Roscoe Arbuckle

Born: 1887-03-22

Roscoe Arbuckle (March 24, 1887 - June 29, 1933), widely known to audiences as “Fatty” Arbuckle, was an American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. He started at the Selig Polyscope Company and eventually moved to Keystone Studios, where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd as well as with his nephew, Al St. John. He also mentored Charlie Chaplin, Monty Banks and Bob Hope, and brought vaudeville star Buster Keaton into the movie business. Arbuckle was one of the most popular silent stars of the 1910s and one of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood at the time. In one of the earliest Hollywood scandals, Arbuckle was the defendant in three widely publicized trials between November 1921 and April 1922 for the rape and manslaughter of actress Virginia Rappe. Rappe had fallen ill at a party hosted by Arbuckle at San Francisco's St. Francis Hotel in September 1921, and died four days later. A friend of Rappe accused Arbuckle of raping and accidentally killing her. The first two trials resulted in hung juries, but the third acquitted Arbuckle. The third jury took the unusual step of giving Arbuckle a written statement of apology for his treatment by the justice system. Despite Arbuckle's acquittal, the scandal largely halted his career and has mostly overshadowed his legacy as a pioneering comedian.


Placeholder

Disclosure

as (archive footage)
Released: 2020-06-19

An investigation of how Hollywood's fabled stories have deeply influenced how Americans feel...

Movie page

The Rounders

as Mr. Fuller
Released: 1914-09-07

Two drunks fight with their wives and then go out and get even drunker.

Movie page

Go West

as Woman in Department Store (uncredited)
Released: 1925-11-01

With little luck at keeping a job in the city a New Yorker tries work in the country and...

Movie page

Leap Year

as Stanley Piper
Released: 1924-01-11

A young man, heir to his misogynistic and millionaire uncle, and in love with a nurse, gets in...

Movie page

The Rough House

as Mr. Rough
Released: 1917-06-25

Living under the same roof with his newly-wed wife and his mother-in-law, a careless Mr Rough...

Movie page

The Butcher Boy

as Fatty / Saccharine
Released: 1917-04-23

Customers and clerks frolic in a general store. Roscoe walks out of the freezer wearing a fur...

Movie page

A Film Johnnie

as Self (uncredited)
Released: 1914-03-02

The Tramp, a film Johnnie (someone who loiters near theaters or studios to meet stars or get a...

Movie page

His New Profession

as Bartender Smoking Cigar
Released: 1914-08-31

Charlie takes care of a man in a wheelchair.

Movie page

Tango Tangle

as Clarinetist
Released: 1914-03-09

In a dance hall, two members of the orchestra and a tipsy dancer fight over the hat check girl.

Movie page

The Masquerader

as Film actor
Released: 1914-08-27

Charlie plays an actor who bungles several scenes and is kicked out. He returns convincingly...

Movie page

The Cook

as The Chef
Released: 1918-09-15

In an attempt at greater efficiency, the chef and waiter of a fancy oceanside restaurant wreak...

Movie page

The Hayseed

as Mailman
Released: 1919-10-26

Buster manages the store while Roscoe delivers the mail, taking time out for hide-and-seek with...

Movie page

The Garage

as Mechanic / Fireman
Released: 1920-01-11

Roscoe and Buster operate a combination garage and fire station. In the first half they destroy...

Movie page

His Wedding Night

as Gas station employee
Released: 1917-08-20

Al and Roscoe, employees at a gas station, are rivals for Alice. When Buster delivers a wedding...

Movie page

The Bell Boy

as Bellboy, barber
Released: 1918-03-18

At the Elk's Head Hotel bellhops torment the lobby, each other and guests. The elevator is...

Movie page

When Comedy Was King

as edited from 'Fatty & Mabel Adrift' (archive footage)
Released: 1960-03-29

A compilation featuring comedic stars of the silent era including Fatty Arbuckle, Charles...

Movie page

Hollywood

as Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle
Released: 1923-08-19

Angela comes to Hollywood with only two things: Her dream to become a movie star, and Grandpa....

Movie page

The Knockout

as Pug (uncredited)
Released: 1914-06-11

To show his girl how brave he is, Pug challenges the champion to a fight. Charlie referees,...

Movie page

Good Night, Nurse!

as Fatty
Released: 1918-06-30

Roscoe's wife, tired of his endless drunkenness, reads of an operation that cures alcoholism and...

Movie page

Character Studies

as Himself (uncredited)
Released: 1927-11-20

Carter DeHaven announces that he will perform a series of "impressions." For each we see him...

