WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.279 OK, so I want to start this deep dive today with 00:00:03.279 --> 00:00:05.139 a bit of a riddle for you. Oh, all right. I'm 00:00:05.139 --> 00:00:08.160 ready. So I want you to picture this massive, 00:00:08.619 --> 00:00:10.759 sprawling Hollywood timeline in your head. OK, 00:00:10.880 --> 00:00:14.539 got it. Can you name an actor who, in the silent 00:00:14.539 --> 00:00:18.440 era, worked directly alongside the absolute titans 00:00:18.440 --> 00:00:21.579 of the industry? I'm talking Charlie Chaplin, 00:00:22.140 --> 00:00:26.170 Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle. That is, I mean, 00:00:26.329 --> 00:00:29.010 that's already an incredibly short list. Right. 00:00:29.129 --> 00:00:30.649 Someone who was right there at the very birth 00:00:30.649 --> 00:00:33.609 of slapstick, taking the hardest falls on literal 00:00:33.609 --> 00:00:35.990 concrete before, you know, stump pads were even 00:00:35.990 --> 00:00:37.469 a thing. You're talking about the foundational 00:00:37.469 --> 00:00:40.250 DNA of screen comedy right there. Exactly. But 00:00:40.250 --> 00:00:43.189 here is the twist. The same actor, decades later, 00:00:43.570 --> 00:00:45.609 completely reinvents himself. OK. And he ends 00:00:45.609 --> 00:00:48.170 up sharing the screen with sound era Western 00:00:48.170 --> 00:00:51.049 icons, guys like John Wayne and Buster Crabb. 00:00:51.289 --> 00:00:53.679 Wow. He stands from the silent black and white 00:00:53.679 --> 00:00:56.799 Pratt Falls of 1911 all the way to the dusty 00:00:56.799 --> 00:00:59.960 ultra low budget B Westerns of 1952. That is 00:00:59.960 --> 00:01:02.700 just a massive span of time in Hollywood years. 00:01:02.939 --> 00:01:05.480 I mean. We usually talk about actors not surviving 00:01:05.480 --> 00:01:07.819 the transition from silent to sound. Yeah, the 00:01:07.819 --> 00:01:10.319 talkies killed so many careers. Exactly. But 00:01:10.319 --> 00:01:13.480 to survive that and switch genres completely 00:01:13.480 --> 00:01:16.659 from, like, high art slapstick to cowboy shootouts, 00:01:16.900 --> 00:01:19.700 that's incredibly rare. It is. And most people, 00:01:19.900 --> 00:01:21.719 they know the face. You know, the scruffy beard, 00:01:21.900 --> 00:01:23.780 the battered hat, that perpetually confused look. 00:01:23.840 --> 00:01:26.340 But they might not know the name. Exactly. Or, 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:29.099 well, Elise's real name. we are talking about 00:01:29.099 --> 00:01:32.500 Al St. John. Ah, Al St. John, a truly fascinating 00:01:32.500 --> 00:01:34.599 figure. He really is. And honestly, he's the 00:01:34.599 --> 00:01:37.340 perfect subject for a deep dive because his career, 00:01:38.099 --> 00:01:40.739 it isn't just a biography, it's essentially a 00:01:40.739 --> 00:01:42.980 map of how the movie industry evolved. Totally. 00:01:43.299 --> 00:01:46.379 From a carnival sideshow into a massive factory 00:01:46.379 --> 00:01:48.599 system. Precisely. And we have a great stack 00:01:48.599 --> 00:01:51.219 of sources today, biographical records, filmography, 00:01:51.480 --> 00:01:53.819 detailed histories of his life. And the mission 00:01:53.819 --> 00:01:56.799 today is to really unpack how this guy went from 00:01:56.799 --> 00:02:00.689 being a mischievously villainous rival in silent 00:02:00.689 --> 00:02:04.049 comedies to becoming fuzzy Q Jones. One of the 00:02:04.049 --> 00:02:06.549 most iconic sidekicks in Western history. Right. 