Summer of Stars is a MovieJawn celebration of actors that have shined on the silver screen. Follow along as we count down some of our favorite players from various eras in the magical cosmos of cinema.

by Rosalie Kicks, Editor in Chief and Old Sport

“There were two loves in his life: his engine and...”

Buster Keaton is without a doubt one of my favorite dead guys.

If nobody was looking-actually heck, I don’t care if someone spotted me for I have no shame for my love of Buster-I would dig up Buster’s grave (in the pale moonlight… of corpse) and climb into his forever bunk just so that I could wrap my arms around him. It should be noted, dear reader, I don’t give out hugs like they were hard candies. Instead, they must be earned. And Buster Keaton is more than deserving of being embraced by octopus limbs. Although, now that I ponder this plan further, it may be best that I acquire a new casket first and then transport him into this new vessel. For with him being a mere five foot, five inches (I come in at least five foot, ten/eleven inches when I don’t slouch) I would want to ensure that we were both comfortable.

Anyways, enough about grave digging.

I honestly can’t recall when I first laid my eyes upon “The Great Stone Face”. That was his nickname in Tinseltown in case you did not know. This name was coined for the way in which he could deliver memorable physical comedic moments all while doing so with a deadpan, stoic mug. Upon recently watching the documentary, Lucy and Desi (2022) it thrilled me to learn that Buster served as a mentor and chum to Lucille Ball by assisting with her craft. In going back to watch some I Love Lucy episodes I can totally see the influence. Of corpse, Lucille Ball isn’t the only one. Buster’s impact on cinema continues even now as he is regarded as one of the first stuntmen.

Buster is considered today to be on the of most prolific actor/directors that ever graced the silver screen. Of corpse, I have seen quite a number of his pictures. A few of my favorites include: Sherlock Jr., The Cameraman, The Electric House, The Haunted House and Seven Chances. Interestingly enough, one of his films that remained on my watch list until this past weekend was the picture that numerous esteemed movie critics and respected filmmakers praise as his absolute best: The General (1926). My dearly departed film pal, Orson Welles went on record about this picture saying, “[The General is] the greatest comedy ever made...and perhaps the greatest film ever made.".

The General tells the tale of Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) a southern engineer that operates the famed General train in Marietta, Georgia. It is immediately known that Johnnie holds two things closest to his heart, one being his train and the second being his special lady friend, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack). With the announcement of the civil war, Annabelle informs Johnnie that she wants nothing to do with him unless he enlists. (Un)fortunately, for Johnnie the enlistor sees him too valuable as an engineer to risk sending him to war causing Annabelle to leave him in the dust. In the end, Johnnie does find himself in the ranks when he unintentionally foils the heist of the enemy to commandeer the General.

As a whole, The General is quite the feat and was made during the time period of 1920 until 1929 in which Buster would become well known for. Many believe his best work during this era was due to the lack of interference from the studio system. However, it would be The General, that would lead to Buster’s downfall. Upon its initial release to cinemas, the film was seen as a catastrophic, financial blunder and received mixed reviews from filmgoers and critics alike. Despite the picture having more of a dramatic flair than comedic, it still brought to question why Keaton thought it was acceptable to make light of the American Civil War. In terms of story, The General combined Buster’s love of physical stunts/antics (he did ALL of his own stunts in the picture) and trains. Possibly one of the most well known scenes in the film was that of a locomotive chase that made use of a cannon. Watching some of these sequences for the first time were cause for me to catch my breath as it made me quite anxious watching a person climb atop a moving train. Buster simply had no fear and clearly gave it his all in the name of the picture. Regrettably, this film would be Buster’s last motion picture in which he would have absolute and total control.

It could have been the almost thirty-eight miles of film that was shot for The General that decided Buster’s fate in 1928, when he would be pressured to sign a deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. There was a consensus that he needed some reeling in due to much of the financial loss from his pictures. This decision would inevitably change his life for the worse. Other silent filmmakers of the time such as Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd warned Buster about the signing, stating that his independence would go out the window. Sadly, their predictions were right and Buster would often recall this mistake as the downfall of his career.

The General was proclaimed as being Buster’s favorite of all the movies he made. Overall, I found The General to be fine. Part of me wonders if Buster would still feel the same about it now? Or if he just always held it in such a high regard due to it being the last time he felt in control of his art. Being that the picture is set during the Civil War and in some way perpetuates the terrible/horrific ideals that come along with all that, it makes for a rather lackluster story. Admittedly, one does not watch this for the story but to experience Buster Keaton. He is in top form, is extremely well dressed (I absolutely loved the suspenders) and it is easy to see that he always brought his best stone face to the picture.