempt at swaying my opinion. And, after the last clip has clipped on by, I completely agree that "action speaks louder than words."
Maybe therein lies the real beauty of slapstick: It offers us the freedom to exorcise the demons we so carefully hide in real life. Behind fake noses no less!