00:02:06.609 --> 00:02:08.229 We're talking about a guy who appeared in over 00:02:08.229 --> 00:02:11.409 350 films. Which is, that number is just staggering. 00:02:11.909 --> 00:02:14.669 350 films. It's hard to even wrap your head around. 00:02:14.810 --> 00:02:17.069 It completely defines the concept of a working 00:02:17.069 --> 00:02:20.020 actor. We love to talk about the stars, right? 00:02:20.180 --> 00:02:22.500 The ephemeral legends who burn out bright and 00:02:22.500 --> 00:02:25.159 fast. The James Deans, the Monroe's. Right. But 00:02:25.159 --> 00:02:27.340 the industry was really built on the backs of 00:02:27.340 --> 00:02:30.180 guys like Al St. John. Guys who just showed up 00:02:30.180 --> 00:02:32.580 and did the work decade after decade. Regardless 00:02:32.580 --> 00:02:34.860 of whether the camera was an antique hand -cranked 00:02:34.860 --> 00:02:38.659 box or, you know, a huge technicolor rig. Exactly. 00:02:39.039 --> 00:02:40.669 So let's start at the beginning. And when I say 00:02:40.669 --> 00:02:42.930 the beginning, I mean the family tree. The crucial 00:02:42.930 --> 00:02:46.129 connection. Yeah, because usually when we hear 00:02:46.129 --> 00:02:48.330 about nepotism in Hollywood, we kind of roll 00:02:48.330 --> 00:02:50.990 our eyes. You think of someone getting a job 00:02:50.990 --> 00:02:53.310 they didn't really earn. Sure. But in L. St. 00:02:53.349 --> 00:02:56.949 John's case, his family connection is actually 00:02:56.949 --> 00:02:59.750 crucial to cinema history. It was the launch 00:02:59.750 --> 00:03:03.090 pad. Because L. St. John was the nephew of Roscoe 00:03:03.090 --> 00:03:05.229 Fatty Arbuckle. And for those of you listening 00:03:05.229 --> 00:03:07.229 who might not realize the scale of Arbuckle's 00:03:07.229 --> 00:03:09.810 fame back then. He was arguably the biggest star 00:03:09.810 --> 00:03:13.150 on the planet in the mid -1910s. He was the very 00:03:13.150 --> 00:03:15.810 first actor to sign a million -dollar contract. 00:03:16.169 --> 00:03:18.949 He was the undisputed king of comedy. But here 00:03:18.949 --> 00:03:21.150 is the detail from the sources that totally blew 00:03:21.150 --> 00:03:24.770 my mind. Oh, the age difference. Yes. Al was 00:03:24.770 --> 00:03:27.669 Roscoe's nephew, but Roscoe was only five years 00:03:27.669 --> 00:03:30.629 older than him. It sounds genetically impossible, 00:03:30.810 --> 00:03:32.370 doesn't it? Yeah, at least very confusing at 00:03:32.370 --> 00:03:34.909 family gatherings. Right. It's bizarre. Imagine 00:03:34.909 --> 00:03:37.710 working with your uncle, but he's basically your 00:03:37.710 --> 00:03:40.599 peer. They grew up together, effectively. It 00:03:40.599 --> 00:03:42.919 wasn't an elder statesman guiding a child. They 00:03:42.919 --> 00:03:45.080 were contemporaries. Exactly. And that dynamic 00:03:45.080 --> 00:03:46.860 is really important because they weren't just 00:03:46.860 --> 00:03:49.840 relatives. They were collaborators. That closeness 00:03:49.840 --> 00:03:51.960 really allowed them to develop a very specific 00:03:51.960 --> 00:03:55.000 rhythm. Yeah. When Arbuckle formed his own production 00:03:55.000 --> 00:03:57.699 company, which was called Comique, he brought 00:03:57.699 --> 00:04:00.539 Al along immediately. Naturally. And then they 00:04:00.539 --> 00:04:02.620 recruited a young vaudevillian who had never 00:04:02.620 --> 00:04:05.580 been in a movie before, a guy named Buster Keaton. 