Buster Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname The Great Stone Face. He was recognized as the seventh-greatest director of all time by Entertainment Weekly. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Keaton the 21st-greatest male star of all time.
Known For
The General
(1926)
Johnny Gray
Sunset Boulevard
(1950)
Buster Keaton
Sherlock Jr.
(1924)
Sherlock, Jr.
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
(1963)
Jimmy the Crook
Our Hospitality
(1923)
William McKay
Steamboat Bill, Jr.
(1928)
William 'Willie' Canfield Jr.
Limelight
(1952)
Calvero's Partner
The Cameraman
(1928)
Buster
Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956)
Train Conductor
The High Sign
(1921)
Our Hero
Battling Butler
(1926)
Alfred Butler
The Boat
(1921)
The Boat Builder
That's Entertainment!
(1974)
(archive footage) (uncredited)
The Navigator
(1924)
Rollo Treadway
Seven Chances
(1925)
James 'Jimmie' Shannon
The Stolen Jools
(1931)
Policeman
Full Filmography
Acting
Coney Island
(1917)
Rival / Cop with Moustache
His Wedding Night
(1917)
Delivery boy
The Rough House
(1917)
Gardener / Delivery Boy / Cop
The Butcher Boy
(1917)
Buster
Oh, Doctor!
(1917)
Junior Holepoke
A Reckless Romeo
(1917)
Blind Organ Grinder
The Bell Boy
(1918)
Bellboy
Good Night, Nurse!
(1918)
Dr. Hampton
Out West
(1918)
Sheriff, saloon owner
Moonshine
(1918)
Revenue Agent
The Cook
(1918)
The Waiter (uncredited)
Back Stage
(1919)
Stagehand
The Hayseed
(1919)
Manager, general store
One Week
(1920)
The Groom
Convict 13
(1920)
Golfer Turned Prisoner, Guard
The Scarecrow
(1920)
Farmhand
Neighbors
(1920)
The Boy
The Saphead
(1920)
Bertie Van Alstyne
The Garage
(1920)
Mechanic / Fireman
The Round-Up
(1920)
Indian (Uncredited)
Hard Luck
(1921)
Suicidal Boy
The High Sign
(1921)
Our Hero
The Boat
(1921)
The Boat Builder
The Haunted House
(1921)
Bank Clerk
The Play House
(1921)
Orchestra / Minstrels / Dancers / Audience / Stagehand
The Goat
(1921)
The Goat
The Paleface
(1922)
Little Chief Paleface
The Blacksmith
(1922)
Blacksmith's Assistant
Cops
(1922)
The Young Man
Day Dreams
(1922)
The Young Man
My Wife's Relations
(1922)
The husband
The Frozen North
(1922)
The Bad Man
The Electric House
(1922)
Buster
Seeing Stars
(1922)
Self
Our Hospitality
(1923)
William McKay
Three Ages
(1923)
The Boy
The Balloonatic
(1923)
The Young Man (as 'Buster' Keaton)
The Love Nest
(1923)
Buster Keaton
Sherlock Jr.
(1924)
Sherlock, Jr.
The Navigator
(1924)
Rollo Treadway
Seven Chances
(1925)
James 'Jimmie' Shannon
Go West
(1925)
Friendless
The Iron Mule
(1925)
Indian (uncredited)
The General
(1926)
Johnny Gray
Battling Butler
(1926)
Alfred Butler
College
(1927)
Ronald, The Boy
Character Studies
(1927)
Himself (uncredited)
Life in Hollywood No. 1
(1927)
Self
The Cameraman
(1928)
Buster
Steamboat Bill, Jr.
(1928)
William 'Willie' Canfield Jr.
The Baby Cyclone
(1928)
Stunt Double (uncredited)
The Hollywood Revue of 1929
(1929)
Self / Princess Raja
Spite Marriage
(1929)
Elmer
Tide of Empire
(1929)
Drunk Cowboy Thrown Out of Saloon (uncredited)
Free and Easy
(1930)
Elmer
Doughboys
(1930)
Elmer J. Stuyvesant, Jr.
Forward, March!
(1930)
Estrellados
(1930)
Canuto Cuadratin
The Voice of Hollywood
(1930)
Parlor, Bedroom and Bath
(1931)
Reginald Irving
The Stolen Jools
(1931)
Policeman
Sidewalks of New York
(1931)
Harmon
We're switching to Hollywood
(1931)
Self
Casanova wider Willen
(1931)
Reggie Irving
Speak Easily
(1932)
Professor Post
The Passionate Plumber
(1932)
Elmer E. Tuttle
What! No Beer?
