Harold Lloyd

Harold Clayton Lloyd (April 20, 1893–March 8, 1971) was an American actor.

Renewed interest

Lloyd kept copyright control of most of his films, and re-released them infrequently after his retirement. As a consequence, his reputation and public recognition suffered in comparison with Chaplin and Keaton, whose work has generally been more available. Also, Lloyd's film character was so intimately associated with the 1920's era that he lacked the more timeless quality of Chaplin and Keaton, and attempts at revivals failed to resonate with audiences in the 1940s and 1950s. In the early 1960s, Lloyd produced two compilation films, featuring scenes from his old comedies, Harold Lloyd's World of Comedy (1962) and The Funny Side of Life (1963). These films sparked some renewed interest, but more importantly helped restore Lloyd's status among film historians. Throughout his later years he screened his films for audiences at special charity and educational events, to great acclaim.

Related Topics:
1940s - 1950s - 1960s

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Following his death, most of his feature films were marketed by Time-Life Films, but these were poorly presented, with insensitive musical scores. The British Thames Silents series re-released some of the feature films in the early 1990s on video (with new orchestral scores by Carl Davis), and these are frequently shown on the Turner Classic Movies (TCM) network. An acclaimed 1990 documentary shown on PBS also created a renewed interest in Lloyd's work. DVD releases of restored versions of his major films are expected in 2005, along with limited theatrical screenings in New York and other US cities.

Related Topics:
Time-Life - 1990s - Carl Davis - Turner Classic Movies - PBS - DVD - New York

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