At It Again (1912 film)

Last updated

At It Again
1912 Keystone Films Advert.jpg
Keystone Films Ad
Directed by Mack Sennett
Produced by
Starring
Distributed by Mutual Film Corporation
Release dates
Running time
6 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent

At It Again is a 1912 American short silent comedy film produced and directed by Mack Sennett. The film stars Fred Mace, Mack Sennett, Ford Sterling, Mabel Normand and Alice Davenport.

Contents

It was distributed by the Mutual Film Corporation. The film was the first Keystone Film comedy that featured the two bumbling detectives.

The film was released on November 4, 1912; in a split reel with Mabel's Lovers . Silent Era reports the survival status of the film as unknown. [1]

It's notable that Sennett headed two of the most influential American slapstick film studios: the Keystone Film Company (1912–1917), and Mack Sennett Comedies (1917–1933). [2]

Plot

Mrs. Smith receives an anonymous letter stating that her husband is untrue to her, and she calls upon the detectives to shadow him. Mr. Smith comes home and, finding his wife away, goes out to look for her in his shirt sleeves. Mrs. Smith points him out to the detectives, and they start on his trail.

In the meantime, Larkins, a police captain, is at home with his wife, and goes out to buy some ice cream, also in his shirt sleeves. As Mr. Smith enters a house Larkin comes out, just as the detectives turn the corner, and they, thinking Larkin is Smith, follow him.

When Larkin returns home his fond wife makes much of him, all of which is noted by the detectives at the window. They finally decide to arrest him, and a furious scene is raised by the indignant Larkin and his wife, but to no avail, for Larkin is dragged off.

In the meantime, they have notified Mrs. Smith and she is on the way to meet them with three policemen, and Smith himself comes up at the same time. When Larkin and Smith get through with the detectives, they have learned the painful lesson that it does not pay for a detective to make a mistake. [3]

Cast

In foreground, Mabel Normand, Ford Sterling, Fred Mace and Mack Sennett. At it Again (2).png
In foreground, Mabel Normand, Ford Sterling, Fred Mace and Mack Sennett.
Mace and Sennett, the dopey detectives, in car with Normand At it Again (1).png
Mace and Sennett, the dopey detectives, in car with Normand

Production and background

Producer and director Sennett had previously been at the Biograph Company of New York City, where he first introduced the "dopey detectives" slapstick film genre, as seen in the films; Trailing the Counterfeiter , Their First Divorce Case and Caught with the Goods . [4]

Six weeks after Sennett opened Keystone Studios in Edendale, California in 1912, he reintroduced the pair of dopey detectives. [5] The first Keystone Film comedy featuring the two Sherlocks was At It Again. [6]

Reviews

The Moving Picture World said of the film, "Two amateur Sherlock Holmes detectives dominate this picture with their antics. They succeed in jumbling the plot somewhat, but as they are really funny, and the plot is not important, they may be forgiven." [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keystone Cops</span> Group of fictional characters

The Keystone Cops are fictional, humorously incompetent policemen featured in silent film slapstick comedies produced by Mack Sennett for his Keystone Film Company between 1912 and 1917.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mack Sennett</span> Canadian-American silent film producer (1880–1960)

Mack Sennett was a Canadian-American producer, director, actor, and studio head who was known as the "King of Comedy" during his career.

<i>Tillies Punctured Romance</i> (1914 film) 1914 film by Mack Sennett

Tillie's Punctured Romance is a 1914 American silent comedy film directed by Mack Sennett and starring Marie Dressler, Mabel Normand, Charlie Chaplin, and the Keystone Cops. The picture is the first feature-length comedy and was the only feature-length comedy made by the Keystone Film Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keystone Studios</span> American film studio (Los Angeles; 1912–1935)

Keystone Studios was an early film studio founded in Edendale, California on July 4, 1912 as the Keystone Pictures Studio by Mack Sennett with backing from actor-writer Adam Kessel (1866–1946) and Charles O. Baumann (1874–1931), owners of the New York Motion Picture Company. The company, referred to at its office as The Keystone Film Company, filmed in and around Glendale and Silver Lake, Los Angeles for several years, and its films were distributed by the Mutual Film Corporation between 1912 and 1915. The Keystone film brand declined rapidly after Sennett went independent in 1917.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chester Conklin</span> American actor and comedian (1886-1971)

Chester Cooper Conklin was an early American film comedian who started at Keystone Studios as one of Mack Sennett’s Keystone Cops, often paired with Mack Swain. He appeared in a series of films with Mabel Normand and worked closely with Charlie Chaplin, both in silent and sound films.