00:04:05.919 --> 00:04:09.319 The Ruff House trio. Exactly. You had Arbuckle, 00:04:09.659 --> 00:04:12.979 St. John, and Keaton. That is wild. If you are 00:04:12.979 --> 00:04:15.180 a fan of physical comedy, that is like the dream 00:04:15.180 --> 00:04:17.899 team. That's the Mount Rushmore of falling down. 00:04:18.040 --> 00:04:19.980 But we should probably be specific about what 00:04:19.980 --> 00:04:22.019 comedy meant back then. Because this wasn't, 00:04:22.019 --> 00:04:24.100 you know, standing around telling witty jokes. 00:04:24.240 --> 00:04:26.500 No, this was dangerous. That's a really good 00:04:26.500 --> 00:04:29.360 distinction. The sources emphasize the Ruff and 00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:33.100 Ruff House. This wasn't safe choreographed dancing. 00:04:33.700 --> 00:04:37.279 Slapstick in the 1910s was violent. It was highly 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:40.000 acrobatic. And there were no stunt doubles. Right. 00:04:40.000 --> 00:04:42.139 If a character fell off a roof. The actor fell 00:04:42.139 --> 00:04:45.360 off a roof. And Al St. John was incredibly athletic. 00:04:45.560 --> 00:04:48.100 He was known for doing these bicycle stunts that 00:04:48.100 --> 00:04:51.300 completely defied physics. The sources say he 00:04:51.300 --> 00:04:53.120 could take a fall from a second story window, 00:04:53.180 --> 00:04:55.279 land on his neck, and just bounce right back 00:04:55.279 --> 00:04:57.420 up. It's almost like they were live action cartoons 00:04:57.420 --> 00:04:59.959 before cartoons really existed. That is a perfect 00:04:59.959 --> 00:05:02.279 way to put it. They were rubber men. They really 00:05:02.279 --> 00:05:07.290 were. So, within this trio, what was Al's specific 00:05:07.290 --> 00:05:10.310 role? Because, okay, Arbuckle is the big, lovable 00:05:10.310 --> 00:05:12.870 lead, the innocent man -child. Right. And Keaton 00:05:12.870 --> 00:05:16.230 is the great stone -face, the stoic genius. So, 00:05:16.290 --> 00:05:19.120 where did Al fit into that ecosystem? Al was 00:05:19.120 --> 00:05:21.779 the agitator. In those early films, he often 00:05:21.779 --> 00:05:25.259 played the rival. He was the villain, but a comedic 00:05:25.259 --> 00:05:28.040 one. He was usually the guy competing with Arbuckle 00:05:28.040 --> 00:05:30.560 for the affection of leading ladies. Like Mabel 00:05:30.560 --> 00:05:33.240 Normand. Exactly, or Minta Durfee. I noticed 00:05:33.240 --> 00:05:36.040 that in the filmography. He wasn't the sidekick 00:05:36.040 --> 00:05:39.629 yet, he was the competition. Precisely. If you 00:05:39.629 --> 00:05:42.569 look at a film like The Rounders from 1914, he's 00:05:42.569 --> 00:05:44.949 working with Arbuckle and Charlie Chaplin. Just 00:05:44.949 --> 00:05:47.930 incredible. Or Fatty and Mabel Adrift from 1916. 00:05:48.110 --> 00:05:51.829 He brings this manic energy. If Keaton was Snowick 00:05:51.829 --> 00:05:54.930 and Arbuckle was innocent, Al St. John was chaotic. 00:05:55.149 --> 00:05:57.250 He was the spark that set off the explosion. 