Fatty and Mabel Adrift
Encyclopedia
Fatty and Mabel Adrift is a 1916
Keystone
short comedy film starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
, Mabel Normand
, and Al St. John.
gave the films a positive review, commenting that "the picture is amusing with some new and good effects, without the customary dose of messy slapstick one expects in a Keystone with these principals."
As was often the case in contemporary reviews of Arbuckle films, the direction of the film is singled out for praise, though it is not mentioned that Arbuckle himself is the director. The review mentions "a dandy lightning storm is a feature of the film and there are some pretty views of breakers rushing on to the shore."
The review found Al St. John's performance not as good as his usual work for Keystone, but added "The picture is a sure laugh maker and as it is fairly clean, it is the more worthy."
Fatty and Mabel Adrift was the closing movie of the 56-film Arbuckle retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art
in New York City
in April and May 2006 and was cited by the curators in the introductory remarks as their favorite of Arbuckle's work.
1916 in film
The year 1916 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 17 - release of A Daughter of the Gods, the first US production with a million dollar budget, with the first nude scene by a major star....
Keystone
Keystone Studios
Keystone Studios was an early movie studio founded in Edendale, California in 1912 as the Keystone Pictures Studio by Mack Sennett with backing from Adam Kessel and Charles O. Bauman, owners of the New York Motion Picture Company...
short comedy film starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
Fatty Arbuckle
Roscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle was an American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. Starting at the Selig Polyscope Company he eventually moved to Keystone Studios where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd...
, Mabel Normand
Mabel Normand
Mabel Normand was an American silent film comedienne and actress. She was a popular star of Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios and is noted as one of the film industry's first female screenwriters, producers and directors...
, and Al St. John.
Plot
The story involves Arbuckle as a farm boy marrying his sweetheart, Normand. They have their honeymoon with Fatty's dog Luke, at a cottage on the seashore. At high tide that night, Al St. John (Fatty's rival) and his confederates set the cottage adrift. Fatty and Mabel awaken the next morning to find themselves surrounded by water in their bedroom, and the house afloat.Cast
- Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle - Fatty
- Mabel NormandMabel NormandMabel Normand was an American silent film comedienne and actress. She was a popular star of Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios and is noted as one of the film industry's first female screenwriters, producers and directors...
- Mabel - Al St. JohnAlfred St. JohnAl St. John in his persona of Fuzzy Q. Jones basically defined the role and concept of "comical sidekick" to cowboy heroes from 1930 to 1951. St...
- Hiram Perkins' son - Joe BordeauxJoe BordeauxJoe Bordeaux was an American film actor. He appeared in 73 films between 1914 and 1940.He was born in Colorado, and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:* The Great Dictator...
- Henchman - Jimmy Bryant - Henchman
- Glen CavenderGlen CavenderGlen Cavender was an American film actor. He appeared in 259 films between 1914 and 1949.He was born in Tucson, Arizona, and died in Hollywood, California.-Selected filmography:* Cruel, Cruel Love...
- I. Landem, Realtor - Luke the Dog - Himself - Dog
- Frank HayesFrank Hayes (actor)Frank Hayes was an American film actor of the silent era. He appeared in 73 films between 1913 and 1924. An actor with a unique hatchet face appearance he appeared mostly in comedies...
- Mabel's father - Wayland Trask - Brutus Bombastic, Chief Criminal
- Mai Wells - Mabel's mother (as May Wells)
Critical response
VarietyVariety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
gave the films a positive review, commenting that "the picture is amusing with some new and good effects, without the customary dose of messy slapstick one expects in a Keystone with these principals."
As was often the case in contemporary reviews of Arbuckle films, the direction of the film is singled out for praise, though it is not mentioned that Arbuckle himself is the director. The review mentions "a dandy lightning storm is a feature of the film and there are some pretty views of breakers rushing on to the shore."
The review found Al St. John's performance not as good as his usual work for Keystone, but added "The picture is a sure laugh maker and as it is fairly clean, it is the more worthy."
Fatty and Mabel Adrift was the closing movie of the 56-film Arbuckle retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in April and May 2006 and was cited by the curators in the introductory remarks as their favorite of Arbuckle's work.