(1933)
Elmer J. Butts
Hollywood on Parade No. A-6
(1933)
Self
The Gold Ghost
(1934)
Wally
Allez Oop
(1934)
Elmer
The King of the Champs-Élysées
(1934)
Buster Garner / Jim le Balafré
Palooka from Paducah
(1935)
Jim Diltz
One Run Elmer
(1935)
Elmer
Hayseed Romance
(1935)
Elmer Dolittle
Tars and Stripes
(1935)
Apprentice Seaman Elmer Doolittle
The E-Flat Man
(1935)
Elmer
The Timid Young Man
(1935)
Milton
La Fiesta de Santa Barbara
(1935)
Self
Grand Slam Opera
(1936)
Elmer Butts
Blue Blazes
(1936)
Elmer
Mixed Magic
(1936)
Elmer 'Happy' Butterworth
The Invader
(1936)
Leander Proudfoot
Three on a Limb
(1936)
Elmer Brown
The Chemist
(1936)
Elmer Triple
Sunkist Stars at Palm Springs
(1936)
Himself
Love Nest on Wheels
(1937)
Elmer
Jail Bait
(1937)
Ditto
(1937)
The Forgotten Man
Hollywood Cavalcade
(1939)
Buster Keaton
Pest from the West
(1939)
Sir
Mooching Through Georgia
(1939)
Homer Cobb
Hollywood Hobbies
(1939)
Himself
Li'l Abner
(1940)
Lonesome Polecat
Nothing But Pleasure
(1940)
Clarence Plunkett
Pardon My Berth Marks
(1940)
Elmer - Newspaper Copyboy
The Taming of the Snood
(1940)
Buster Keaton
The Spook Speaks
(1940)
Buster
The Villain Still Pursued Her
(1940)
William Dalton
His Ex Marks the Spot
(1940)
Buster - the husband
New Moon
(1940)
Prisoner - 'LuLu'
So You Won't Squawk
(1941)
Eddie
General Nuisance
(1941)
Peter Hedley Lamar Jr.
She's Oil Mine
(1941)
Buster Waters, plumber
Screen Snapshots Series 21 No. 1
(1941)
Self
Forever and a Day
(1943)
Wilkins
San Diego I Love You
(1944)
Bus Driver
Take It or Leave It
(1944)
Himself
That's the Spirit
(1945)
L.M.
That Night with You
(1945)
Sam - Short Order Cook
She Went to the Races
(1945)
Bellboy (uncredited)
God's Country
(1946)
Old Tarp / Mr. Boone
Boom in the Moon
(1946)
A Duel to the Death
(1947)
The First Fisherman
In the Good Old Summertime
(1949)
Hickey
The Lovable Cheat
(1949)
Goulard
You're My Everything
(1949)
Butler
Sunset Boulevard
(1950)
Buster Keaton
The Misadventures of Buster Keaton
(1950)
Buster
The Slappiest Days of Our Lives
(1951)
(archive footage)
Life with Buster Keaton
(1951)
Limelight
(1952)
Calvero's Partner
Paradise for Buster
(1952)
Buster
L'Incantevole nemica
(1953)
L'apprenti boulanger dans la pièce de théâtre
The Awakening
(1954)
The Man
Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956)
Train Conductor
The Adventures of Mr. Pastry
(1958)
Professor
No Time at All
(1958)
Harrison
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
(1960)
Lion Tamer
When Comedy Was King
(1960)
edited from 'Cops' (archive footage)
The Devil To Pay
(1960)
Diablos
Lifetime of Comedy
(1960)
(archive footage)
The Home Owner
(1961)
Himself / The Home Owner
The New March of Dimes Presents: The Scene Stealers
(1962)
Self
Simon Pure Beer
(1962)
Himself
Langlois-Keaton à Paris
(1962)
Self
Crazy Days
(1962)
Various (archive footage) (uncredited)
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
(1963)
Jimmy the Crook
The Triumph of Lester Snapwell
(1963)
Lester Snapwell
The Sound of Laughter
(1963)
Elmer Butts
30 Years of Fun
(1963)
(archive footage)
There's No Business Like No Business
(1963)
Himself
Pajama Party
(1964)
Chief Rotten Eagle
The Big Parade of Comedy
(1964)
Buster in 'The Cameraman' (archive footage)
The Railrodder
(1965)
The Man
How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
(1965)
Bwana
Film
(1965)
The Man
Sergeant Deadhead
(1965)
Airman Blinken
Buster Keaton Rides Again
(1965)
Himself
Salute to Stan Laurel
(1965)
Self
War Italian Style
(1965)
Gen. von Kassler
Beach Blanket Bingo
(1965)
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
(1966)
Erronius
The Scribe
(1966)
Journalist
4 Clowns
(1970)
(archive footage)
That's Entertainment!
