Masterpiece Selection Resonating with the Themes of Mutt and Jeff i...

Dir: Bud Fisher

Mutt and Jeff, like the shrewd business men and true patriots that they are, take advantage of the fact that the Kaiser is in need of a good dentist, and, through a ruse, get to Berlin and open an office. First, they prevail upon the Crown Prince to become one of their patients, and their treatment of him is so effective that the greatest long-distance fighter in the German Army persuades his father, the All Highest, to sit in the new dentists' chair. That is what the dentists are waiting for, and shortly after Mutt gets the forceps on the Kaiser's pet molar the audience in any given theatre will be allowed to stand up, and in slow, measured tones chant that ditty: "Good-bye, Kaiser Bill!"

Dir: Bud Fisher

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Sir Sidney perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Mutt and Jeff at the Peace Conference at Paris.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Accident Attorney perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Meeting Theda Bara perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Mutt and Jeff own and operate their own firehouse. Mutt believes where there's smoke, there's fire, which gets them into an early scrape. But they are called to an actual fire of a several storied residential building. A frantic woman asks them to save her baby who is located on the top floor of the burning building. Their first problem is how to get up to the top floor, which Jeff inadvertently figures out how to do. But other distractions plus trying to find the baby through the thick smoke may be obstacles in achieving their mission. But something that the woman doesn't tell them may be the biggest hurdle.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Superintendents perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Bud Fisher

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.