Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent films, in which he performed physical comedy and inventive stunts. He maintained a stoic, deadpan facial expression that became his trademark and earned him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".
Keaton was a child vaudeville star, performing as part of his family's traveling act. As an adult, he began working with independent producer Joseph M. Schenck and filmmaker Edward F. Cline, with whom he made successful two-reel comedies in the early 1920s, including One Week (1920), The Playhouse (1921) and The Electric House (1922). He moved to feature-length films, including Our Hospitality (1923), Sherlock Jr. (1924), The General (1926) and Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928). Orson Welles called The General "the greatest comedy ever made...and perhaps the greatest film ever made".
Keaton's career declined after 1928, when he signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and lost his artistic independence. His first wife divorced him, and he descended into alcoholism. He was fired from MGM in 1933, ending his career as a leading man in feature films.
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