Harry Langdon At Hal Roach: The Talkies 1929-1930
For most casual film fans, comedy shorts of the 1930s to the 1950s begin and end with The Three Stooges. This isn’t necessarily due to a lack of interest or enthusiasm for the dozens of other comedians that were making two-reel comedies at the same time. Due to the lack of availability of vintage short subjects on TV and home video, audiences simply don’t know what they’re missing. Happily, over the past couple of years, Kit Parker Films has been releasing DVD sets of early short comedies from Hal Roach Studios (a.k.a. The Lot of Fun) under their Sprocket Vault video label, including rarely seen talkie two-reelers from Charley Chase and from the female comedy team of Thelma Todd & ZaSu Pitts. The most recent and most unexpected of these releases is a 2-DVD set of the eight talkie shorts made by silent star Harry Langdon during his brief stint with Roach from 1929 to 1930.
Among the silent film comedians, Harry Langdon may well be the weirdest. The “vaudevillian turned movie star” created a cartoonish man-child character, which was innocent (but not sexless) with the motor skills of a toddler. While other silent film comedians moved at a frantic undercranked pace, Harry took his time, often to a ridiculous degree. This slooooooowing down of silent slapstick was surprisingly popular with audiences, and it had a ripple affect on all of his contemporaries, including Chaplin and Keaton. However, Langdon’s greatest influence on cinema can be seen in all of the baby-men comedians that followed him, including Stan Laurel, Lou Costello, Joe Besser, Jerry Lewis, and Paul “Pee-Wee Herman” Reubens.
Due to the frankly bizarre nature of Langdon’s character, his work has always been divisive among audiences. While some critics consider Harry the fourth genius of silent era (following Chaplin, Keaton, and Lloyd), others find his character grating or even boring. However, one thing has generally united both Harry Langdon fans and haters, and that has been a critical loathing of the shorts Harry produced after the advent of sound (especially the earliest talkies shot while under contract to Hal Roach). Due to the fact that these films have been near-impossible to see, the critical consensus that the Langdon talkies are stinkers has been taken as gospel for decades.
With the release of Harry Langdon At Hal Roach: The Talkies 1929-1930, fresh audiences finally have an opportunity to re-evaluate these films. Having watched the collection myself, I’m a bit baffled as to how fans of Langdon’s silent comedies could hate his talkies. Langdon is absolutely playing the same bizarre toddler-like character that made him famous in the Hal Roach films, and the comic premises are just as off-kilter, dark, risque, and surreal as found in his silents. The only noticeable difference is you can hear what the character is saying.
I will admit that Langdon’s speech pattern can be a bit off-putting at times. In the same way that his character struggles with most physical tasks, he tends to be slow on the mental uptake. Consequently, as he tries to make sense of a situation, he tends to babble and repeat dialogue. Often this is irritating; but just as often, I found myself laughing out loud at the odd timing of Langdon’s line delivery. Especially effective is when he will repeat “Uh-oh” or “No-no-no,” when he’s considering doing something bad.
Below is a brief overview of the eight films contained in Harry Langdon At Hal Roach: The Talkies 1929-1930:
Hotter Than Hot (1929, Dir: Lewis R. Foster)
Unfortunately, the soundtracks for the first two Hal Roach shorts is missing, so they are presented in silent form with musical accompaniment by Andrew Earle Simpson and subtitles that appear to be an authentic rendering of the original dialogue. While it is unfortunate that the sound is missing from these shorts, the silent versions help emphasize that there isn’t much difference between the Harry Langdon of the silent films and the Harry Langdon of the talkies.
This short (which is one of the best on the set) was based on one of Langdon’s vaudeville skits, so he can be credited with the weirdo premise. Harry is a fire-obsessed eccentric who is tasked by a man (Edgar Kennedy) to give a message to his girlfriend (the great Thelma Todd). In the process, he accidentally sets her apartment on fire. Harry’s footwork when sliding on Thelma’s floor is mighty impressive.
Sky Boy (1929, Dir: Charles Rogers)
Once again, the soundtrack is missing, but most of the comedy in this short is physical anyway. A pilot (Eddie Dunn) crash lands his plane on an iceberg, with beautiful passenger (Thelma Todd) along for the ride. When the lascivious pilot realizes that he has the girl to himself, he threatens to force his affections on her (in a sexually threatening way that would be unthinkable after the enforcement of the production code). Unknown to the pilot, Harry has stowed away on the plane, and Thelma is relieved at the revelation of the third wheel. Slapstick shenanigans ensue, including interactions with a brown bear and some beautifully timed (and potentially dangerous) gags with a straight razor.