00:05:57.550 --> 00:05:59.949 Exactly. And clearly he wasn't just writing his 00:05:59.949 --> 00:06:02.329 uncle's coattails. The sources mention that he 00:06:02.329 --> 00:06:04.550 had his own following internationally. That's 00:06:04.550 --> 00:06:06.790 a great point that often gets overlooked. In 00:06:06.790 --> 00:06:09.410 France for He was a massive star in his own right. 00:06:09.629 --> 00:06:11.529 Yeah, they didn't even bill him as Al St. John. 00:06:11.629 --> 00:06:13.430 No, they billed him as Peacrat. Peter Cratt. 00:06:13.649 --> 00:06:15.769 He had a whole brand. He wasn't just Fatty's 00:06:15.769 --> 00:06:18.509 nephew over there. He was a distinct comedic 00:06:18.509 --> 00:06:21.410 entity that audiences in Europe specifically 00:06:21.410 --> 00:06:23.569 went to the theater to see. But then, of course, 00:06:23.649 --> 00:06:26.110 the 1920s happened. Yeah. And we can't really 00:06:26.110 --> 00:06:28.149 talk about this circle of friends without talking 00:06:28.149 --> 00:06:30.649 about the scandal, the elephant in the room. 00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:34.180 No, we really can't. The Roscoe Arbuckle scandal 00:06:34.180 --> 00:06:36.759 is one of the darkest chapters in early Hollywood 00:06:36.759 --> 00:06:39.980 history. It really is. And just for context for 00:06:39.980 --> 00:06:43.300 you listening, Arbuckle was accused of manslaughter 00:06:43.300 --> 00:06:46.579 in the death of Virginia Rapp. Right. Now, he 00:06:46.579 --> 00:06:49.399 was eventually acquitted, fully exonerated after 00:06:49.399 --> 00:06:52.160 three trials. But the damage was done. The trial 00:06:52.160 --> 00:06:55.360 destroyed him, the studios blacklisted him completely, 00:06:55.420 --> 00:06:57.639 and the public just turned on him. So what does 00:06:57.639 --> 00:07:00.920 that mean for Al? I mean, his... Uncle, his mentor, 00:07:01.079 --> 00:07:03.740 his main creative partner, is suddenly persona 00:07:03.740 --> 00:07:07.199 non grata. Right. If you're Al St. John, do you 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:09.620 distance yourself? Do you cut ties to save your 00:07:09.620 --> 00:07:12.560 own career? Because that seems like the standard 00:07:12.560 --> 00:07:14.639 Hollywood survival move. That is the question. 00:07:14.740 --> 00:07:16.680 And the answer tells you everything you need 00:07:16.680 --> 00:07:18.759 to know about Al's character. He didn't run. 00:07:18.980 --> 00:07:21.800 He didn't run. This is where we see the absolute 00:07:21.800 --> 00:07:24.939 loyalty, but also his adaptability. Arbuckle 00:07:24.939 --> 00:07:27.819 didn't just vanish from Al's life. He actually 00:07:27.819 --> 00:07:31.399 started directing Al in films, but he had to 00:07:31.399 --> 00:07:34.459 do it pseudonymously. Oh wow, so Arbuckle is 00:07:34.459 --> 00:07:37.139 behind the camera. calling all the shots, but 00:07:37.139 --> 00:07:39.240 his name isn't on the poster anywhere. Correct. 00:07:39.500 --> 00:07:42.459 He used the name William Goodrich. William Goodrich. 00:07:42.579 --> 00:07:45.480 Yeah. So in films like The Iron Mule in 1925 00:07:45.480 --> 00:07:49.959 or Bridgewives in 1932, Owl was the comic lead 00:07:49.959 --> 00:07:52.740 in front of the camera, and Arbuckle was directing 00:07:52.740 --> 00:07:54.639 him from the shadows. That is actually really 00:07:54.639 --> 00:07:57.139 touching. It is. It adds this whole layer of 00:07:57.139 --> 00:07:59.720 depth to these silly comedies, knowing that they 00:07:59.720 --> 00:08:02.639 were... basically a lifeline for Arbuckle. And 00:08:02.639 --> 00:08:05.240 that Al was the conduit for that work to exist. 