Albert Austin

Acting

Albert Austin

Born 1882-12-13 · Birmingham, England, UK

Albert Austin (13 December 1881 or 1885 – 17 August 1953) was an actor, film star, director and script writer, noted mainly for his work in Charlie Chaplin films. He was the brother of actor William Austin. He was born in Birmingham, England, and was a music hall performer before coming to the U.S. with Chaplin, both as members of the Fred Karno troupe, in 1910. Noted for his painted handlebar mustache and acerbic manner, he worked for Chaplin's stock company and played supporting roles in many of his films, often as a foil to the star, and working as his assistant director. After the development of sound films, he moved into scriptwriting, directing and acting, chiefly in comedy short subjects. Among other things, he assisted Chaplin in developing the plot of The Adventurer (1917). However, he only received screen credit as a collaborator once, for City Lights. As an actor, he appeared in Chaplin's comedies for the Mutual Film Corporation. Later he had two brief, uncredited roles in one of Chaplin's 'silent' comedies made in the sound era, City Lights (1931). Austin is also seen very briefly (as a cab driver) at the beginning of Chaplin's short film One A.M.. He also appeared in movies starring Jackie Coogan and Mack Sennett. Austin's best known performance may be in Chaplin's short The Pawnshop. Austin enters the shop with an alarm clock, hoping to pawn it. To establish the clock's value, Chaplin dissects it. Austin maintains a deadpan expression as Chaplin progressively destroys his clock, then hands the pieces back to Austin. He had the leading role in Mary Pickford's Suds (1920), where he co-stars as a customer leaving his shirt at her laundry. In that film he appears without his comic mustache. In his final years he worked as a police officer at the Warner Brothers studios, according to a New York Times obituary. Description above from the Wikipedia article Albert Austin licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Acting credits

The Kid poster
8.1

A tramp cares for a boy after he's abandoned as a newborn by his mother. Later the mother has a change of heart and aches to be reunited with her son.

The Kid

1921

City Lights poster
8.3

A tramp falls in love with a beautiful blind flower girl. His on-and-off friendship with a wealthy man allows him to be the girl's benefactor and suitor.

City Lights

1931

The Gold Rush poster
8.0

A gold prospector in Alaska struggles to survive the elements and win the heart of a dance hall girl.

The Gold Rush

1925

The Circus poster
7.9

Charlie, a wandering tramp, becomes a circus handyman - soon the star of the show - and falls in love with the circus owner's stepdaughter.

The Circus

1928

A Dog's Life poster
7.3

The Tramp and his dog companion struggle to survive in the inner city.

A Dog's Life

1918

Pay Day poster
7.0

A bricklayer and his wife clash over his end-of-the-week partying.

Pay Day

1922

Easy Street poster
7.1

A derelict, huddled under the steps of a missionary church, feels enlightened by the sermon of a passionate preacher and infatuated by the beauty of the congregation's pianist, in such a way that he tries to improve his life of poverty by becoming a policeman. His first assignment will be to patrol along Easy Street, the turf of a vicious bully and his criminal gang.

Easy Street

1917

The Professor poster
5.9

Professor Bosco, a poor flea trainer, rents a bed in a flophouse. Before going to bed, he rallies his troops and once he has made sure his beloved fleas are settled for the night, the professor prepares to sleep the sleep of the just man. Unfortunately he accidentally knocks the box off his bed and the fleas have the time of their lives pestering Bosco's neighbors. To get the escapees back in their box again, the trainer resorts to... his whip! All is back to normal one more time. But not for long, as a stray dog enters the flophouse and very unwisely opens the box, thus creating new havoc.

The Professor

1919

The Pawnshop poster
6.7

A pawnbroker's assistant deals with his grumpy boss, his annoying co-worker and some eccentric customers as he flirts with the pawnbroker's daughter, until a perfidious crook with bad intentions arrives at the pawnshop.

The Pawnshop

1916

The Adventurer poster
6.9

The daring convict no. 23, known as The Eel, escapes from prison and, after mocking his inept persecutors, saves the lives of three people in peril: a beautiful girl, her mother and an annoying suitor, only to get exhausted and almost drowned. Once he regains his strength at Judge Brown's home, he participates on an upper-class social party where he competes with the suitor for the favors of the charming Miss Brown. But prison guards are still after him…

The Adventurer

1917

The Bond poster
5.1

A propaganda film created by Charlie Chaplin at his own expense for the Liberty Load Committee to help sell U.S. Liberty Bonds during World War I. The story is a series of sketches humorously illustrating various bonds like the bond of friendship and of marriage and, most important, the Liberty Bond, to K.O. the Kaiser which Charlie does literally.

