The High Sign

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The High Sign
Buster and the Blinking Buzzards give the titular "high sign" in the 1921 short.
Directed by	Edward F. Cline Buster Keaton
Produced by	Joseph M. Schenck
Written by	Edward F. Cline Buster Keaton
Starring	Buster Keaton Bartine Burkett Charles Dorety Al St. John
Cinematography	Elgin Lessley
Editing by	Buster Keaton
Distributed by	Metro Pictures
Release date(s)	April 12, 1921
Running time	21 min.
Language	English (original titlecards)
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The High Sign is a 1921 short comedy film starring comedian Buster Keaton. It was written and directed by Keaton and Edward F. Cline. The runtime is 21 minutes. Although One Week was the first of Keaton's independent shorts to be released, The High Sign was the first one to be produced. Disappointed with the end result, Keaton shelved the film. It wasn't until a year later, when he broke his ankle and delayed the completion of The Electric House, that the film was released. The title refers to the secret signal used by the underworld gang in the film.

[edit] Plot

Buster plays a drifter who cons his way into working at an amusement park shooting gallery. Believing Buster is an expert marksman, both the murderous gang the Blinking Buzzards and the man they want to kill end up hiring him. The film ends with a wild chase through a house filled with secret passages.