THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD OF CHARLEY BOWERS

What for some audiences may be a delightful introduction, and others a fresh re-discovery, THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD OF CHARLEY BOWERS offers a rare portal into the imagination of one of the great innovators and creators of early cinema. Featuring new 2K transfers and new discoveries never been seen before, we invite you to experience the genius of cartoonist, animator, director, and comedian Charley Bowers.

Beginning as an animator in 1915, Bowers soon turned to mixing live-action with puppet animation, producing a score of mini-masterpieces, often featuring himself (billed in France as Bricolo). Forgotten for decades, a few of these films were miraculously rediscovered in the late 1960s by archivist Raymond Borde of the Toulouse Cinémathèque in France.

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Over the past ten years, thanks to additional materials from the Library of Congress, Národní filmový archiv, EYE Film Institute, Cinémathèque française, MoMA, and many other archives and collectors throughout the world, the legacy of Charley Bowers has been brought back to life using the most recent restoration technologies. Lobster Films scanned the best available sources with their original intertitles, and performed an extensive digital restoration of each short.

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Featuring recent additions to the previous 2015 release, THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD OF CHARLEY BOWERS includes new scores from Donald Sosin and Neil Brand. This is a gift for comedy lovers and animation enthusiasts of all ages!

 
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Contents

Format: Blu-ray (Region All)

THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD OF CHARLEY BOWERS
(FRANCE, 1917-1940)

Director: Charley Bowers
Cast: Charley Bowers
Including: THE EXTRA QUICK LUNCH (1917, 6 mins); A.W.O.L. (1918, 5 mins); EGGED ON (1926, 23 mins); HE DONE HIS BEST (1926, 23 mins); FATAL FOOTSTEPS (1926, 23 mins); NOW YOU TELL ONE (1926, 21 mins); A WILD ROOMER (1926, 25 mins); MANY A SLIP (1927, 22 mins); NOTHING DOING (1927, 22 mins); THERE IT IS (1928, 22 mins); SAY AH-H! (1928, 14 mins); WHOOZIT (1928, 11 mins); IT'S A BIRD (1930, 15 mins); BELIEVE IT OR DON'T (1935, 8 mins); A SLEEPLESS NIGHT (1940, 11 mins); WILD OYSTERS (1940, 10 mins); and OIL CAN AND DOES (1940, 15 mins)

  • 274 minutes
  • 35mm
  • B&W
  • Silent

BONUS MATERIAL

LOOKING FOR CHARLEY BOWERS

Director: Christophe Coutens

  • 15 minutes
  • Video
  • Color

Image Gallery  

Slideshow presentation featuring rare production stills and behind-the-scenes photographs.


Total Running Time: 04:34:00 (2 Discs)

Language: French with English intertitles

Musical Score: Donald Sosin and Neil Brand on select titles

Booklet Text: Serge Bromberg, Sean Axmaker (22 pages, in English)

Published By: Flicker Alley

Institutional Price: $300 (plus shipping).

To order call: 212.280.8654 or click here for information on ordering by fax, e-mail or post.