My
Wonderful World of Slapstick
by Buster Keaton and Charlie Samuels. 1960.
In
the style of the other show business autobiographies of the time,
Buster tells his story. This is no kiss-and-tell book--in fact,
Buster never even mentions his second marriage. But there are vaudeville
anecdotes and Buster's own interpretation of the facts of his life.
Samuels cleaned up Keaton's grammar, but kept his style, tone and
humor. A paperback edition of the book was in print until recently
and may still be found in some bookstores.
Keaton
by Rudi Blesh.
1966.
Blesh, best known as
a writer about jazz, spent several years researching this book,
even living with the Keatons for a while. It is widely considered
to be the best biography of Keaton to date--as far as it goes. Beautifully
written, it tells of Keaton's life up until the MGM debacle. It
does have its flaws, however, and has contributed to some of the
myths surrounding Keaton's life. Blesh completed his book in 1955,
but was unable to find a publisher until Keaton's death in 1966.
Therefore the second half of Keaton's life is given short shrift,
leaving many to believe he did virtually nothing after MGM, and
that he spent his remaining years battling alcohol. In addition,
Blesh describes the silent films in glowing terms, but unfortunately,
many of his facts are wrong; he was describing the films from memory.
Out of print.
Buster
Keaton by David
Robinson. 1969.
Robinson's small paperback
book is one of the best analyses of Keaton's work to date. Out of
print.
FILM. Complete Scenario, Illustrations, Production Shots.
Samuel Beckett
The complete screenplay for the 1965 movie,
the only one made by the great playwright Samuel Beckett. Plus an
essay on the making of Film by Alan Schneider. 1969.
Schneider's essay displays
appalling ignorance of Keaton's talent and career, and is written
in a condescending tone. The book is a curiosity. Out of print.
The
Silent Clowns by
Walter Kerr. 1975.
The single best book
on silent film comedy ever written, with special emphasis on Keaton,
whom Kerr claimed as his favorite. A superbly written book that
analyzes Keaton's films and his comedy style better than any book
before or since, The Silent Clowns also places Keaton's movies in
their proper historical context. In print and highly recommended.
Keaton:
The Features Close-Up by Daniel Moews. 1977.
An academic analysis
of Keaton's silent features. Writing in often obtuse film-school
jargon, Moews presents many interesting theories about the structure
of Keaton's feature films, some of which he supports well; others
not so much. An important book for the person who wants to delve
deeply into Keaton's story construction, but should be read thoughtfully,
as Moews doesn't always make a good case for his ideas. Reads like
a doctoral dissertation, rather than a commercial book. In print.
Buster
Keaton:
The Man Who Wouldn't Lie Down
by Tom Dardis. 1979.
Dardis fills in some
of the blanks left by Blesh, but falls into the common trap of confusing
Keaton's on-screen image with his real life, creating a portrait
of a sad clown who had a pathetic life after his great success--something
Keaton clearly didn't see in his own view of himself. Dardis often
interprets that "Great Stone Face" from photographs, describing
what he imagines to be Keaton's feelings as explanation for his
behavior in later years--an approach that doesn't hold up, given
Keaton's public persona and his insistence on maintaining it for
the camera. Dardis does make a concerted effort to examine exactly
what happened at MGM, and makes a good case for MGM keeping Keaton
in second-rate productions--those films made a lot of money for
the studio. Still in print, but not necessarily the best book to
read first. A caution: It's full of factual errors.
The
Look of Buster Keaton
by Robert Benayoun. 1984.
Translated from the
French. This pretentious photo-oriented book, badly translated from
the original French, is pretty to look at, but proposes a convoluted
philosophical treatise. Benayoun compares Keaton to the great surrealists,
existentialists and dada-ists. Buster would have laughed. Out of
print, but a favorite with many.
The
Complete Films of Buster Keaton by
Jim Kline. 1994.
Part of Citadel's Complete
Films of . . . series, the book valiantly attempts to and nearly
succeeds at covering all of Keaton's film work with plot synopses
and some background information. Very useful, and still in print--if
you can find it.
Buster
Keaton: Cut to
the Chase by Marion Meade. 1995.
The most recent Keaton
biography muddies the water even further. Despite copious reference
notes and a seemingly extensive acknowledgments section, Meade's
scholarship is suspect. Following the Dardis tradition of seeing
Keaton as a pathetic figure, she leads the reader down a spiraling
path littered with half-truths and ill-conceived conjecture. Partially-told
anecdotes are used to support her view of the sad, abused Buster
Keaton, and the book includes a new, and completely false, twist:
she claims Keaton was illiterate. Because of its many flaws, even
the new information she claims to have discovered is suspicious.
Among Keaton scholars, this one is considered to be the worst of
the major biographies. It does, however, have the best filmography
to date, separately copyrighted by Jack Dragga. In print.
Buster
Keaton:
A Bio-Bibliography
by Joanna Rapf and Gary L. Green. 1995.
An academic pass at
Keaton's life and career that unfortunately repeats many of the
myths. But to its credit, the book does include transcripts of several
extended interviews with Keaton, which give the reader the chance
to see what Buster said, in his own words.
Buster:
A Legend
in Laughter by Larry
Edwards. 1995.
This slim volume book
is well-intentioned, but is neither well-researched nor well-written.
It combines unsubstantiated gossip and wild fan enthusiasm. In print.
Buster
Keaton's Sound Films
by David Macleod. 1995.
Macleod, a continuity
announcer for Channel 4 in London and the co-founder of a small
London-based Keaton group, the Blinking Buzzards, talks about the
work Keaton did after the silent era. Features many rare film performances.
An excellent look at Keaton's later years. Self-published. In print.
Buster
Keaton,
The Little Iron Man by Oliver Scott. 1995.
New Zealander Oliver
Scott spent 20 years conducting the research for this in-depth look
at Keaton's life and career. Contains extensive interviews with
Eleanor Keaton, Buster's widow. Very expensive, and the price is
likely to change, depending on the exchange rate. Self-published.
In print.
Keaton's
Silent Shorts:
Beyond the Laughter
by Gabriella Oldman. 1996.
An interesting analysis
of Keaton's silent shorts. A little on the dry, academic side, but
an attractive book that makes some good points. In print.
Buster
Keaton's Sherlock Jr.
Edited by Andrew Horton. Cambridge University Press. 1997.
Although a couple of
the essays are cumbersome, most are thoughtful and interesting,
if you enjoy academic analysis.
Silent Echoes:
Discovering Early Hollywood
Through the Films of Buster Keaton
by John Bengtson. 1999.
Through a magnificent mixture of
detective work, keen observation of Keaton's movies, and historical
research Bengtson discovers the locations of where Keaton shot many
of his silent films, and how those locations look today. Beautifully
done, and highly recommended to any fan.
The Theater and Cinema of
Buster Keaton
by Robert Knopf. 1999.
A peculiar, dry academic book that
tries very hard to be superlative, yet flops in the basics. Although
the author's bibliographical research looks impressive, the film
research is actually sloppy, to the point that it undermines the
book. Also, some of the assumptions Knopf puts forward concerning
silent comedy are historically inaccurate, putting many of Knopf's
theories in doubt.
A-Z of Silent Comedy: An
Illustrated Companion
by Glenn Mitchell. 1999.
Almost a "Who's Who in Silent
Comedy." This well-researched encyclopedia includes material
on many (but not quite all) of silent comedy's most important figures.
The excellent Keaton entry runs seven pages. Overall, a good companion
to Walter Kerr's "The Silent Clowns" (see above).
