That short is 1916's The Rink, to be exact:
My trip to Kansas hasn't always been swell (the traffic from Tupelo, Mississippi to Kansas was incredibly hectic) but the time I've spent at my sister's place has had no issues. No kidding, right now I am technically “babysitting” a 6-year-old boy. However, as he's been on a Kindle the entire time... that's why I can write this review currently. I haven't had the time mostly to even thank the people who liked my reviews the past few days by returning the favor—I know everyone can understand why. This short does have a brief appearance of a cat; appropriate, as there are TWO cats where I'm at now.
Tomorrow I might have the time to check out something feature-length. However, no complaints w/ checking out a Chaplin short new to me that not only was less than 25 minutes, there was no intertitles to speak of. The Tramp causes havoc as a waiter at a restaurant then continues the same at a skating rink. Various familiar faces seen in Chaplin's other works (like Edna Purviance, James T. Kelley and Lloyd Bacon are here—and you'll never see more phony beards, mustaches and eyebrows in your life. The decision to do so was... a choice but I understand how different humor was back in 1916.
The short is rough around the edges and The Tramp was a blatant heel at times in his demeanor; that noted, it was still a pretty good time due to the gags. No intertitles were needed as the actions (usually exaggerated) spoke for themselves. There was plenty of pratfalls even without the usage of roller skates, but it is quite impressive to see Chaplin's skills on those. It's not the best Tramp short-that instead would be something like A Dog's Life or One A.M.-yet if you have seen his most famous work and are hungering for more...
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