The Electric House (1922)

After being mistakenly certified as an electrical engineer, Buster is hired to wire a house.

Directors:

Edward F. Cline, Buster Keaton

Writers:

Buster Keaton, Edward F. Cline,

Stars:

Buster Keaton, Virginia Fox, Joe Keaton

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Buster Keaton	...	Buster (as 'Buster' Keaton)

Storyline

Botany major Buster mistakenly graduates in electrical engineering and is hired to wire a new home. He installs lots of fanciful gadgets. The one who should have received the degree gets even by rewiring all the gadgets to wreak havoc.

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Plot Keywords:

revenge | swimming pool | escalator | home improvement | written and directed by cast member | 

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Genres:

Short | Comedy

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Certificate:

TV-G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

October 1922 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Electrical House

Company Credits

Production Co:

First National Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

23 min 22 min (2005 DVD release) 20 min (2005 DVD release)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filming was delayed when star Buster Keaton got his foot caught in the escalator and broke his ankle. During his recovery, Keaton released his previously shelved film, The 'High Sign', and filmed The Play House. Upon his return to this short, he abandoned his original footage and started fresh. Little is known about the first version, and no scenes are known to still exist.

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Connections

Featured in Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow (1987)

User Reviews

"And as it turns out, electrical engineering happened to be quite a talent of his."

A wonderfully inventive companion piece to The Scarecrow, this mechanical comedy by Keaton often makes me wonder if it isn't possible to go back in time and hire Keaton to design a house for me.

Due to a mix-up of diplomas, the young hair-stylist character of Keaton is asked to wire a mansion with electricity. Spending a moment with a book on "Wiring Made Easy" and the mansion owner's vacation time, Keaton devises escalators, train-propelled dishwashers, and all the neat little gadgets and tricks that "surprise" them (whether or not any of these flourishes are needed, of course, adds its own amount of humor to the equation).

Of course it's not like we can have everything just go well like that, so the rejected and jealous actual electrical engineer decides one fateful day to wreak vengeance upon the circuitry. It's then a trip of mayhap and mayhem as the hosting family tries to entertain guests, Keaton tries to figure out what's wrong, and bodies, dishes, and pool balls go flying amiss.

The appealing result is a good chuckle. It's definitely not as amazingly inventive as The Scarecrow (which is absolutely mind-boggling in its mechanical genius), but it does the job and does it well. It also doesn't really end the way you come to expect of Keaton. All in all, however, it's a pretty good time.

--PolarisDiB