This is a very good Larry Semon short comedy. Even though he gives himself extra screen time by doubling as an aristocratic drunk in the audience, the other members of his troupe get some good gags in this comedy about the goings-on onstage and backstage at a vaudeville house.
You've seen most of the gags before, including the one about the strong man (Frank Alexander) who mistreats his wife and fakes his feats of strength -- Harry Langdon used the same setting in THE STRONG MAN. What makes this one particularly good is that Langdon understood pantomime storytelling. The version I saw on Youtube (under the title "Ridolini macchinista") has no titles, yet the events and plot are clear.
I'm not very fond of Semon's work. Within a couple of years his work would become repetitious, overblown and lacking any sort of logic, either in story telling or reality. However, here he's very good.
You've seen most of the gags before, including the one about the strong man (Frank Alexander) who mistreats his wife and fakes his feats of strength -- Harry Langdon used the same setting in THE STRONG MAN. What makes this one particularly good is that Langdon understood pantomime storytelling. The version I saw on Youtube (under the title "Ridolini macchinista") has no titles, yet the events and plot are clear.
I'm not very fond of Semon's work. Within a couple of years his work would become repetitious, overblown and lacking any sort of logic, either in story telling or reality. However, here he's very good.