00:08:05.860 --> 00:08:08.339 Exactly. But Al had another massive hurdle coming 00:08:08.339 --> 00:08:11.339 up. The talkies. The sound barrier. The great 00:08:11.339 --> 00:08:14.120 filter. It ended so many careers. It really did. 00:08:14.240 --> 00:08:16.800 Voices didn't match faces, or the acting style 00:08:16.800 --> 00:08:19.199 of the silent era just felt way too exaggerated 00:08:19.199 --> 00:08:21.240 for sound. Right. When you can speak, you don't 00:08:21.240 --> 00:08:23.620 need to mime everything with these huge sweeping 00:08:23.620 --> 00:08:26.579 gestures. Exactly. But Alcine John survives it. 00:08:26.779 --> 00:08:29.240 Did he just happen to have a really good voice 00:08:29.240 --> 00:08:31.899 or was it something else? Well, he had decent 00:08:31.899 --> 00:08:34.559 voice, a very distinctive one, but more importantly, 00:08:34.740 --> 00:08:38.500 he evolved. This is the first major pivot we 00:08:38.500 --> 00:08:41.940 see in his career. In the late 30s, he starts 00:08:41.940 --> 00:08:45.039 changing his persona. He moves away from the 00:08:45.039 --> 00:08:48.220 sleek, athletic rival character and he starts 00:08:48.220 --> 00:08:50.860 becoming scruffier. The beard appears. The beard 00:08:50.860 --> 00:08:53.779 appears. You can actually see the prototype of 00:08:53.779 --> 00:08:56.320 this in a Buster Keaton short called Love Nest 00:08:56.320 --> 00:09:00.299 on Wheels. That was from 1937. Owl plays a hillbilly 00:09:00.299 --> 00:09:03.320 character named Uncle Jed. Uncle Jed. That sounds 00:09:03.320 --> 00:09:05.759 a lot closer to where we're heading. It is directly 00:09:05.759 --> 00:09:09.100 the bridge to his second life. He realized that 00:09:09.100 --> 00:09:11.799 as he aged and as the medium changed around him 00:09:11.799 --> 00:09:14.379 there was a niche for the grizzled eccentric 00:09:14.379 --> 00:09:16.480 character. He wasn't trying to be the romantic 00:09:16.480 --> 00:09:18.659 lead anymore. Not at all. He was happy to be 00:09:18.659 --> 00:09:20.460 the old -timer even though he wasn't actually 00:09:20.460 --> 00:09:23.120 that old yet. He completely leaned into the character 00:09:23.120 --> 00:09:26.019 actor role. Which brings us to the era of Fuzzy. 00:09:26.460 --> 00:09:28.539 Yes. Now this is one of my favorite parts of 00:09:28.539 --> 00:09:30.820 the research because it highlights just how weird 00:09:30.820 --> 00:09:33.679 and honestly ruthless the studio system was back 00:09:33.679 --> 00:09:36.200 then. Oh absolutely. The name Fuzzy is iconic 00:09:36.200 --> 00:09:40.480 for him. but he stole it. Or, well, he sort of 00:09:40.480 --> 00:09:43.100 inherited it against his will. It is a classic 00:09:43.100 --> 00:09:45.159 Hollywood story of, you know, it's just busy 00:09:45.159 --> 00:09:48.320 -ness. Right. So there was another actor named 00:09:48.320 --> 00:09:52.460 John Forrest Knight, and he went by Fuzzy Knight. 00:09:52.580 --> 00:09:55.019 He was already established as a cowboy sidekick. 