Battling Butler
| Battling Butler | |
|---|---|
 Lobby card | |
| Directed by | Buster Keaton |
| Produced by |
Buster Keaton Joseph M. Schenck |
| Written by |
Al Boasberg Lex Neal |
| Starring |
Buster Keaton Sally O'Neil Walter James |
| Cinematography |
Bert Haines Devereaux Jennings |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date | September 19, 1926 |
Running time | 71 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language |
Silent film English intertitles |
Battling Butler is a 1926 comedy silent film directed by and starring Buster Keaton.
Plot
Alfred's father wants him to make a man of himself so sends him off on a hunting and fishing trip. He doesn't catch or shoot anything, but he does fall in love with a mountain girl. When her father and brothers laugh at this they are told that he is Alfred "Battling" Butler, the championship fighter. From there on the masquerade must be maintained.
Origins
The film is one of Keaton's instances where his source is based on a stage play. The play was actually called Battling Buttler, by Walter L. Rosemont and Ballard MacDonald, and starred Charlie Ruggles on Broadway. It initially ran from October 8, 1923 – July 5, 1924 playing first at the Selwyn Theatre before moving on April 21, 1924 to the Times Square Theatre. In total there were a whopping 313 performances, a very impressive run for an original play.[1]
Cast
- Buster Keaton as Alfred Butler
- Sally O'Neil as the mountain girl
- Walter James as her father
- Budd Fine as her brother
- Francis McDonald as Alfred "Battling" Butler
- Mary O'Brien as his wife
- Tom Wilson as his trainer
- Eddie Borden as his manager
- Snitz Edwards as Alfred's valet