In this Book
- Hokum!: The Early Sound Slapstick Short and Depression-Era Mass Culture
- Book
- 2017
- Published by: University of California Press
-
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
summary
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Hokum! is the first book to take a comprehensive view of short-subject slapstick comedy in the early sound era. Challenging the received wisdom that sound destroyed the slapstick tradition, author Rob King explores the slapstick short’s Depression-era development against a backdrop of changes in film industry practice, comedic tastes, and moviegoing culture. Each chapter is grounded in case studies of comedians and comic teams, including the Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy, and Robert Benchley. The book also examines how the past legacy of silent-era slapstick was subsequently reimagined as part of a nostalgic mythology of Hollywood’s youth.
Hokum! is the first book to take a comprehensive view of short-subject slapstick comedy in the early sound era. Challenging the received wisdom that sound destroyed the slapstick tradition, author Rob King explores the slapstick short’s Depression-era development against a backdrop of changes in film industry practice, comedic tastes, and moviegoing culture. Each chapter is grounded in case studies of comedians and comic teams, including the Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy, and Robert Benchley. The book also examines how the past legacy of silent-era slapstick was subsequently reimagined as part of a nostalgic mythology of Hollywood’s youth.
Table of Contents


- Half Title
- pp. i-ii
- Title Page
- p. iii
- Dedication
- pp. v-vi
- Table of Contents
- pp. vii-viii
- Acknowledgments
- pp. xi-xiii
- Introduction
- pp. xiv-17
- PART I. CONTEXTS
- pp. 18-19
- PART II. CASE HISTORIES
- pp. 92-94
- Coda: When Comedy Was King
- pp. 191-200
- List of Abbreviations
- p. 201
Additional Information
ISBN
9780520963160
Related ISBN(s)
9780520288119
MARC Record
OCLC
1139836360
Pages
272
Launched on MUSE
2020-02-11
Language
English
Open Access
Yes
Creative Commons
CC-BY-NC-ND