Movie page

Coney Island

as Fatty
Released: 1917-10-29

Arbuckle escapes the watch of his domineering wife and heads for Coney Island. Keaton arrives...

Movie page

Back Stage

as Stagehand
Released: 1919-09-07

Roscoe and Buster give a bullying Strongman the what-for, but after the performance troupe quits...

Movie page

The Gangsters

as Cop
Released: 1913-05-29

An amusing burlesque of gang fighters. The police go after them, one by one, and each guardian...

Movie page

Out West

as Train Rider, Bartender
Released: 1918-01-20

The story involves Arbuckle coming to the western town of Mad Dog Gulch after being thrown off a...

Movie page

Love

as Fatty
Released: 1919-03-01

"Fatty", a poor good hearted farm boy is deeply in love with Winifred, a farmer's daughter. A...

Movie page

Gasoline Gus

as Gasoline Gus
Released: 1921-08-20

Based on the comic strip character and his auto obsessed life.

Movie page

Screen Snapshots (Series 1, No. 20)

as Himself
Released: 1921-02-22

Intimate views of the movie stars of the Silent Era, at work and play; featuring Sessue...

Movie page

Days of Thrills and Laughter

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1961-03-21

An appreciative, uncritical look at silent film comedies and thrillers from early in the century...

Movie page

Peeping Pete

as Pete's Wife
Released: 1913-06-22

This early Keystone has Pete spying on his neighbor's wife through one of those little knotholes...

Movie page

Fatty's Tintype Tangle

as Fatty
Released: 1915-07-26

Hubby and wifey are in love, but he's henpecked by her mother. A nip of whiskey gives him Dutch...

Movie page

Close Relations

as Wilbur Wart
Released: 1933-09-30

Roscoe believes he is in line to receive a large inheritance, but the reality is considerably...

Movie page

A Flirt's Mistake

as Husband (uncredited)
Released: 1914-01-12

When Fatty Arbuckle accidentally hits on the rajah, he declares, "Death to all flirts!" and...

Movie page

Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2007-05-23

Before the G, PG and R ratings system there was the Production Code, and before that there was,...

Movie page

The Riot

as Cohen - Jewish Neighborhood Leader
Released: 1913-08-07

When a girl delivering expensive garments loses them to some Irish shanty town kids, her boss, a...

Movie page

Brewster's Millions

as Monte Brewster
Released: 1921-01-28

Monte Brewster learns that he has inherited $10 million from his late grandfather, but then...

Movie page

That Little Band Of Gold

as Fatty - the Husband
Released: 1915-03-14

A happy young couple become engaged, and soon afterwards they are married. But after their...

Movie page

Moonshine

as Revenue Agent
Released: 1918-05-12

A feud between the Owens and the Gillettes ends when the last remaining Gillette is killed, but...

Movie page

His Favorite Pastime

as Shabby Drunk
Released: 1914-03-16

A very plastered fella follows a pretty woman home, and proceeds to make a nuisance of himself.

Movie page

Mabel, Fatty and the Law

as Fatty
Released: 1915-01-18

When Mabel catches her husband flirting with their maid, it leads to a sharp dispute. As part of...

Movie page

Oh, Doctor!

as Dr. Fatty Holepoke
Released: 1917-09-30

Roscoe is a doctor who falls in love with a pretty woman whose boyfriend, in turn, falls in love...

Movie page

The Casting Couch

as (archive footage)
Released: 1995-01-01

An unprecedented anthology of never-before-told true stories by and about some of Hollywood's...

Movie page

The Fatal Taxicab

as Mabel's Sweetheart
Released: 1913-09-18

The Fatal Taxicab is a 1913 movie starring Mabel Normand and Ford Sterling.

Movie page

Fatty and Mabel at the San Diego Exposition

as Fatty
Released: 1915-01-23

Fatty and Mabel go to the San Diego Exposition.

Movie page

A Country Hero

as Village Blacksmith
Released: 1917-12-10

Fatty plays a village blacksmith in “Jazzville,” an imaginary rural village. There is a rivalry...

Movie page

Traveling Salesman

as Bob Blake
Released: 1921-06-05

A practical joke makes a man get off before his intended stop, leading to all sorts of trouble.

Movie page

Tomalio

as Wilbur
Released: 1933-11-30

Roscoe runs afoul of a demented Mexican general.