The Bond

1918

Triple Trouble poster
5.0

As Colonel Nutt is experimenting with explosives, a new janitor is joining his household. The inept janitor proceeds to make life difficult for the rest of staff.

Triple Trouble

1918

The Immigrant poster
7.3

A European immigrant endures a challenging voyage only to get into trouble as soon as he arrives in New York.

The Immigrant

1917

Shoulder Arms poster
6.8

An American doughboy, stationed in France during the Great War, goes on a daring mission behind enemy lines and becomes a hero.

Shoulder Arms

1918

The Rink poster
6.6

After amusements working in a restaurant, a waiter uses his lunch break to go roller skating.

The Rink

1916

Chaplin's Goliath poster
6.6

A film about the tall actor who was most famous for playing the quintessential villain for Charlie Chaplin's Tramp character.

Chaplin's Goliath

1996

The Count poster
6.3

A tailor's apprentice burns Count Broko's clothes while ironing them and the tailor fires him. Later, the tailor discovers a note explaining that the count cannot attend a dance party, so he dresses as such to take his place; but the apprentice has also gone to the mansion where the party is celebrated and bumps into the tailor in disguise…

The Count

1916

The Chaplin Revue poster
7.4

Three Chaplin silent comedies "A Dog's Life", "Shoulder Arms", and "The Pilgrim" are strung together to form a single feature length film. Chaplin provides new music, narration, and a small amount of new connecting material. "Shoulder Arms" is now described as taking place in a time before "the atom bomb".

The Chaplin Revue

1959

Behind the Screen poster
6.5

During the troubled shooting of several movies, David, the prop man's assistant, meets an aspiring actress who tries to find work in the studio. Things get messy when the stagehands decide to go on strike.

Behind the Screen

1916

Grief poster
NR

Begins with a child-cast parody of "The Kid." The Adams portion finds the guy chased about town because they are looking for some crook in a gray derby...and Jimmie happens to have one.

Grief

1921

The Fireman poster
6.3

Firefighter Charlie Chaplin is tricked into letting a house burn by an owner who wants to collect on the insurance.

The Fireman

1916

One A.M. poster
6.7

A drunken homeowner has a difficult time getting about in his home after arriving home late at night.

One A.M.

1916

How to Make Movies poster
6.3

This film was never released for the general public. It was hidden in Chaplin's private vaults for forty years until he included some parts of it in his compilation 'The Chaplin Revue' in 1959.

How to Make Movies

1918

The Cure poster
6.8

An alcoholic checks into a health spa and his antics promptly throw the establishment into chaos.

The Cure

1917

Behind the camera

The Misfit poster
7.0

THE MISFIT - starring Clyde Cook, with Blanche Payson and Joe Roberts. A rarely-seen silent comedy short. Henpecked hubby Clyde totes groceries and paints floors for his wifey, escaping at last...by joining the U.S. Marines. The basic training sequence was shot at the Buster Keaton studios; this may be "Big" Joe Roberts' final screen role.

The Misfit

1924

A Prince of a King poster
7.0

In a kingdom in fifteenth century Italy, Duke Roberto overthrows the king and abandons his heir Gigi in the wilderness to die. However, he is discovered by a troupe of Gypsy acrobats and emerges as their star performer.

A Prince of a King

1923

The Cohens and Kellys in Trouble poster
10.0

Kelly's daughter falls for a revenue agent, and his divorced wife is after alimony.

The Cohens and Kellys in Trouble

1933

Keep Smiling poster
7.0

The Boy, involved in a maritime disaster as a child, suffers from hydrophobia. He invents a life preserver that automatically inflates when it hits the water, using it to save the life of Rose Ryan, the daughter of a steamship magnate.

Keep Smiling

1925

Should Men Walk Home? poster
7.1

Mabel plays an out-and-out crook, a Girl Bandit, no less. And she quickly hooks up with a male partner in crime, in this case a Gentleman Crook played by perpetually grinning Creighton Hale. Mabel seems a little livelier in this film than in some of her other late works. In the very first scene we find her hitch-hiking, and she's forced to make a mad dash for cover when Hale's car nearly hits her. Soon they team up and crash a swanky party in a mansion to steal a jewel from the host's safe.

Should Men Walk Home?

1927

Trouble poster
7.0

Danny, a ragamuffin orphan, is adopted by a brutal plumber and his frail wife. His fear of hunger, resulting from his foster father's indifference, at one point leads him to substitute for the plumber in repairing a leak, but he causes a flood. Later, Danny is instrumental in saving a policeman's life and in sending the plumber to jail. He finds new happiness with his foster mother on her parents' farm.

Trouble

1922

My Boy poster
6.1

An orphan escapes immigration officials at Ellis Island and goes to live with an old ship's master who can't find work and can't pay the rent.

My Boy

1921