Skirt Shy (1929, Dir: Charles Rogers)
The remaining six shorts are complete, including the original soundtracks. In this one, Harry is a butler in the employ of an impoverished widow (May Wallace). When she reveals that she will have to let the staff go, due to lack of funds, the maid (frequent Langdon love interest Nancy Dover) concocts a scheme to hook up the widow with a rich suitor. However, when the suitor shows up during the widow’s absence, Harry (in drag) is forced to impersonate her. This short is pretty slapstick heavy, with lots of destruction.
The Head Guy (1930, Dir: Fred Guiol)
This is the only short in the DVD set that I actively disliked. The plot is almost nonexistent. When Mrs. Kennedy gives birth to twins, Mr. Kennedy (Edgar Kennedy) leaves Harry in charge of a railroad station. A theatrical troupe is laid over at the station, and the manager tries to steal Harry’s gal (Nancy Dover). Not much happens, and Harry seems more brain dead here than usual. Still the short is worth seeing for a truly wackadoodle scene of dark “comedy” where Harry contemplates suicide, crying over his situation while simultaneously trying to eat a sandwich. The scene cannot really be considered funny, but it is fascinating in a “train wreck” kind of way.
The Fighting Parson (1930, Dir: Fred Guiol & Charles Rogers)
In one of the better shorts, Harry is a banjo-playing entertainer in the Old West. When he arrives in a wild town, the citizens mistake him for “The Fighting Parson,” a minister known for cleaning up dens of iniquity with his fists. Through a series of mix-ups, Harry manages to tame the town and rescue a pretty girl (Nancy Dover). Harry gets to show off some of the skills he picked up on the vaudeville stage, including playing the banjo, singing, and tap dancing. He also participates in a truly unusual boxing match. Thelma Todd also shows up, but she is little more than an extra.
The Big Kick (1930, Dir: Warren Doane)
In this one, Harry and Nancy manage a gas station, which is held up by a couple of bootleggers on the run from federal agents (Edgar Kennedy & Bob O’Connor). Of course, Harry manages to get gassed on the bootleg hooch, while Nancy takes care of the crooks. Harry speaks very little this time around, and he does a lot of pantomime with various props around the gas station to overall nice effect. A Spanish language version of this short (filmed completely separately with the actors speaking their dialogue phonetically) is also included in the DVD set.
The Shrimp (1930, Dir: Charles Rogers)
In a what seems like a variation on W.C. Fields silent Running Wild (1927), Harry plays a milquetoast resident of a rooming house who is constantly picked on by the other tenants, including a bully (Jim Mason) and a hussy (Thelma Todd). However, there is an abrupt change in the pecking order when Harry (or “The Shrimp,” as the other roomers call him) volunteers for an experiment in hypnotherapy. Professor Schoenheimer (comedian Max Davidson) hypnotizes Harry into believing that he has the tenacity of an attack dog, and the mesmerized “Shrimp” puts the tyrannical tenants in their places. Some critics consider this short the best of this series. However, I prefer most of the other shorts above this one, as this two-reeler features Harry both uncharacteristically meek and atypically energetic.
The King (1930, Dir: James W. Horne & Charles Hall)
The series of Harry Langdon comedies at Hal Roach goes out on a high note with this short, which is basically a live action cartoon. Harry is the monarch of an unnamed kingdom, who enjoys playing around with his subjects’ wives while the Queen (Thelma Todd) is away. The Queen treats Harry less like a husband and more like a spoiled kid, which is perfectly appropriate. Harry’s cartoonish character fits nicely in this imaginary setting, and The King gives Thelma Todd her best comedy showcase in the series.
It is a shame that this series didn’t continue, as the actors, writers, and directors at Hal Roach Studios were a good fit with Langdon’s brand of humor. Contrary to the myths surrounding the comedian, these shorts were popular with audiences, and Hal Roach tried to get Langdon to re-sign with the studio for another year. Harry left “The Lot of Fun” of his own accord to seek less-demanding work in feature films.
I can honestly say that I had a ball watching Harry Langdon At Hal Roach: The Talkies 1929-1930. While none of the shorts included in the 2-DVD collection are four-star classics, most of them are above-average two-reel comedies. Even the worst of the shorts have moments of WTF weirdness that make them worth watching.
