Raymond Rohauer was an American film collector and distributor.

Rohauer moved to California in 1942 and was educated at Los Angeles City College

Los Angeles City College

Los Angeles City College, known as LACC, is a public community college in the East Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard...

. Rohauer made a five-reel 16mm experimental film Whirlpool (1947) which was not successful. He subsequently became active in film exhibition at the Coronet Theatre

Coronet Theatre

The Coronet Theatre is a longstanding Los Angeles theatre. Many Hollywood stars have played there, and it has been home to several important premiere productions. More than 300 plays have been produced at the Coronet. As of June 2008, the theatre is now Largo at the Coronet Theatre, an expansion...

 from 1950. In 1954 he formed a partnership with Buster Keaton

Buster Keaton

Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...

 after the comedian offered him prints of his silent films.

He was known for claiming rights to films under dubious pretexts and pursued court battles over The Birth of a Nation

The Birth of a Nation

The Birth of a Nation is a 1915 American silent film directed by D. W. Griffith and based on the novel and play The Clansman, both by Thomas Dixon, Jr. Griffith also co-wrote the screenplay , and co-produced the film . It was released on February 8, 1915...

, eventually found to be in the public domain

Public domain

Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...

, and other classics.

Rohauer was involved in the preservation of out-takes from the films of Charlie Chaplin

Charlie Chaplin

Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...

 which were saved after the filmmaker was forced to leave the United States in 1952. This material formed the basis of the Unknown Chaplin

Unknown Chaplin

Unknown Chaplin is an acclaimed three-part 1983 British television documentary about the career and the methods of the film luminary Charles Chaplin using previously unseen film for illustration....

series in 1983.