Movie page

Buster Keaton The Shorts Collection 1917-1923

as uncredited
Released: 2016-07-17

Includes all 32 of Keaton's extant silent shorts (thirteen of which were produced under the...

Movie page

Some Nerve

as The Jealous Man
Released: 1913-12-25

Some Nerve is a 1913 movie starring Ford Sterling and Dot Farley.

Movie page

Fickle Fatty's Fall

as Fatty
Released: 1915-11-14

Fickle Fatty's Fall is a 1914 Comedy short.

Movie page

Wished on Mabel

as Fatty
Released: 1915-04-19

Mabel, in the park with her mother, sees her boyfriend and asks him to join them.

Movie page

Buzzin' Around

as Cornelius
Released: 1933-02-04

Fatty invents a liquid with flubber-like properties which makes objects resilient and...

Movie page

When Love Took Wings

as Reckless Fatty
Released: 1915-04-01

Three men in love with the same woman contend with each other and with her father, until one of...

Movie page

Crazy Days

as Various (archive footage) (uncredited)
Released: 1962-07-12

Narrator Hughie Green tells "jokes" over clips of old silent films. Including greats such as...

Movie page

Fatty's New Role

as Fatty
Released: 1915-02-01

Fatty gets kicked out of a bar, and then the place gets a bomb threat.

Movie page

Love and Rubbish

as Fat Boy
Released: 1913-07-14

Love and Rubbish is a 1913 movie starring Ford Sterling and Charles Avery.

Movie page

Mabel's Dramatic Career

as Man in Audience
Released: 1913-09-08

A young man falls in love with his mother's kitchen maid, Mabel. But his mother objects...

Movie page

Happy Times and Jolly Moments

as (archive footage)
Released: 1943-01-01

This short film takes a nostalgic look at the Mack Sennett comedies of the silent cinema era.

Movie page

Leading Lizzie Astray

as Fatty
Released: 1914-11-30

A city slicker tries to woo a country girl while her boyfriend fixes his tire.

Movie page

My Stars

as Mailman (uncredited)
Released: 1926-01-17

Johnny tries hard to impress his girl, but she seems to be much more interested in movie stars.

Movie page

Chaplin Today: 'The Gold Rush'

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2003-07-01

African filmmaker Idrissa Ouedraogo (YAABA) discusses the influence that Charlie Chaplin has...

Movie page

Fatty's Magic Pants

as Fatty
Released: 1914-12-13

'Fatty' is looking forward to attending a formal occasion. But in order to go, he has to be...

Movie page

His Wife's Mistakes

as The Janitor
Released: 1916-04-02

Roscoe begins work on his new job as janitor of the Shortacre Building in New York. While...

Movie page

Mabel and Fatty's Wash Day

as Fatty
Released: 1915-01-14

A henpecked husband's innocent friendship with a married woman leads to chaos.

Movie page

Crazy to Marry

as Dr. Hobart Hupp
Released: 1921-08-28

A doctor who believes he can cure criminals takes on a big challenge.

Movie page

Camping Out

as uncredited
Released: 1919-01-05

Camping Out is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. Fatty...

Movie page

Hogan's Romance Upset

as Fight Spectator
Released: 1915-02-13

Charles Murray out romancing in the park.

Movie page

The Late Lamented

as Cameo Appearance (unconfirmed)
Released: 1917-09-23

The Late Lamented is a 1917 Comedy short.

Movie page

Mabel and Fatty’s Married Life

as Fatty
Released: 1915-02-10

When a woman's husband leaves town, she begins to see odd things happening in her house. Afraid...

Movie page

Fatty Joins the Force

as Fatty
Released: 1913-11-23

Fatty rescues the daughter of the police commisioner and is given a job as an officer as a...

Movie page

A Noise from the Deep

as Bob
Released: 1913-07-17

Mabel and Roscoe love each other, but her father likes another boy. A rather sissified young...

Movie page

A Village Scandal

as Eddie - the Country Boy
Released: 1915-12-12

Hitchcock comes to a small town, where the chickens and pigs run about the streets as numerous...

Movie page

Safe in Jail

as Neighbor Woman
Released: 1913-07-07

Safe in jail is a 1913 movie starring Ford Sterling and Edgar Kennedy.

Movie page

The Waiters' Picnic

as Oscar - the Waiter
Released: 1913-06-16

Louis, the chef and Oscar, the head waiter, are in love with Mabel the pretty cashier. The...

Movie page

Mabel's New Hero

as Fatty
Released: 1913-08-27

Fatty rescues Mabel twice: first, from the unwelcome attentions of a masher, then from a runaway...

