1935 MGM trade ad for “A Night At The Opera.” The classic Marx Brothers comedy will be part of Turner Classic Movies’ “Ouch! A Salute To Slapstick” showcase
Buster Keaton. Mack Sennett. Charlie Chaplin. Harold Lloyd. Laurel & Hardy. The Marx Brothers. Abbott & Costello. Lucille Ball. Peter Sellers. Mel Brooks.
Turner Classic Movies’ “Ouch! A Salute to Slapstick” (Tuesday and Wednesday Nights in September)
Turner Classic Movies will kick off the month of September with a selection of 56 vintage and modern slapstick comedies on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings throughout the month of September, hosted by comedian Greg Proops. The network’s on-air festival is titled “Ouch! A Salute to Slapstick.”
Each week will be divided into different time periods of the slapstick genre, starting from the silent days and ending with more modern comedic box office features. Here is a sampler of what films will be shown on TCM:
Sept. 6-7: The Silent Era – Includes “Tillie’s Punctured Romance” (1914, Charlie Chaplin’s first feature for Mack Sennett’s Keystone Film Company) and Buster Keaton’s “Steamboat Bill, Jr.” (1928).
Sept. 13-14: 1930s & 1940s – Considered as the “golden age” of slapstick comedy, featuring The Marx Brothers’ 1935 MGM farce, “A Night at the Opera” and the W.C. Fields classic, “The Bank Dick” (1940).
Sept. 20-21: 1950s & 1960s – Includes the the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz comedy “The Long, Long Trailer” (1954) and Stanley Kramer’s star-studded Cinerama comedy masterpiece, “It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad World” (1963).
Sept. 27-28 (Conclusion): 1980s and Beyond – Includes the 1983 Rick Moranis-Dave Thomas film, “Strange Brew” (based off of their iconic Second City/SCTV “Great White North” skit) and TCM’s latest modern comedic entry, “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy” (2004, featuring Will Ferrell).
Free Interactive Online Course in Slapstick Comedy!
The network has partnered with Ball State University and Canvas to offer a free online course devoted to enriching the art and science of slapstick comedy (and the people that were involved with slapstick). The free course is being taught by Richard L. Edwards, Ph.D., the executive director of Ball State’s iLearn Research program.
The Ball State course began at the end of August , and will end in early Oct.
Don’t miss TCM’s salute to Slapstick Comedy!
If you are into vintage and current comedy flicks, you will not want to miss TCM’s “Ouch! A Salute to Slapstick Comedy.” It is highly recommended for fans of classic cinema comedy and for those who have never been exposed to the fine art of slapstick.
Turner Classic Movies Presents: “Ouch! A Salute to Slapstick Comedy”
Tuesday and Wednesday Nights from Sept. 7-28 (starting at 8 p.m. Eastern, check local listings).
Downloadable Groucho Marx Paper Cutout (from TCM’s Slapstick site)
TCM & Ball State University: Free Online Course Devoted to Slapstick (via Canvas, available until Oct. 8)
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