The Fireman is the second film Charlie Chaplin created for Mutual Film in 1916 in film. Released on June 12, it starred Chaplin as the fireman and Edna Purviance as the daughter to Lloyd Bacon.

Plot

A young girl's father (Bacon) arranges with the local fire chief (Campbell) to have his house burn down so he could collect on the insurance money.
However, a real fire breaks out elsewhere in the town. The firemen ignore an inhabitant of the burning building as he tries to alert them to the fire, first by activating the fire alarm, then by phoning the fire station, and then by going to the fire station in person. Eventually, a fireman (Chaplin) alerts the fire chief and the fire company goes to put out the fire.
The father than realizes that his daughter is still in his own burning building, and the same heroic fireman climbs the outside of the building to save her.

Production background

The film shows some early morning street scenes in the surrounding Los Angeles area.
The film makes use of reversing the film several times for comic effect: sliding up the fireman's pole, reversing the horses, hurrying back to station (in reverse) when he forgets the crew etc. The huge water tank in the station also comically has a second function as the coffee machine. A lot of the kicking in the film is clearly unfaked and fairly violent.
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Cast

• Charles Chaplin as Fireman
• Edna Purviance as Girl
• Lloyd Bacon as Her Father
• Eric Campbell (actor) as Foreman of the Brigade
• Leo White as Owner of Burning House
• Albert Austin as Fireman
• John Rand (actor) as Fireman
• James T. Kelley as Fireman
• Frank J. Coleman as Fireman

Sound version

In 1932, Van Beuren Studios of Van Beuren Studios, purchased Chaplin's Mutual comedies for $10,000 each, added music by Gene Rodemich and Winston Sharples and sound effects, and re-released them through RKO Radio Pictures. Chaplin had no legal recourse to stop the RKO release.

See also

List of fiighting films

Category:1916 films
Category:American films
Category:Black-and-white films
Category:1910s comedy films
Category:American comedy films
Category:Films directed by Charlie Chaplin
Category:Fiighting films
Category:American silent short films
Category:Mutual Film films
Category:1910s short films