00:09:55.039 --> 00:09:57.480 He had the name recognition. So Fuzzy was a brand 00:09:57.480 --> 00:10:00.679 name already, like The Rock or Madonna. Exactly. 00:10:01.120 --> 00:10:04.039 And the studio, specifically the Producers Releasing 00:10:04.039 --> 00:10:06.440 Corporation, or PRC, which we will talk about 00:10:06.440 --> 00:10:09.659 in a moment, they originally intended to hire 00:10:09.659 --> 00:10:12.139 Fuzzy Knight for a western series. They wanted 00:10:12.139 --> 00:10:14.389 that guy. But they didn't get him. For whatever 00:10:14.389 --> 00:10:17.049 reason, the deal fell through. Maybe Knight wanted 00:10:17.049 --> 00:10:20.029 too much money or he was double booked. We don't 00:10:20.029 --> 00:10:22.070 really know. So they hired Al St. John instead. 00:10:22.230 --> 00:10:24.330 But here is the kicker. They gave him the role 00:10:24.330 --> 00:10:26.250 and they gave him the nickname. They just gave 00:10:26.250 --> 00:10:28.070 him the other guy's nickname, like, you're fuzzy 00:10:28.070 --> 00:10:30.909 now. Essentially, yes. He took on the nickname 00:10:30.909 --> 00:10:33.490 of his rival for his screen character and he 00:10:33.490 --> 00:10:37.149 just became Fuzzy Q Jones. That is wild. Can 00:10:37.149 --> 00:10:38.950 you imagine showing up to work and your boss 00:10:38.950 --> 00:10:41.789 says, hey, great to have you, Bob. but your name 00:10:41.789 --> 00:10:43.909 is Steve now because we almost hired a Steve 00:10:43.909 --> 00:10:45.789 and we already printed the business card. Right. 00:10:45.970 --> 00:10:48.590 It speaks to the factory nature of these studios, 00:10:48.789 --> 00:10:51.769 specifically the Poverty Row Studios like PRC. 00:10:51.789 --> 00:10:54.970 Yeah. They weren't precious about artistic identity. 00:10:55.149 --> 00:10:57.389 They needed a product. They had a slot for a 00:10:57.389 --> 00:10:59.809 character named Fuzzy, so they just filled it. 00:11:00.230 --> 00:11:03.009 And to Al's credit, he didn't complain. He took 00:11:03.009 --> 00:11:04.950 the name and he made it his own. Completely. 00:11:05.470 --> 00:11:08.429 Let's unpack that term Poverty Row because Al 00:11:08.429 --> 00:11:11.539 St. John spent a Huge chunk of his career there. 00:11:11.600 --> 00:11:14.480 He did and we aren't talking about MGM or paramount 00:11:14.480 --> 00:11:16.700 here We aren't talking about gone with the wind 00:11:16.700 --> 00:11:19.840 budgets What was life actually like on a poverty 00:11:19.840 --> 00:11:22.659 row set fast cheap and out of control? That was 00:11:22.659 --> 00:11:26.159 the mandate Wow These studios, like PRC or Monogram, 00:11:26.399 --> 00:11:29.360 operated on razor thin margins. We are talking 00:11:29.360 --> 00:11:31.740 about shooting a full feature film in a little 00:11:31.740 --> 00:11:34.340 more than a week. A week? For a whole movie. 00:11:34.399 --> 00:11:37.080 Sometimes just five or six days. It was an absolute 00:11:37.080 --> 00:11:39.799 grind. Unbelievable. The source material notes 00:11:39.799 --> 00:11:43.019 that Al St. John and Buster Crabb made 36 films 00:11:43.019 --> 00:11:46.519 together in a surprisingly short time. 36 films. 