If you are unfamiliar with Harry Langdon, this probably isn’t the best place to start. I would suggest you begin with his silent features Tramp, Tramp, Tramp (1926) and The Strong Man (1926). However, if you already love the silent Harry, there is a good chance you’ll like the talking version as well.
USA/B&W-180m./Dir: Various (see above)/Wr: H. M Walker, Leo McCarey, and Harry Langdon (uncredited)/Cast: Harry Langdon, Thelma Todd, Edgar Kennedy, Eddie Dunn, Nancy Dover, Nancy Drexel, Jim Mason, Tom Ricketts, May Wallace, Max Davidson, Charlie Hall, Gus Leonard, Dorothy Granger, Bob O’Connor
For Fans of: Silent comedy fans that are familiar with Harry Langdon’s nonspeaking output are sure to be curious to hear the character speak. However, this set should also appeal to fans of other talkie shorts from Hal Roach Studios, such as the Laurel & Hardy and Our Gang comedies.
Video: The 2-DVD set, Harry Langdon At Hal Roach: The Talkies 1929-1930, from Kit Parker Films’ Sprocket Vault video label, contains all eight shorts produced by the comedian at the studio. While I would have preferred the extra clarity that Blu-ray would have provided, it is a cause for celebration that these extremely rare films are being offered in any form on home video. Being that only 180 minutes of content is split between two DVDs, video compression of the films is not very noticeable, and overall, the shorts looks surprisingly good. Where minor issues do occur, such as an occasional shot with fuzzy focus, those errors are usually flaws that existed in the original release print, due to the speed with which the films were produced.
The audio on Hal Roach shorts (especially from the first year of sound recording) was not great when the films were originally released, so viewers should set their expectations accordingly. That said, I had no difficulty understanding any of the dialogue.
Kit Parker Films has gone the extra mile to provide a complete package for fans of and newcomers to these comedies, and the extras included on the set include audio commentaries for all of the shorts, as well as additional film rarities. The full bonus features are:
- Audio commentaries on all of the shorts by Richard M. Roberts — These lighthearted recordings are highly informative and entertaining. Roberts is obviously a fan of Langdon and a defender of these particular shorts. I found that his enthusiasm and knowledge added a lot of value to the set.
- La estación de gasolina (Spanish language version of The Big Kick) — It was common practice to film each short a second time with the actors speaking Spanish dialogue phonetically for release in Spanish-speaking countries. This is one example that has survived.
- Hal Roach Presents Harry Langdon (1929) — This is a rare promotional short that was meant to re-introduce Harry Langdon to audiences of the sound era. The short, which includes Thelma Todd and Eddie Dunn, plays much like the series of shorts that it is meant to promote, but the elements are in rougher shape, with obvious chemical decomposition. The film is endearingly odd and Harry is both funny and irritating in equal measure. This promo appears to have been shot a bit quicker and with less care than the official shorts, which isn’t necessarily a shortcoming. It’s charming hearing Thelma Todd unable to withhold a laugh at one of Harry’s weird ad-libs. This promo is embedded at the top of this review.
- Hal Roach Studio Auction (1963) — This newsreel-type film covers the sale of props from Hal Roach Studios, after they had closed down for good.
- Supplemental music composed and performed by Andrew Earle Simpson (to replace the missing soundtracks of Hotter Than Hot and Sky Boy)
- Photo Gallery
Streaming: Are you nuts? These films aren’t available via any streaming services.
More to Explore: If you want to dig deeper into more of Langdon’s filmography, many of his silent shorts and features are available in various DVD collections. Additionally, The Sprocket Vault has previously released similar DVD sets of Hal Roach talkies starring Thelma Todd and Charley Chase. Finally, a much anticipated Blu-ray release of new restorations of many of the Laurel & Hardy talkies is due in June. All of these collections are linked below.
Trivia: Most of the myths about Harry Langdon being difficult, not understanding his own character, or being an unhappy “tragic” figure were completely fabricated by director Frank “It’s a Wonderful Life” Capra. Capra directed Langdon’s most successful features in the silent era, and he never forgave Harry for firing him over creative differences. That grudge bloomed into total “character assassination” after Harry’s death.
For More Info: The book that I consider the Harry Langdon Bible is Little Elf: A Celebration of Harry Langdon by Chuck Harter and Michael J. Hayde. Harter and Hayde cover Harry’s life and work in great detail, dispelling many of the myths perpetuated by Frank Capra, and the second half of the book provides a film-by-film analysis of each of Langdon’s shorts and features.