Movie page

The Little Teacher

as Fat Unruly Student
Released: 1915-06-20

The new school teacher fresh from the city struggles with her unruly bumpkin students, while she...

Movie page

Fatty and Mabel Adrift

as Fatty
Released: 1916-01-09

Villains launch Fatty and Mabel's beachfront house into the ocean.

Movie page

The Life of the Party

as Algernon Leary (as Roscoe Arbuckle)
Released: 1920-11-21

An attorney is thrust into wild adventures by an attractive young woman.

Movie page

Fatty’s Plucky Pup

as Fatty
Released: 1915-06-27

Four bad men have kidnapped Fatty's girlfriend and plan to kill her. Fatty's dog knows where she...

Movie page

The Waiters' Ball

as The Cook
Released: 1916-06-25

Fatty and Al are competing to take the same girl to the Waiters' Ball, but the formal dress...

Movie page

The Sanitarium

as Charley Wise
Released: 1910-10-10

A young man transforms his uncle's palatial residence into a sanitarium only to end up paying...

Movie page

Fatty’s Faithful Fido

as Fatty
Released: 1915-03-19

Fatty and Al are Minta's suitors. After Fatty sics his dog on him, Al marks Fatty for roughing...

Movie page

Looking for Mabel Normand

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2015-07-12

A documentary on the life and career of silent film star Mabel Normand.

Movie page

A Glimpse of the San Diego Exposition

as Himself
Released: 1915-02-18

In 1915-16, San Diego's Balboa Park was the scene of an exposition to mark completion of the...

Movie page

Hey, Pop!

as Fatty
Released: 1932-11-12

Roscoe Arbuckle loses his job to protect a young boy from the orphanage.

Movie page

Ben's Kid

as Fatty Carter
Released: 1909-07-01

Buck Minor was the most detested man in Wolf Hollow, partly because he was quarrelsome and...

Movie page

A Bandit

as Bully
Released: 1913-06-22

Willy is a rather effeminate young man, and is abused by the town bully. He suspects that the...

Movie page

He Did and He Didn’t

as The Doctor
Released: 1916-01-29

A doctor, very much in love with his beautiful wife, comes to suspect that her visiting...

Movie page

A Reckless Romeo

as The Husband
Released: 1917-05-21

Roscoe flirts with a girl in the park. Later he takes his wife and mother-in-law to the movies...

Movie page

Alas! Poor Yorick!

as Player in Female Costume
Released: 1913-04-21

A mentally deranged sanatorium patient imagines that he is the world's greatest actor.

Movie page

Mabel’s Wilful Way

as Fatty
Released: 1915-05-01

Mabel sneaks away from her parents for some mischievous fun at the fairgrounds with a pair of...

Movie page

So Funny It Hurt: Buster Keaton & MGM

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2004-12-07

A Turner Classic Movies (TCM) documentary about Keaton's discontented relationship with MGM and...

Movie page

Fatty at San Diego

as Fatty
Released: 1913-11-03

Fatty induces wife to let him take a day off to go to the celebration at San Diego. He has a...

Movie page

He Would a Hunting Go

as Count Chicori
Released: 1913-12-29

Count Chicori is perused by a bear whilst visiting at a hunting lodge.

Movie page

Lover's Luck

as Fatty
Released: 1914-09-15

A Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle Keystone comedy.

Movie page

In the Clutches of the Gang

as Cop
Released: 1914-01-17

In the Clutches of the Gang is a 1914 movie starring Ford Sterling and George Nichols.

Movie page

Fatty and Mabel’s Simple Life

as Roscoe
Released: 1915-01-17

Fatty is a farm hand at Mabel's father's place. He and Mabel love each other, but dad wants to...

Movie page

Fatty’s Chance Acquaintance

as Fatty
Released: 1915-03-07

Fatty and his domineering wife visit the park, where they encounter a pair of pickpockets.

Movie page

The Dollar-a-Year Man

as Franklin Pinney
Released: 1921-04-02

Hijinks surrounding the attendance of a Prince at a Yacht Club dinner.

Movie page

How've You Bean?

as uncredited
Released: 1933-06-24

Roscoe gets into a lot of wacky troubles, some involving a misplaced box of Mexican Jumping Beans.

Movie page

The Sheriff

as Cook
Released: 1918-11-24

Roscoe Arbuckle plays a Douglas Fairbanks fan who becomes a rotund version of his hero. As "The...

