Phil attends the HARLOD LLOYD double feature at the Stanford Theatre-January 20, 2012

On Monday, January 9th, at approximately 10am, I severely sprang my left ankle at work, and as a result, I was laid up at home for almost two weeks. Hence all the reviews I've been doing over on The Midnight Horror Sinema Show. But tonight marked my return to going out to the movies and I couldn't have picked a better night! Over at the Stanford Theatre in Palo Alto, they were showing a Harold Lloyd Double Feature! Tonight on the mighty Wurlitzer was my good friend, the incredible Dennis James! So let the fun and laughter begin!!

Harold Lloyd in HOT WATER (1924)

The first film of the night was HOT WATER (1924): Starring Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Josephine Crowell, Charles Stevenson, and Mickey McBan. Seeing himself as a bachelor for life, Lloyd falls for the beautiful Ralston. Fast forward a couple of months and married life has taken its toll on him, all because of his in-laws. His misadventures for today consists of riding on a crowded trolley with a wild turkey that he won from the grocery store, his in-laws showing up and causing havoc, a joy ride in his new car that turns into tragedy as the car becomes totaled and thus is towed back home, gets drunk with his neighbor, accidentally chloroforms his mother-in-law, and becomes mistaken as a ghost. Yup, life for Lloyd is tough! The film was directed by Fred C. Newmeyer and Sam Taylor, who also co-wrote the film with John Grey, Tim Whelan, and Thomas J. Gray. The film was released to theaters by Pathe on October 26, 1924.

Harold Lloyd in SAFETY LAST (1923)

The second film on tonight's bill was SAFETY LAST (1923): Starring Lloyd, Mildred Davis, Bill Strother, and Noah Young. Lloyd's most famous and popular film ever, our four-eyed friend heads to the big city to make it big, but unfortunately comes up short. He lives with his friend (Strother) and can barely eat and pay the rent. When his fiance (Davis) arrives, he pretends to be the manager of the department store he works at. Desperate for money for his wedding, he convinces his boss to pull off a publicity stunt to attract more customers to the store so he can claim the $1000 bonus. With his pal being chased by a police officer (Young), it's up to Lloyd to climb the outside of the department store! The film was directed by Newmeyer and Taylor again, and was released by Pathe on April 1, 1923.

The image of Lloyd hanging on to the clock while hovering above traffic is one of the most iconic images in not only silent film history, but of film history in general. Whenever you open up a book that talks about the silent film era, you will see this picture. This particular scene can also be seen in Martin Scorsese's new film HUGO. Lloyd was one of the "Big Three" comedians from the silent era (the other two being Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton). Even 89 years after the film's release, it is still being played to sold out crowds (like tonight) and it can be found on many top ten lists by both critics and fans. A true comedy classic that still stands the test of time!

What a great night for going out to the movies! Also, for all you silent fans out there, the theatre will now be showing silent film every week starting next week! So make sure you come back next Friday and see what cool silent films I will be seeing next!

Both HOT WATER and SAFETY LAST are available on DVD and can be purchased at your local retailer or at the Amazon website. So click here if you are interested in buying copy for yourself or for a friend tonight.

The Stanford Theatre is your home for classic Hollywood movies! To view their movie schedules, times, and tickets, visit their website at www.stanfordtheatre.org

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!