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Chester Conklin

Chester Cooper Conklin(January 11, 1886 – October 11, 1971)[1]was an early American film comedian who started atKeystone Studiosas one ofMack Sennett’sKeystone Cops,often paired withMack Swain.He appeared in a series of films withMabel Normandand worked closely withCharlie Chaplin,both in silent and sound films.

Chester Conklin
Conklin in 1919
Born
Chester Cooper Conklin

(1886-01-11)January 11, 1886
Oskaloosa, Iowa,U.S.
DiedOctober 11, 1971(1971-10-11)(aged 85)
Van Nuys, California,U.S.
Occupations
  • Comedian
  • actor
Years active1912–1966
Spouses
Minnie V. Goodwin
​
​
(m.1913;div.1933)​
Margherita Rouse
​
​
(m.1934; died 1937)​
  • Valda C. Genessee
    (m.1949;? 19??)
Catherine June Ayres Gunther
​
​
(m.1965)​
(died 1974)
Signature

Early life

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Conklin was born in Oskaloosa, Iowa.[1]One of three children, he grew up in a violent household. When he was eight, his mother was found burned to death in the family garden. Although first judged a suicide, his father, a devoutly religious man who hoped his son would be a minister, was eventually charged with murder, but found not guilty at trial.

Conklin won first prize when he gave a recitation at a community festival. A few years later, he ran away from home after vowing to a friend he would never return, a promise he kept. Heading toDes Moineshe found employment as a hotelbellhop,but then moved toOmaha,Nebraska, where his interest in theatre led to a career in comedic acting. InSt. Louis,Missouri, he saw a performance by thevaudevilleteam ofJoe WeberandLew Fields,which prompted Conklin to develop a character based on his boss at the time, a man with a thick accent and a bushywalrusmoustache. With this character, Conklin broke into vaudeville, and spent several years touring with variousstockcompanies, doing vaudeville shows andminstrel shows.[citation needed]He also performed as a clown with the Al G. Barnes Wild Animal Show.[2]

Career

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Conklin in 1919

After seeing severalMack Sennettcomedies while inVenice,California during the 1913 winter break, the 27-year-old Conklin went toKeystone Studios,applied for a job and was hired as aKeystone Copwith a salary of $3 a day. Sennett directed him in his first film, a comedy short titledHubby's Job.[3]

In 1914, Conklin co-starred withMabel Normandin a series of films:Mabel's Strange Predicament,Mabel's New Job,Mabel's Busy DayandMabel at the Wheel.[3]In that same year he appeared inMaking a Living,in whichCharlie Chaplinmade his film debut. He would go on to make more than a dozen films with Chaplin while at Keystone and the two became lifelong friends. Years later, Conklin would perform with Chaplin in two feature-length films:Modern Timesin 1936, and in 1940'sThe Great Dictator.During this time, Chaplin kept Conklin on year-round salary.[4]

While at Keystone, Conklin became most famous when he was teamed up with the robust comicMack Swainto make a series of comedies. With Swain as "Ambrose" and Conklin as the grand mustachioed "Walrus", they performed these roles in several films includingThe Battle of Ambrose and WalrusandLove, Speed and Thrills,both made in 1915. Beyond these "Ambrose & Walrus" comedies, the two appeared together in twenty-six films.

In 1920, when Sennett refused to discuss a contract renewal with Conklin and insisted on referring him to an underling, Conklin quit and went toFox Film Corporation,which had earlier approached him about doing a series of comedy shorts. He also worked at theFamous Players–Lasky Corporationstudio. In between, he had a significant role asZaSu Pitts' father in directorErich von Stroheim's acclaimed 1924MGMproduction,Greed,although the part was cut from the film and the footage is now lost,[3]and in 1928 in theChristie Film Companyversion ofTillie's Punctured RomancewithW.C. Fields,which had nothing to do with the 1914 Chaplin version (in which Conklin had also appeared) aside from the title.Paramount Picturesteamed up Conklin and Fields for a series of comic films between 1927 and 1931.[3][4]

