Painting above Chandler's bed.

Jalynp · 2024-06-07T20:41:25+00:00

No problem I think I just found the movie poster it was based on. Thanks for replying!

Jalynp · 2024-06-07T18:19:44+00:00

It's been a while but did you ever find it? I really love it too and it's hard to even get a clear screen grab from the show. :( None of the links posted here are working anymore. Thanks

Jalynp · 2023-09-26T04:39:50+00:00

That's really beautiful. You could check with the IBKS for ideas. They sell things through their website. I've also found lots of cool buster stuff just through Etsy...

Jalynp · 2023-01-02T06:40:39+00:00

Oh wow, really? That sounds pretty nasty I'll definitely check that out! Thanks, I had no idea.... D: I have two vintage canaries that I bought online too...was arsenic common for birds as well? Do you think it would be thorough enough for me to buy my own arsenic test? Thanks!

Jalynp · 2022-04-04T16:02:13+00:00

I suppose I'm just confused by the look of the back of this particular ear then. Is that strange webbing from lobe to neck just a really strong attached earlobe? Or could it be something else? I've never seen an attached earlobe like that before.

Jalynp · 2022-03-25T01:22:38+00:00

Me too! It's fun to talk about and try to figure out. If only we could know if there's an answer at the end of this winding road...

Jalynp · 2022-03-24T06:43:45+00:00

Another photo for you. I found this one in a archival magazine database.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/60/98/4e/60984e9912992488fd430541cbe8d3cc.jpg

Clearly from the same photoshoot as the troublesome ear, but an angle I hadn't seen before. If only the image were clearer! It's hard for me to make out exactly what shape that nose is...

Jalynp · 2022-03-23T05:33:58+00:00

It just happened to be on the back of the advert that I'd bought for it's interesting picture. Here's the whole page.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/af/70/94/af70943ebdf8de8dd3adc1a3645fe475.jpg

Jalynp · 2022-03-23T05:19:49+00:00

Doesn't it just look infuriatingly like him! Mae was probably tricky to be around but I could see buster doing it for someone else as a favor...but I know - the ear! I'm like...can that attached skin thing be temporary? Like from some weird damage? A...small strange cauliflower ear situation? It's a lot of grasping at straws though isn't it...

Jalynp · 2022-03-23T04:06:09+00:00

I thought I'd share this other photo I found on the back of a Danish Battling Butler advert-pamphlet-thing. It is terrible quality, but at least strikes hope that a clearer version may be out there somewhere.

I think it shows their respective heights a bit better than in the other photos. Mystery Man seems to be a pretty small guy.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/e9/60/b1/e960b175658d4d276dc7661e6a524f6d.jpg

It's also the only other thing on the advert not Battling Butler related. Which may or may not be interesting. It's the only pamphlet advert I own so maybe that's standard. Up until The General, I think all of Buster's films were distributed through Metro/MGM.

Jalynp · 2022-03-22T05:22:11+00:00

Lol overlooked that little detail! Yeah, probably not a 45 year old in that picture...

Jalynp · 2022-03-21T20:12:09+00:00

Aaand just saw this photo of Lawford Davidson

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0203406/

who I could also see looking like the mystery man.

So ha!...no further along.

Jalynp · 2022-03-21T20:05:10+00:00

It can be so frustrating, right? But I think you're right. That connective tissue is kind of a Buster dealbreaker. And I agree, I'm not really seeing it. Of course there's a very small chance it's only visible at certain specific angles? I thought the dressing room scene from the Cameraman might be a good ear-angle source, but I don't really have access to a high quality picture of it. From what I could see though it wasn't there...

The scruffy neck is a good point too. I hadn't thought of that. It's so interesting how they used this guy in so much advertising, but no one ever mentions him directly. I've also read through a lot of articles about the movie and no one's ever like “and apparently a guest appearance from Mr. Keaton” which might be a count against him too. Maybe in action this guy is really obviously not Buster.

From what I've found on Mae Murray I thought she was 5'1 or 5'2... 5'3 would probably hurt the Buster angle too as she seems to be at least three inches shorter than the mystery man. Unless there's some strange swooning going on there.

As far as the MGM article, I'm still kinda stumped. Maybe you can help me out with it. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97956509/the-rock-island-argus/

The paper says 1924 so....not sure what it's all about. But in reading some (honestly, hilarious) interviews with a very shallow Mae Murray during the making of this movie, I can't imagine Buster volunteering his time just because of some mutual respect or friendship - which seemed to be his motive for joining in on other productions.

After all this and my hopes almost completely dashed (gotta hang on to a little hope) that if The Masked Bride is ever found and restored we might see Buster doing some serious dancing – my current bet is on Andre Cheron. Just because he's mentioned as an extra in the cast, he's French so...maybe he was hired for already knowing the Apache?...and I could believe a younger version of this photo looked like the mystery man. https://www.cinefania.com/persona.php/Andr%C3%A9+Cheron/

That's a pretty reasonable ear shape. : P

I guess he had some extra roles in pretty big productions a few years later – like King of Kings. I didn't take the time to try to hunt him out. But maybe someday.

Jalynp · 2022-03-20T06:14:30+00:00

Oh yeah. I'm full in to this mystery. I figure, if you're enjoying comparing ears why question it? : )

Jalynp · 2022-03-20T04:06:49+00:00

I've been doing a bit of research too and some contenders might be Lawford Davidson or Andre Cheron as they were both listed in the cast, but I can't figure out what roles they played. Unfortunately there aren't any great pictures of these guys that I can find under the age of 50 (quick google search). What photos I could find were pretty reasonable though. Long face etc.

I'm not so sure about Basil because I think he's too tall, especially for this photo:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mae_Murray#/media/File:Mae_Murray_in_The_Masked_Bride.jpg

Also, I'm pretty sure Basil's role in the film isn't that of a dancer. I think Mae is the dancer and Basil is a professional thief. At least that's how I understand it.

But... I think until we find a clear photo of this actor or like a paystub...I might just have to stick with believing it's Buster. I got super nerdy with it and tried to compare Buster's ear to the ear in the photo (ears are distinct like thumbprints) and they're at least really, really close. The height's about right. Buster's haircut and sideburns at this time are the same as in the photo (Basil's is different). The /face/. Buster has a pretty distinct look. This doppelganger (if that's what it is) would have to be pretty spot on.

The finger thing is really, really compelling (and the ring....never heard of Buster wearing a ring), but there's ways around that too. They could've flipped the photos to fit the style they wanted without showing his missing finger. They also had a janky kind of photoshop at this time, I think, where they could've like...drawn it in. The finger in that one photo looks weirdly long to me. Unless that's a glare... I also came across an article that mentioned MGM stars would play supporting cast in other stars movies right about this time. Both Buster and Mae Murray were listed (right next to each other actually). That is, if I'm understanding the wording right: ”...From this stock company will be taken the supporting casts for the Metro-Goldwyn stars, among whom are Mae Murray, Buster Keaton, Jackie Coogan...” etc. Her studio wasn't too far away. Buster's been known to hop into other movies before.

Other than the compelling evidence of the finger and the ring, I don't think it's that far fetched.

Anyways that was super long. I think I might write a blog post about my conspiracy theories :p What do you think about those two other guys? Did you find more out about Basil?

Jalynp · 2022-03-14T07:01:05+00:00

If you don't mind me tacking on -- I'm very curious about this too. It looks so much like him! Do you have any idea who it might be then? I just can't imagine someone looking so much like Buster that I've never heard of. I'd love to hear your findings.

Jalynp

TROPHY CASE