| The Green Alarm | |
|---|---|
 Billy Bowers in a publicity still from The Green Alarm | |
| Directed by | Frank Griffin |
| Written by | Frank Griffin |
| Produced by | Arthur Hotaling |
| Starring | Billy Bowers Oliver Hardy Raymond McKee |
Release date |
|
Running time | 6–7 minutes (c. 600 feet) |
| Country | United States |
| Languages | Silent film English intertitles |
The Green Alarm is a 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Billy Bowers, Oliver Hardy, and Raymond McKee. [1] [2]
Old man Hokus hangs the cage of his noisy parrot outside the window and goes to sleep. When Mike and Jake, two escaped convicts, come by and try to steal some of his chickens, they are spotted by the parrot, who raises a racket and wakes the old man. He runs out with his shotgun and traps the two thieves inside the chicken coop. The police are called and chase the thieves up onto the roof. They pelt the cops with bricks, but fall through the roof. After a fight Mike and Jake are apprehended and returned to jail, and old man Hokus goes back to bed, taking his parrot and his chickens with him. [1] [2]
The Green Alarm was filmed in Jacksonville, Florida, at the Jacksonville unit of the Lubin Manufacturing Company of Philadelphia, under the general supervision of Arthur Hotaling. It was written and directed by Frank Griffin, and released by the General Film Company on September 1, 1914. [1] [2] The film was a short split-reel comedy, lasting approximately 7 minutes, and sharing a single reel of film with a second, unrelated comedy, Never Too Old , starring James Levering, Margaret Ne Moyer, and Oliver Hardy. [1] The Green Alarm is one of a group of short comedies made by the Lubin company in 1914 that include the earliest screen appearances of Oliver Hardy, who is here paired with Raymond McKee, as he was in several other shorts made by the Lubin and Vim studios. [2]
The film received mixed reviews in the trade papers. Moving Picture World described it as "a slap-stick, rough and tumble comedy" involving a chase with the cops "which causes some laughs". [3] The New York Dramatic Mirror observed that "the introduction of the parrot in the capacity of an alarmist seems to be the one novel touch in a conventional burlesque". [2] The reviewer for The Bioscope called the film a "a fast and furious comic", but noted that it "would have been quite sufficiently funny without the eccentric antics of the police". [4]
Outwitting Dad is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and featuring Billy Bowers, Raymond McKee, and Oliver Hardy in his first known screen appearance.
Casey's Birthday is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Daniel Casey, Mae Hotely, and Billy Bowers. The young Oliver Hardy had a small role.
Building a Fire is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Mae Hotely, Julia Calhoun, and Jerold Hevener. Also among the cast is Oliver Hardy, who has a small role as a policeman.
He Won a Ranch is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Jerold Hevener and Raymond McKee. Also among the cast is Oliver Hardy, who has a small role as a cowboy.
The Particular Cowboys is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Frances Ne Moyer and Raymond McKee. Also among the cast was Oliver Hardy, who had a small role as a cowboy.
For Two Pins is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Jimmy Hodges, Marguerite Ne Moyer, and Raymond McKee. Also among the cast was Oliver Hardy, who had a small role as a policeman.
A Tango Tragedy is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Billy Bowers, Frances Ne Moyer, and James Hodges. Also among the cast was Oliver Hardy, who had a small role as a man at the dance.
A Brewerytown Romance is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, starring Eva Bell, Raymond McKee, Frank Griffin, and Oliver Hardy.
The Female Cop is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Mae Hotely and Julia Calhoun, with Oliver Hardy as a "boob cop".
Good Cider is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, featuring Jane Calhoun, Ben Walker, Billy Bowers, Oliver Hardy, and James Levering.
Long May It Wave is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, featuring Raymond McKee, Mae Hotely, Marguerite Ne Moyer, Ed Lawrence, Ben Walker, and Oliver Hardy.
The Kidnapped Bride is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, starring Eva Bell, Raymond McKee, Frank Griffin, and Oliver Hardy. It is a sequel to A Brewerytown Romance, released earlier the same year.
Worms Will Turn is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, featuring Raymond McKee, Julia Calhoun, Ed Lawrence, and Oliver Hardy.
The Rise of the Johnsons is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, featuring John Edwards, Mattie Edwards, and Oliver Hardy.
He Wanted Work is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, featuring John Edwards, Mattie Edwards, Billy Bowers, and Oliver Hardy.
They Bought a Boat is a lost 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company, featuring Roy Byron, C. W. Ritchie, and Oliver Hardy.
Making Auntie Welcome is a 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and featuring Vincent DePascale, Virginia Capen, Eva Bell, and Oliver Hardy.
Never Too Old is a 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring James Levering, Marguerite Ne Moyer, and Oliver Hardy.
A Fool There Was is a 1914 American silent comedy film produced by the Lubin Manufacturing Company and starring Jerold T. Hevener, Frank Griffin, and Mabel Paige, with Oliver Hardy in a small role. The title was changed to She Wanted a Car as a result of a lawsuit filed by the owners of the 1909 stage play A Fool There Was by Porter Emerson Browne.
Billy Bowers was a comedic actor in the United States. He starred in many Siegmund Lubin comedy shorts with Oliver Hardy. He was also in films produced by Arthur Hotaling and directed by Jerold Hevener.