The silent screen's "Great Stone Face," and arguably its most prodigious comedian, Buster Keaton is famous for films such as The General and The Navigator. Dardis traces both the development and decline of this great performer with compassion and accuracy, from his childhood in vaudeville to his glory days as a silent screen star and MGM contract actor, his descent into alcoholism, and his twilight years as a nearly forgotten relic of the era.
Tom Dardis is professor emeritus of English at John Jay College of the City University of New York.