Conklin made the transition totalkiesand, although he would continue to act for another thirty years, age and the shift in moviegoing tastes to more sophisticated comedy saw his roles limited to secondary or smaller parts in shorts, including theThree StoogesshortsFlat Foot Stooges(as a fire chief),Dutiful But Dumb(as a bartender),Three Little Twirps(as a Circus butcher),Phony Express(as a bartender), andMicro-Phonies(as a drunken pianist who answers a song request with "Knowit? Iwroteit! "). Conklin also appeared in films that appealed to nostalgia for the silent era, such asHollywood Cavalcade(1939) andThe Perils of Pauline(1947).[4]InSoundiesmusicals, he appeared with other silent-comedy alumni as The Keystone Kops, as well as on the televisedThis Is Your Lifetribute to Mack Sennett. Conklin was part ofPreston Sturges' unofficial"stock company" of character actorsin the 1940s, appearing in cameo parts in six films written by Sturges.[5]

In 1957, he was a guest challenger on the TV panel showTo Tell The Truth,dressed in his Keystone Kops uniform.

Decline

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Conklin's career hit bottom in the 1950s, and he took work as a department-store Santa Claus to make ends meet.[4]In the 1960s, Conklin was living at the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital when he fell in love with another patient there, June Gunther. The two got married inLas Vegasin 1965, the fourth marriage for both,[6]they set up housekeeping inVan Nuys,California; the groom was seventy-nine and the bride sixty-five.[4]Conklin's final film appearance was in the Western comedyA Big Hand for the Little Lady,released in 1966.

Personal life

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On April 12, 1933, Conklin was divorced from Minnie V. Conklin after a marriage of 18 years and nine months.[7]He married Margherita Rouse on May 5, 1934, in Hollywood.[8]She died on May 14, 1937.[9]On June 17, 1965, Conklin married former actress June Gunther in Las Vegas.[10]

Conklin died in California on October 11, 1971, at the age of 85.[11]

Legacy

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For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Conklin has a star on theHollywood Walk of Fameat 1560 Vine Street.[12]

Selected filmography

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References

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  1. ^ab"Chester Conklin, Silent Film Star".The New York Times.United Press International. October 12, 1971. p. 46.ProQuest119177643.RetrievedOctober 6,2020– viaProQuest.
  2. ^"Mr. Conklin Off-Stage".The New York Times.February 6, 1927. p. X 7.ProQuest104238193.RetrievedOctober 6,2020– viaProQuest.
  3. ^abcdTCMBiography
  4. ^abcdeErickson, HalBiography (Allmovie)[dead link]
  5. ^Conklin appeared inSullivan's Travels,The Palm Beach Story,The Miracle of Morgan's Creek,Hail the Conquering Hero,The Great MomentandThe Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend,Sturges' last American film. Conklin was also inI Married a Witch,which Sturges produced, and had earlier appeared inHotel Haywire,written by Sturges.
  6. ^Time,July 2, 1965
  7. ^"Divorces Chester Conklin".The New York Times.Associated Press. April 13, 1933. p. 15.ProQuest100704530.RetrievedOctober 6,2020– viaProQuest.
  8. ^"Invalid, Abed in Church, Wed to Chester Conklin".The New York Times.Associated Press. May 6, 1934. p. N 5.ProQuest101013971.RetrievedOctober 6,2020– viaProQuest.
  9. ^"Mrs. Chester Conklin".The New York Times.Associated Press. May 16, 1937. p. 44.ProQuest102231396.RetrievedOctober 6,2020– viaProQuest.
  10. ^"Chester Conklin, Comedian Of Silent Films, Wed at 79".The New York Times.Associated Press. June 23, 1965. p. 45.ProQuest116897312.RetrievedOctober 6,2020– viaProQuest.
  11. ^McCaffrey, Donald W.; Jacobs, Christopher P. (1999).Guide To the Silent Years of American Cinema.Greenwood Publishing Group. p.87.ISBN0-313-30345-2.
  12. ^"Chester Conklin".Hollywood Walk of Fame.October 25, 2019. Archived fromthe originalon April 10, 2021.RetrievedOctober 11,2021.
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