00:11:47.379 --> 00:11:49.779 That is an entire career for some people, and 00:11:49.779 --> 00:11:51.919 they cranked it out in just a few years. It was 00:11:51.919 --> 00:11:54.460 volume over perfection. They would sometimes 00:11:54.460 --> 00:11:56.659 shoot two movies back to back using the exact 00:11:56.659 --> 00:11:59.120 same sets and the exact same costumes just to 00:11:59.120 --> 00:12:01.179 save money on rental fees. Oh my gosh. If you 00:12:01.179 --> 00:12:04.059 messed up a line, too bad. Keep moving. We don't 00:12:04.059 --> 00:12:06.139 have the film stock for a second take. It sounds 00:12:06.139 --> 00:12:10.059 chaotic. It was. But for a guy like Ao who came 00:12:10.059 --> 00:12:12.600 from the rough and tumble world of Silent Slapstick, 00:12:12.820 --> 00:12:15.700 where you literally had one take to fall off 00:12:15.700 --> 00:12:17.820 a building correctly. Oh, he thrived in it. He 00:12:17.820 --> 00:12:19.600 thrived. He was professional. He knew how to 00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:21.759 find the camera, hit his mark, fall down, and 00:12:21.759 --> 00:12:24.669 get paid. So Al is churning out these movies. 00:12:24.730 --> 00:12:27.490 He's playing this fuzzy character, this scruffy, 00:12:27.590 --> 00:12:30.789 bumbling sidekick. And yet, despite the low budgets 00:12:30.789 --> 00:12:33.730 and the stolen nickname, he struck gold. He really 00:12:33.730 --> 00:12:35.850 did. And this is where the data from the sources 00:12:35.850 --> 00:12:38.289 gets super interesting. Yeah, the notes mention 00:12:38.289 --> 00:12:40.269 something really counterintuitive about the box 00:12:40.269 --> 00:12:42.490 office numbers. Right. Because you would assume 00:12:42.490 --> 00:12:45.509 the handsome hero, the Buster Crab or the Bob 00:12:45.509 --> 00:12:47.610 Steele, was the big draw. Right. They were the 00:12:47.610 --> 00:12:49.509 ones on the poster holding the gun, saving the 00:12:49.509 --> 00:12:53.389 town. Exactly. But the records show that exhibitors, 00:12:53.610 --> 00:12:56.389 especially in international markets, loved Fuzzy. 00:12:57.289 --> 00:13:00.350 In fact, in England and Europe, Fuzzy was often 00:13:00.350 --> 00:13:02.769 the main box office attraction. Wait, so people 00:13:02.769 --> 00:13:05.370 were buying tickets specifically to see the sidekick? 00:13:05.629 --> 00:13:09.269 Absolutely. In some markets, his name was bigger 00:13:09.269 --> 00:13:12.370 on the marquee than the heroes. He overshadowed 00:13:12.370 --> 00:13:14.909 the leading men. That is fascinating. He was 00:13:14.909 --> 00:13:17.360 the reliable entertainment. The hero is going 00:13:17.360 --> 00:13:19.960 to shoot the bad guy and save the girl, that's 00:13:19.960 --> 00:13:23.879 standard. It's boring, in a way, but fuzzy. Fuzzy 00:13:23.879 --> 00:13:25.600 was going to make you laugh. He was the chaotic 00:13:25.600 --> 00:13:27.759 element. That is amazing. It really flips the 00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:30.259 script on how we view the hierarchy of actors. 00:13:30.580 --> 00:13:32.000 We always think the guy with the gun and the 00:13:32.000 --> 00:13:35.100 white hat is the star, but the guy tripping over 00:13:35.100 --> 00:13:37.159 the bucket is the one actually selling the popcorn. 00:13:37.379 --> 00:13:40.100 It's the Shakespearean fool concept. The hero 00:13:40.100 --> 00:13:43.340 represents order, but the clown represents humanity. 00:13:43.659 --> 00:13:46.919 Oh, I like that. And Al St. John, with his background 00:13:46.919 --> 00:13:49.779 in silent comedy, he brought a level of physical 00:13:49.779 --> 00:13:52.799 genius to these cheap Westerns that nobody else 00:13:52.799 --> 00:13:55.580 could match. He elevated the material. Completely. 