Fatty and Mabel Adrift by Trav S.d.

  Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Keystone comedy Fatty and Mabel Adrift (1916), starring Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle and Mabel Normand, and directed by …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 7:47am on January 9, 2015☆⚑

Bring a Dead Star Back to Life! by Trav S.d.

Not this one! The one above, Miss Molly Pope, is the very definition of ALIVE, which is why she was cast as the most electrifying star of the 19th century, the one and only Adah Isaacs Menke…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 2:41pm on January 8, 2015☆⚑

Tonight on TCM: Cabin in the Sky by Trav S.d.

Tonight (tomorrow really) at 12:30am eastern, Turner Classic Movies will be showing the seminal 1943 MGM film version of the musical Cabin in the Sky, directed by Vincent Minnelli.  Th…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:37am on January 8, 2015☆⚑

Gary Beeber: The "Mona" Series by Trav S.d.

You’ve no doubt heard the name Gary Beeber here many a time. He co-produced the edition of Angie Pontani’s Burlesque-a-pades I got to direct, was the long-time producer of Gotham…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:22am on January 8, 2015☆⚑

Here Comes Klezmer! by Trav S.d.

Filed under: Contemporary Variety, Jews/ Show Biz, Music, PLUGS Tagged: City Winery, Isle of Klezbos, Lincoln Center, Metropolitan Klezmer

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 8:12am on January 8, 2015☆⚑

On the Glorious Smorgasbord of Religion by Trav S.d.

I cooked up the idea for this post several weeks ago; events in Paris this morning made me think today would be a good day to finish it up and share it. Most Americans (ranging from the fana…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 4:38pm on January 7, 2015☆⚑

Seems Like a Good Morning to Share This Cartoon with as Many People as Possible by Trav S.d.

Filed under: VISUAL ART Tagged: Charlie Hebdo

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 8:42am on January 7, 2015☆⚑

Tomorrow A.M. on TCM: 2 Strange Comedies of the Great Depression by Trav S.d.

Tomorrow morning on Turner Classic Movies: Two somewhat idiosyncratic comedies from the depths of the Great Depression! 7:00am (EST) : Sidewalks of New York (1931) Buster Keaton‘s talk…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 3:03pm on January 6, 2015☆⚑

Celebrations of New York, Uptown and Downtown by Trav S.d.

Last night the Mad Marchioness and myself had ourselves a double header. The first leg was the book launch event for Kevin Fitzpatrick’s new tome The Algonquin Round Table New York: A …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 1:18pm on January 6, 2015☆⚑

Tonight on TCM: Two Redford Westerns by Trav S.d.

Tonight on Turner Classic Movies, a pair of groovy hippie westerns starring Robert Redford. WARNING: the below contains spoilers!  10:15pm (EST): Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 8:44am on January 6, 2015☆⚑

Charlie Chaplin in "The Circus" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the American release date of Charlie Chaplin feature The Circus (1928). Despite being an estimable hit in its day (the 7th most successful film financially of …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 7:29am on January 6, 2015☆⚑

The Travalanche Readers Have Spoken by Trav S.d.

As we do every year here at Travalanche, we begin 2015 with some rough statistical and categorical analysis to try and learn what types of posts have been most successful with readers so we …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 1:55pm on January 5, 2015☆⚑

Laurel and Hardy in "Tit for Tat" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Laurel and Hardy comedy short Tit for Tat (1935). The film is the sequel to their earlier film Them Thar Hills. Sort of. In ac…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 9:35am on January 5, 2015☆⚑

Harry Langdon in "The Sea Squawk" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Harry Langdon silent comedy short The Sea Squawk (1925), directed by Harry Edwards.  The setting is an ocean liner at sea, where …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 9:18am on January 4, 2015☆⚑

Laurel and Hardy in "Night Owls" by Trav S.d.

Today marks the anniversary of the release date of the Laurel and Hardy comedy short Night Owls (1930), directed by James Parrott.  The set-up: There have been 42 unsolved burglarie…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 9:01am on January 4, 2015☆⚑

Sunday: Celebration of American Circus! by Trav S.d.

Filed under: Circus, Contemporary Variety, PLUGS Tagged: Big Apple Circus, Celebration of American Circus, Phillip Petit, West Hyler

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:11am on January 1, 2015☆⚑

Buster Keaton in "The Paleface" by Trav S.d.

January, 1922 marked the release of Buster Keaton’s silent comedy short The Paleface.   In this western parody Buster plays an innocent butterfly collector who accidentally…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:50am on January 1, 2015☆⚑

The 12 Best Comic Drunks (and Drunk Comics) of All Time by Trav S.d.

New Year’s Eve — what a wonderful time of year! When we have all a rare chance to start out all over again with a clean slate…and then generally use the opportunity to comm…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 5:39pm on December 31, 2014☆⚑

Ring in the New Year with Anna Copacabanna! by Trav S.d.

Filed under: HOLIDAYS/ FESTIVALS/ MEMORIALS/ PARADES, PLUGS, SOCIAL EVENTS Tagged: Anna Copacabanna, New Year's Eve, Passenger Bar

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 3:15pm on December 31, 2014☆⚑

Laurel and Hardy in "The Battle of Century" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Laurel and Hardy silent comedy short The Battle of the Century (1927). In addition to being very funny in its own right, this film i…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:08am on December 31, 2014☆⚑

Laurel and Hardy in "Towed in a Hole" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the release date of the great Laurel and Hardy short Towed in a Hole (1932), directed by George Marshall.  It starts out with the boys selling fish from …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 9:45am on December 31, 2014☆⚑

A Hollywood New Year's Eve by Trav S.d.

Filed under: HOLIDAYS/ FESTIVALS/ MEMORIALS/ PARADES, Hollywood (History), PLUGS, SOCIAL EVENTS Tagged: Dances of Vice, Hollywood, New Year's Eve

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 8:46am on December 31, 2014☆⚑

Douglas Fairbanks in "A Modern Musketeer" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Douglas Fairbanks picture  A Modern Musketeer (1917), written and directed by Allan Dwan, based on "D’Artagnan of Kansas", …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 7:13pm on December 30, 2014☆⚑

That Was the Year That Was (and the One About to Be) by Trav S.d.

2014 was a sad and violent year both at home and abroad, but we’ve already done more than our share of hollering about it from the seat of my rocking chair on my virtual front porch. I…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:00am on December 30, 2014☆⚑

Eddie Cantor in "Roman Scandals" by Trav S.d.

Today is the anniversary of the release date of the Eddie Cantor comedy Roman Scandals (1933), devised for him by George S. Kaufman and Robert E. Sherwood.  The film is a very fu…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:05am on December 29, 2014☆⚑