Movie page

For the Love of Mabel

as Suitor
Released: 1913-06-30

A presumably lost film starring Mabel Normand and Roscoe Arbuckle.

Movie page

The Fast Freight

as Ras Berry
Released: 1922-06-18

Unreleased in America, this was one of Arbuckle's last starring roles in a feature film.

Movie page

Fatty and Minnie He-Haw

as Fatty
Released: 1914-12-20

Fatty steals a ride on a train, discovered, and put off in the middle of nowhere. He stumbles...

Movie page

In the Dough

as Slim
Released: 1933-11-15

A cafeteria owner has problems with gangsters and gets more trouble by hiring 'Fatty' Arbuckle...

Movie page

Murphy's I.O.U.

as (uncredited) (unconfirmed)
Released: 1913-04-17

Murphy, the cop, gives his I. O. U. to the money-lender. Pressed for payment, he gives up his...

Movie page

The Gypsy Queen

as Fatty
Released: 1913-09-11

The Gypsy Queen is a 1913 movie starring Mabel Normand and Roscoe Arbuckle.

Movie page

The Round-Up

as Slim Hoover
Released: 1920-10-10

A lovesick sheriff protects his town, embroiled in a feud between a crafty bandit leader and the...

Movie page

Bright Lights

as Fatty
Released: 1916-02-20

The manager of a small town hotel installs a cabaret in an attempt to achieve the standard set...

Movie page

Fatty’s Reckless Fling

as Fatty
Released: 1915-03-04

Left alone by his wife, Fatty joins a poker game across the hall from his apartment and is left...

Movie page

The Speed Kings

as Masher
Released: 1913-10-30

Race-car drivers pursue Mabel Normand, whose father has a clear favorite.

Movie page

Buster Keaton: From Silents to Shorts

as (archive footage)
Released: 2006-03-07

A documentary short included as an extra with "The Buster Keaton Collection".

Movie page

Twixt Love and Fire

as The Iceman
Released: 1914-02-23

Twixt Love and Fire is a 1914 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Peggy Pearce.

Movie page

Those Country Kids

as Fatty
Released: 1914-08-19

Those Country Kids is a 1914 short comedy film starring Fatty Arbuckle and Mabel Normand, and...

Movie page

Mabel and Fatty Viewing the World's Fair at San Francisco

as Himself
Released: 1915-04-22

Frequent comedy co-stars Fatty Arbuckle and Mabel Normand take viewers on a tour of the 1915...

Movie page

A Desert Hero

as The Sheriff, the Desert Hero
Released: 1919-06-15

A Desert Hero is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. The...

Movie page

The Chaplin Puzzle

as (archive footage)
Released: 1992-02-28

This rare two part documentary focuses on Charlie Chaplin's development at Keystone and Essanay....

Movie page

Miss Fatty's Seaside Lovers

as Finnegan's Daughter
Released: 1915-05-14

When a rich 'mothball magnate' checks into a hotel with his family, the mashers come out of the...

Movie page

Arbuckle & Keaton, Volume Two

as Various
Released: 2001-09-05

A collection of five silent comedy shorts co-starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Buster Keaton,...

Movie page

The Other Man

as Fatty the Tramp (dual role)
Released: 1916-04-16

Roscoe writes of his love and announces that he will call on Irene with the ring and ask her...

Movie page

Zip, the Dodger

as Zip
Released: 1914-10-17

Zip, the Dodger

Movie page

The Water Dog

as Fatty
Released: 1914-02-11

The Water Dog is a 1914 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle.

Movie page

The Woman Haters

as 1st Old Tar
Released: 1913-12-01

The Woman Haters is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Nick Cogley.

Movie page

A Ride for a Bride

as Fatty
Released: 1913-12-08

A Ride for a Bride is a 1913 movie starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Virginia Kirtley.

Movie page

Arbuckle & Keaton, Volume One

as Various
Released: 2001-09-05

A collection of five silent comedy shorts co-starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Buster Keaton,...

Movie page

Fatty and the Broadway Stars

as Fatty - Studio Janitor
Released: 1915-12-15

Fatty and the Broadway Stars is a 1915 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty...

Movie page

Mrs. Jones' Birthday

as uncredited
Released: 1909-08-30

If all husbands have had similar experiences, it is too bad to harrow them up with the telling...

Movie page

A Creampuff Romance

as uncredited
Released: 1916-07-05

A Creampuff Romance is a 1916 Comedy short.

Movie page