INDIANAPOLIS — Film historian Eric Grayson continues the series of unique and rare vintage film titles. This month’s movies are shorts featuring Biffle and Shooster and will be streamed virtually on Saturday, Jan. 23 at 7 p.m.
From the 1920s through the 1940s, studios produced short films to precede the feature. The best known of these are the Three Stooges and Laurel and Hardy, but dozens of stars made them, including W.C. Fields, Charley Chase, and Harry Langdon. In 2015, film preservationist/historian/writer Mike Schlesinger teamed with friends Will Ryan and Nick Santa Maria to make a series of shorts that celebrated this tradition. Schlesinger gave the characters Biffle and Shooster a back story and a career arc, and made several short films in the classic tradition.
One of the films ran at Garfield Park in 2016 and audiences clamored for more. The Jan. 23 virtual showing includes three, plus a Zoom meeting with witer/director Mike Schlesinger.
Pre-register at the Garfield Park by visiting gpacarts.org and choosing “Vintage Movie Night” and following the links. Admission is $5. For more information, contact Garfield Park Arts at 317-327-7135.