(1974)
(archive footage) (uncredited)
That's Entertainment, Part II
(1976)
(archive footage)
It's Showtime
(1976)
Self (archive footage)
The Hollywood Clowns
(1979)
(archive footage)
Going Hollywood: The '30s
(1984)
(archive footage)
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
(1986)
Self (archive footage)
Dance Crazy in Hollywood
(1990)
Self - Actor (archive footage)
That's Entertainment! III
(1994)
(archive footage)
Arbuckle & Keaton, Volume One
(2001)
Various
Arbuckle & Keaton, Volume Two
(2001)
Various
So Funny It Hurt: Buster Keaton & MGM
(2004)
Self (archive footage)
Industrial Strength Keaton
(2006)
Himself
Buster Keaton: From Silents to Shorts
(2006)
(archive footage)
Edge of Outside
(2006)
Buster (archive footage)
Kings of Comedy: Masters of the Silent Screen
(2007)
(archive footage)
The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk
(2007)
Self (archive footage)
Laurel & Hardy: Their Lives and Magic
(2011)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
And the Oscar Goes To...
(2014)
Self (archive footage)
Notfilm
(2015)
Self (archive footage)
Looking for Charlie: Or, the Day the Clown Died
(2016)
Self (archive footage)
Buster Keaton The Shorts Collection 1917-1923
(2016)
Chaplin/Keaton: Duel of Legends
(2016)
(archive footage)
Buster Keaton: The Genius Destroyed by Hollywood
(2016)
Self
The Great Buster: A Celebration
(2018)
Self (archive footage)
The Image Book
(2018)
(film archive footage)
Barney's Wall
(2019)
Himself (archival footage)
Time Travelers: Uncovering Old LA in Keaton Comedies
(2020)
Self (archive footage)
Navigators
(2023)
Stunts: A Taste for Risk
(2023)
Various Roles (archive footage)
Directing
The Rough House
(1917)
Director
One Week
(1920)
Director
Convict 13
(1920)
Director
The Scarecrow
(1920)
Director
Neighbors
(1920)
Director
Hard Luck
(1921)
Director
The High Sign
(1921)
Director
The Boat
(1921)
Director
The Haunted House
(1921)
Director
The Goat
(1921)
Director
The Play House
(1921)
Director
The Paleface
(1922)
Director
The Blacksmith
(1922)
Director
Cops
(1922)
Director
Day Dreams
(1922)
Director
My Wife's Relations
(1922)
Director
The Frozen North
(1922)
Director
The Electric House
(1922)
Director
Our Hospitality
(1923)
Director
Three Ages
(1923)
Director
The Balloonatic
(1923)
Director
The Love Nest
(1923)
Director
Sherlock Jr.
(1924)
Director
The Navigator
(1924)
Director
Seven Chances
(1925)
Director
Go West
(1925)
Director
The General
(1926)
Director
Battling Butler
(1926)
Director
College
(1927)
Director
Spite Marriage
(1929)
Director
Life in Sometown, U.S.A.
(1938)
Director
Hollywood Handicap
(1938)
Director
Streamlined Swing
(1938)
Director
Writing
The Rough House
(1917)
Writer
The Scarecrow
(1920)
Writer
Convict 13
(1920)
Writer
Neighbors
(1920)
Writer
One Week
(1920)
Writer
Hard Luck
(1921)
Writer
The High Sign
(1921)
Writer
The Boat
(1921)
Writer
The Haunted House
(1921)
Writer
The Goat
(1921)
Writer
The Play House
(1921)
Writer
The Paleface
(1922)
Writer
The Blacksmith
(1922)
Writer
Cops
(1922)
Writer
Day Dreams
(1922)
Writer
My Wife's Relations
(1922)
Writer
The Frozen North
(1922)
Writer
The Electric House
(1922)
Writer
The Balloonatic
(1923)
Writer
The Love Nest
(1923)
Writer
Three Ages
(1923)
Writer
Go West
(1925)
Story
The General
(1926)
Screenplay
Doughboys
(1930)
Story
Grand Slam Opera
(1936)
Writer
Pest from the West
(1939)
Writer
Mooching Through Georgia
(1939)
Writer
Quick Millions
(1939)
Story
The Jones Family in Hollywood
(1939)
Story
Editing
Moonshine
(1918)
Editor
One Week
(1920)
Editor
Convict 13
(1920)
Editor
Cops
(1922)
Editor
Sherlock Jr.
(1924)
Editor
The Navigator
(1924)
Editor
Seven Chances
(1925)
Editor
The General
(1926)
Editor
Production
Our Hospitality
(1923)
Producer
Three Ages
(1923)
Producer
Sherlock Jr.
(1924)
Producer
The Navigator
(1924)
Producer
Seven Chances
(1925)
Producer
Go West
(1925)
Producer
The General
(1926)
Producer
Battling Butler
(1926)
Producer
Spite Marriage
(1929)
Producer
Free and Easy
(1930)
Producer
Speak Easily
(1932)
Producer
Crew