Hooray for Harold Lloyd and Silent Film

8802-11-2022, 07:24

Harold Clayton Lloyd was born on April 16, 1893, in Benington, England. He was the youngest of four children in a middle-class family. His parents were Thomas and Alice Lloyd. His father was an estate agent and his mother was a housewife. When Harold was two years old, his father moved the family to Hertford to work for another real estate agency. At age 11, Harold began attending The Grove School on Red Cross Road in Letchworth, where he learned about theater and acting. When he was 16 he left school to become an apprentice at the local newspaper, The Letchworth Times.

Table of contents

Silent Film Career Comedic Stunts The decline of Film Career and Depression Legacy

Silent Film Career

Harold Lloyd began his film career with the Biograph Company in New York City in 1910. Biograph Company was founded in 1895 by the American filmmaker, entrepreneur, and businessman Harry Marvin “H. M.” Wessels. Lloyd’s first screen appearance was in an unbilled role in a one-reeler entitled, “Out West.” He later became a member of the Keystone Comedy Company and appeared in many of their films. By 1913, he was a major actor with the company and had been given his production unit. He directed, wrote, produced, and starred in his comedies. In 1913, he directed and starred in his first feature-length film entitled, “The New York Health Spa.” This was the first feature movie ever to be made in Hollywood. In 1914, he appeared in a short film entitled, “The Mending of the Blame,” which became his most famous work as an actor. The film is also recognized as being the first modern comedy and is considered to be the beginning of a feature-length film.

Comedic Stunts

While many of Harold Lloyd’s films are remembered for their humor and stunts, one film, in particular, stands out for its death-defying stunts. Harold convinced his director to allow him to be lowered from a rooftop wearing a top hat and tails. He then had to climb a rope to the roof. He was lowered over a city street, about 90 feet above the ground, and then had to climb back up. He became the first person to ever be lowered in a “free fall” at that height. During his stunt, his foot missed the rope and he fell to the street below. He escaped death when his foot landed on a wooden telephone pole that broke his fall. In another film, Harold was supposed to jump off a cliff into a lake 90 feet below. The lake was dry, and he had to jump into a shallow, waterless, six-foot-deep pit. Harold had broken bones in both legs and was in a full-body cast as a result of this stunt. In one of his most famous stunts, he fell head-first from a tall building when a stack of boxes beneath him collapsed. He had been attached to the stack of boxes by a rope that broke when he fell into them. The film crew was supposed to be there to catch him in case the boxes fell. However, they were on the wrong side of the building and missed seeing him fall.

The decline of Film Career and Depression

Throughout the 1920s, Harold’s popularity decreased. He had fallen in love with a singer named Dorothy Dwan who, in 1929, married another man. This break-up was possibly the cause of the decline in his popularity. With the rise of the talkies in the 1930s, the film industry was experiencing a new kind of depression. While many viewers enjoyed the new sound films, Harold did not. He wrote several letters to film producers, suggesting that he would be willing to make sound films, but only if he was paid a great deal of money. He was unable to get a deal. He had no offers and was unable to pay his debts. He was even arrested and put in jail for owing money to a hotel.

Legacy

The name Harold Lloyd is synonymous with silent film. He is remembered for his high-energy comedies, athletic stunts, and charming British accent. He is considered to be one of the most significant figures in the early years of motion pictures. He was one of the first film actors to become a Hollywood celebrity. His death in 1971 marked the end of an era as the last surviving silent film actor. He is remembered as one of the great comedic film stars and will always be remembered as the King of the Stunt. Perhaps the best way to remember Harold Lloyd is through his own words, “If you don't risk anything, you risk even more.”

Conclusion

Harold Lloyd was a film star who took a serious risk when he made the first feature-length film in Hollywood in 1913. He was a stunt expert who did death-defying stunts in many of his films. Harold was also a businessman who owned many real estate companies. The Great Depression caused his businesses to fail, and he lost all of his money. In his later years, he was unable to find work in the film industry and had to take odd jobs to make money. When he died in 1971, he had been out of the public eye for decades. However, he left behind a legacy as one of the first film actors to become a Hollywood celebrity and the King of the Stunt.