Buster Keaton on Television (1949-58)

Buster Keaton doing comedy routines and improvising on TV.


Highlights include Buster Keaton recreating his battle with molasses from his 1917 film "The Butcher Boy" and Ed performing in a ballet sequence.

Cast: Ed Wynn, Virginia O'Brien, Buster Keaton, Roy Fitzell, Vera Lee

IMDb

Buster Keaton was never a prima donna. He was a team player, from his earliest days in vaudeville with his family. When we see a Keaton performance, we see what those around him brought out in him. So when we see him in this delightful episode of "The Ed Wynn Show", we see what Ed Wynn brought out in him. And Ed Wynn knew how to tap into Keaton's comic genius.

The premise was simple enough. They set out to recreate Buster Keaton's film debut: the molasses bit from "The Butcher Boy" (1917). But while those of us who are familiar with "The Butcher Boy" will recognize the skeleton of the sketch, Keaton and Wynn put new flesh on it and breathed new life into it. Some of the freshest reworking comes in the way Buster and Ed made fun of the medium of silent films even while paying tribute to them. And the whole bit is funny in itself, and not purely in how it references familiar material.

I won't spoil any of it for you by giving it away. You can find it and watch it – the entire episode – at the Internet Archive. The Keaton bit is at the end, the final fifteen minutes. But the early part of the episode is worth watching as well, particularly for what Wynn did with his sponsor – Spiedel watch bands – and a pair of ballet dancers.

Live show with Buster recreating and updating his classic routines.

Director: Arthur Hilton
Cast: Buster Keaton, Harold Goodwin

IMDb

Buster Live!!

At the end of the 40's Buster was one of the first of the great stars to appear regularly on TV. Although his starring career in movies was long past, he made a big hit with early TV audiences and was even given two local TV series which were quite successful but were very expensive to produce.

In the episode I've seen of The Buster Keaton Show, apparently the only one to survive, Buster has decided to get fit and has hired a trainer for the purpose.

Obviously the episode requires a bit of set up and story line so there's a lengthy scene with some actors setting up a story before Buster appears. The story is that BK (as they call him) has decided to get fit and wants a trainer to get him into shape. Then they introduce the trainer who tells us about his girl and how he's worried about her talking to other men.

Since most TV at this was live it's not surprising that the actors seem quite intimidated and one guy stumbles over several lines. This material, written by Buster's old collaborator Clyde Bruckman is pretty laboured and unnecessary and it made me uncertain as to whether I was going to like the show or not. All this changes when Buster enters and the others leave him to it.

We're then treated to two 10 minute virtual solo's from Buster as he proceeds from one form of exercise to the next, managing to bungle each in inventive and hilarious ways. He also gets to show off his talents with a basket ball, performing a series of increasingly surreal and improbable tricks, Even netting it whilst lying on his back. You can see Buster gets a big kick out of the live audience and his delight is quite infectious. Although it's half a century ago watching the Great Man do his thing in real time is a considerable pleasure. Inevitably buster gets himself in trouble as he accidentally conks a female who comes into the gym, knocking her out.

As he tries to revive her, Buster hauls and throws the girl around like a rag doll in a scene reminiscent of putting the drunk to bed in "Spite Marriage" Then his trainer walks in and of course it turns out the girl is his wife.

Suspecting Buster of canoodling the scene is set for an all to real boxing session, but Buster miraculously wins.

At 55 Buster is still amazingly able to take the falls and you just know none of the stunts are faked in this. As in his films Buster has the uncanny ability to make all the falls and entanglements in the ropes seem completely spontaneous and natural, showing as always that he never needed words to be funny.
~ Tom Hamilton

Directors: Edward F. Cline, Arthur Hilton
Cast: Buster Keaton, Dorothy Ford, Harold Goodwin, Marcia Mae Jones, Eleanor Keaton, Fuzzy Knight, Jack Reitzen, Dub Taylor, Philip Van Zandt, Dick Wessel, Charles Williams

IMDb








When a great film star accepts an academy award, he reflects on a comedian he worked with in the early film days, owing his success to him, not realizing that man is now destitute, watching the show on TV from a barstool.

Director: George Marshall
Cast: Buster Keaton, Zasu Pitts, Joe E. Brown, Evelyn Ankers, Jack Kruschen, Jack Elam, Percy Helton, Joseph Corey, Lyle Latell, Charles Horvath, Heinie Conklin, Charles Ferguson, Bob Hope, Hank Mann, Spec O'Donnell, 'Snub' Pollard, Jeffrey Sayre

IMDb

Extremely well-made story about a group of strangers who gather in a small bar where they plan on watching the Academy Awards. The host (Bob Hope) of the show is giving a Lifetime Achievement award to a man (Joe E. Brown) who thanks a silent partner who helped him make great movies. What no one knows is that this silent partner (Buster Keaton) just happens to be in the bar. If you're a fan of silent movies then this here is a must-see as we get one terrific performance after another but what makes the film so memorable is that it's clearly a tribute to all the silent stars who were forgotten by the time this thing was released to TV. The film re-enacts two silent movies and this is where Keaton gets to do his physical type of comedy that he was so loved for. Keaton was nearly 60-years-old when he did this movie so when we see the silent clips there's no question he's not as fast on his feet but I think the effort warrants an A+ and there's no question he still has that wonderful timing. I thought the first film where we see how the character got his start in the pictures was extremely funny. The second bit wasn't that good but it was still great seeing Keaton in another silent picture. The supporting cast includes Zasu Pitts in a very good performance playing a movie fan in the bar who doesn't recognize the famous face next to her. Bob Hope plays himself and we get Percy Helton, Jack Elam, Evelyn Ankers and 'Snub' Pollard in the cast. Joe E. Brown doesn't have the biggest part but it was great seeing him in the film. Being able to see all these famous names, many from the silent era, together again is certainly worth sitting through the 27-minutes. THE SILENT PARTNER was certainly a love letter to those pre-sound days and when you consider that the majority of the cast, including director Marshall, were involved in those days it's no wonder this film turned out so well.

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