The Scarecrow (1920 film)
The Scarecrow is a 1920 American two-reel silent comedy film starring Buster Keaton. It was written and directed by Keaton and Edward F. Cline. The runtime is 19 minutes. One of the more memorable scenes of the film is the opening, where Buster and Joe Roberts share a small one room house that is filled with many space- and labor-saving Rube Goldberg-type devices. Later in the film, Keaton tries desperately and comically to outrun and escape Luke the Dog.[2]
The Scarecrow | |
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Directed by | Edward F. Cline Buster Keaton |
Produced by | Joseph M. Schenck |
Written by | Edward F. Cline Buster Keaton |
Starring | Buster Keaton Sybil Seely Joe Keaton Joe Roberts |
Cinematography | Elgin Lesley |
Edited by | Buster Keaton |
Distributed by | Metro Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 21 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
![](../I/m/Buster_Keaton_The_Scarecrow_1920.png)
Plot
Buster plays a farmhand who competes with Joe Roberts to win the love of the farmer's daughter (Sybil Seely). Running from a dog (played by Luke, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle's real-life pet) that he believes is rabid, Buster races around brick walls, jumps through windows, and falls into a hay thresher, which rips off most of his clothes. He is forced to borrow the clothes of a scarecrow in a nearby field. Buster then trips into a kneeling position while tying his shoes, and Sybil believes he is proposing marriage to her. Next the couple speeds off on a motorcycle with Joe and the farmer (played by Buster's father, Joe) in hot pursuit. Scooping up a minister during the chase, they are married on the speeding motorcycle and splash into a stream at the climax of the ceremony and the film.
Cast
- Buster Keaton as Farmhand (as 'Buster' Keaton)
- Edward F. Cline as Hit-and-Run Truck Driver (uncredited)
- Luke the Dog as The "Mad" Dog (uncredited)
- Joe Keaton as Farmer (uncredited)
- Joe Roberts as Farmhand (uncredited)
- Sybil Seely as Farmer's Daughter (uncredited)
- Al St. John as Man with Motorbike (uncredited)
- Mary Astor as (uncredited)
References
- "TBK 5: The Scarecrow + Gabriella Oldham." Talking Buster Keaton, 30 October 2017.
- Fristoe, Roger. "The Scarecrow." Turner Classic Movies. 7 November 2017.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Scarecrow (1920 film). |
- The short film The Scarecrow (1920 film) is available for free download at the Internet Archive
- The Scarecrow on IMDb
- The Scarecrow on YouTube
- The Scarecrow at AllMovie
- The Scarecrow at the International Buster Keaton Society