This thorough critical study of Chaplin's films traces his acting career chronologically, from his initial appearance in 1914's Making a Living to his final starring role in 1957's A King in New York. Emphasizing Chaplin's technique and the steady evolution of his Tramp character, the author frames the biographical details of Chaplin's life within the context of his acting and filmmaking career, giving special attention to the films Chaplin directed/produced.

From the innocent days of young television came Laurel and Hardy, a comedy team that created slapstick hilarity from life's simplest situations. Seventy some years after their heyday, Arthur Stanley Jefferson and Oliver Norvell ""Babe"" Hardy are still remembered for the comic chaos they created in film shorts. They gave us something to laugh at by reminding us of our own foibles, in a way that was genuine and unpretentious. The lanky Stan Laurel (1890-1965) and portly Ollie Hardy (1892-1957) had but one objective: to create as many laughs as would fit in one short film. And that, they did. The book begins by exploring their comedy, the days of early television, and the work of peers like Charlie Chaplin and the Marx Brothers. A chapter is dedicated to each of ""the boys"" - Laurel from Ulverston, England, and Hardy from the state of Georgia - as a person and performer. Further chapters explore the slapstick and gags of Laurel and Hardy and how the pair survived the transition to sound that left behind many actors of the day. It was only when they began to work for large studios churning out cookie-cutter scripts that their art began to lose its way. The book takes the reader through the nadir of their careers and to a final comeback. The filmography lists works from 1917 to 1951 with information on current availability.