Harold Lloyd and the '50
Continuing in the same vein as my post yesterday, I found an interesting article online about another semi-famous silent film comedian, Harold Lloyd. The New York Times published an article entitled "Harold Lloyd's Adventures on the Lens's Other Side" which reviewed a book published by his granddaughter Suzanne Lloyd.
And the book is not what you would expect the mild-mannered but adventuresome Lloyd to be the author of -- it's called Harold Lloyd's Hollywood Nudes in 3D! and features photographs of starlets -- and some more famous stars like Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, albeit fully clothed -- in the nude.
Apparently, Lloyd has never quite gotten the credit that he deserves for his films of the 1920s -- Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton have usurped him with their artistry, although Lloyd outgrossed both of them. (As a sidenote, I have to say that box-office gross didn't really mean that much back then. It seems like only now has the public become obsessed with how movies did financially. And finally, just because a lot of people see a movie, that doesn't make it good. There are lots of examples nowadays of this phenomenom, say Titanic for example.) According to the article, Suzanne Lloyd feels like film scholars know about Lloyd, but the book will help introduce him to a larger audience. She also says, "My grandfather was a star, someone who had a creative edge and liked to push it. He did stunts that scared the hell out of people, and the nude photography was just one more instance of pushing on the edges of what was being done."
I don't think that I would run out to buy the book, but I have seen a couple Lloyd pictures and they are entertaining. I think the world would probably be a better place if more people knew about silent comedians.
FILE UNDER: News and Notes
And the book is not what you would expect the mild-mannered but adventuresome Lloyd to be the author of -- it's called Harold Lloyd's Hollywood Nudes in 3D! and features photographs of starlets -- and some more famous stars like Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, albeit fully clothed -- in the nude.
Apparently, Lloyd has never quite gotten the credit that he deserves for his films of the 1920s -- Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton have usurped him with their artistry, although Lloyd outgrossed both of them. (As a sidenote, I have to say that box-office gross didn't really mean that much back then. It seems like only now has the public become obsessed with how movies did financially. And finally, just because a lot of people see a movie, that doesn't make it good. There are lots of examples nowadays of this phenomenom, say Titanic for example.) According to the article, Suzanne Lloyd feels like film scholars know about Lloyd, but the book will help introduce him to a larger audience. She also says, "My grandfather was a star, someone who had a creative edge and liked to push it. He did stunts that scared the hell out of people, and the nude photography was just one more instance of pushing on the edges of what was being done."
I don't think that I would run out to buy the book, but I have seen a couple Lloyd pictures and they are entertaining. I think the world would probably be a better place if more people knew about silent comedians.
FILE UNDER: News and Notes
posted by Rebecca at 4:42 PM
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