<i>Barney Oldfields Race for a Life</i> 1913 American film

Barney Oldfield's Race for a Life is a 1913 silent comedy short, directed and produced by Mack Sennett. It stars Sennett, Mabel Normand, Ford Sterling, The Keystone Cops and Barney Oldfield as himself, in his film debut. It was distributed by the Keystone Film Company, and released in the United States on June 3, 1913. The film is preserved and was released as part of a DVD box set, titled Slapstick Encyclopedia, and is frequently featured in silent film festivals.

<i>Gentlemen of Nerve</i> 1914 film by Charlie Chaplin

Gentlemen of Nerve is a 1914 American comedy silent film directed by Charles Chaplin, starring Chaplin and Mabel Normand, and produced by Mack Sennett for Keystone Studios.

<i>Getting Acquainted</i> 1914 American film

Getting Acquainted, subsequently retitled A Fair Exchange, is a 1914 American comedy silent film written and directed by Charles Chaplin, starring Chaplin and Mabel Normand, and produced by Mack Sennett for Keystone Studios.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred Mace</span> American actor

Fred Mace was a comedic actor during the silent era in the United States. He appeared in more than 150 films between 1909 and 1916. Mace worked for Mack Sennett at Keystone Studios. Shortly after he left, Roscoe Arbuckle, who had appeared in a few pictures at Keystone with Mace, took over as Sennett's lead comedic actor.

<i>The Bangville Police</i> 1913 American film

The Bangville Police is a 1913 comedy short starring Fred Mace, Mabel Normand and the Keystone Cops. The one-reel film, generally regarded as the seminal Keystone Cops short, was directed by Henry Lehrman.

<i>The Water Nymph</i> (1912 film) 1912 American film

The Water Nymph is a 1912 American silent comedy "split reel" short film starring Mabel Normand and directed by Mack Sennett. Normand performed her own diving stunts for the film, which was the first Keystone Studios comedy.

<i>Mabels Lovers</i> 1912 American film

Mabel's Lovers is a 1912 American short silent comedy film starring Mabel Normand. The film was directed and produced by Mack Sennett.

Mabel's Adventures is a 1912 American short silent comedy film starring Mabel Normand and produced and directed by Mack Sennett for the Mutual Film Corporation.

The Flirting Husband is a 1912 American short silent comedy film starring Mabel Normand and Ford Sterling. The film was directed and produced by Mack Sennett.

At Coney Island, also known as Cohen at Coney Island, is a 1912 American short silent comedy starring Mack Sennett, Mabel Normand, and Ford Sterling. Sennett also directed and produced the film. Sennett claimed this was the first Keystone Studios production, shot on location at Coney Island on July 4, 1912. It was the eleventh Keystone film released, on a split-reel with A Grocery Clerk's Romance.

Hoffmeyer's Legacy is a 1912 comedy short directed by Mack Sennett and notable for being the first Keystone Cops comedy. However, many consider the first real Keystone Cop comedy to be The Bangville Police (1913).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sennett Bathing Beauties</span> Bevy of American actresses

Sennett Bathing Beauties was a bevy of women performing in bathing costumes assembled by film producer Mack Sennett during the silent film era.

<i>Hollywood Cavalcade</i> 1939 American film

Hollywood Cavalcade is a 1939 American film featuring Alice Faye as a young performer making her way in the early days of Hollywood, from slapstick silent pictures through the transition from silent to sound.

<i>My Valet</i> 1915 American film

My Valet is a 1915 short comedy film written, produced, and directed by Mack Sennett and starring Raymond Hitchcock, Sennett, and Mabel Normand. The film was released by the Keystone Film Company and Triangle Distributing with a running time of 33 minutes. It was released on November 7, 1915 in the United States. The movie is in black and white and produced in English. A print exists.

Katchem Kate is a 1912 extant comedic silent film directed by Mack Sennett and starring Mabel Normand. The film was based on Dell Anderson's story "Cunning Kate."

References

  1. ↑ Bennett, Carl (September 8, 2018). "The Progressive Silent Film List: At it Again". Silent Era.
  2. ↑ D'haeyere, Hilde (November 30, 2015). Gabbard, Krin (ed.). "Mack Sennett". Cinema and Media Studies. Oxford Bibliographies. doi:10.1093/obo/9780199791286-0200. ISBN   978-0-19-979128-6.
  3. ↑ Chalmers 1912, p. 492.
  4. ↑ Sherman, William Thomas (2015). Mabel Normand: A Source Book to Her Life and Films (7th ed.). Seattle, Washington: Gun Jones Publishing. p. 76. ISBN   978-0-9787684-2-3.
  5. ↑ Lahue, Kalton C.; Brewer, Terry (1972) [1968]. "And a Legend Begins". Kops And Custards: The Legend of Keystone Films (2nd ed.). Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 45.
  6. ↑ Bauer, Patricia, ed. (June 20, 1998). "Keystone Kops | Description, Movies, & Facts". Encyclopædia Britannica . p. 1.
  7. ↑ Chalmers 1912, p. 660.

Sources

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.