00:13:55.820 --> 00:13:58.379 They could turn a boring exposition scene into 00:13:58.379 --> 00:14:00.679 a comedy routine just by how he tried to get 00:14:00.679 --> 00:14:04.220 on his horse. He added value to every single 00:14:04.220 --> 00:14:06.620 frame he was in. And he did this for over 80 00:14:06.620 --> 00:14:10.059 Westerns. Just as fuzzy. Over 80. He defined 00:14:10.059 --> 00:14:12.269 the archetype. If you close your eyes right now 00:14:12.269 --> 00:14:15.289 and picture an old prospector sidekick, you know, 00:14:15.730 --> 00:14:17.769 the beard, the voice, the mannerisms, you're 00:14:17.769 --> 00:14:20.049 picturing Al St. John. And didn't he also create 00:14:20.049 --> 00:14:22.549 another character that became famous later on? 00:14:22.970 --> 00:14:25.610 Stoney? Yes. This is another weird detection 00:14:25.610 --> 00:14:27.389 that just shows how small this world was back 00:14:27.389 --> 00:14:30.389 then. In a film called The Law of the 45s, he 00:14:30.389 --> 00:14:32.960 created a character named Stoney Brook. That 00:14:32.960 --> 00:14:34.879 character later became the central figure of 00:14:34.879 --> 00:14:37.399 the Three Miscuteers series, and you know who 00:14:37.399 --> 00:14:39.519 took over that role eventually? Who? John Wayne. 00:14:39.779 --> 00:14:42.820 No way. So Al St. John originated a role that 00:14:42.820 --> 00:14:46.460 John Wayne stepped into. Yep. It just shows how 00:14:46.460 --> 00:14:49.500 interconnected this whole industry was. Al St. 00:14:49.580 --> 00:14:52.100 John was the fabric of the industry. He was there 00:14:52.100 --> 00:14:54.580 for the invention of the grammar of comedy with 00:14:54.580 --> 00:14:56.700 Keaton, and he was there for the mass production 00:14:56.700 --> 00:14:58.879 of The Western with Wayne. He's like the Kevin 00:14:58.879 --> 00:15:00.899 Bacon of the early 20th century. He worked with 00:15:00.899 --> 00:15:04.620 literally everyone. He really did. So let's fast 00:15:04.620 --> 00:15:06.960 forward a bit. The film career winds down around 00:15:06.960 --> 00:15:10.340 1952. Right. That's a 40 -year run. Most people 00:15:10.340 --> 00:15:12.679 would retire to a beach somewhere. But Al. Not 00:15:12.679 --> 00:15:16.940 Al. Al was a performer to his core. Or, well, 00:15:16.980 --> 00:15:19.000 maybe he just needed the money. It was likely 00:15:19.000 --> 00:15:21.620 a mix of both. But when the movie rolls dried 00:15:21.620 --> 00:15:24.330 up, he didn't stop. He hit the road. What was 00:15:24.330 --> 00:15:27.830 he doing? Personal appearances, fairs, rodeos, 00:15:28.269 --> 00:15:30.690 overseas military bases. He was touring with 00:15:30.690 --> 00:15:32.909 the Tommy Scott Wild West show. He was bringing 00:15:32.909 --> 00:15:35.730 Fuzzy to the people in 3D. It sounds exhausting, 00:15:35.929 --> 00:15:38.360 honestly. Touring in a bus or a station wagon 00:15:38.360 --> 00:15:40.879 in the 1950s, that's not exactly a luxury tour. 00:15:41.039 --> 00:15:43.820 It was grueling, but it also shows a really deep 00:15:43.820 --> 00:15:45.759 connection to the audience. He wasn't hiding 00:15:45.759 --> 00:15:48.559 in a mansion in Beverly Hills. He was out there 00:15:48.559 --> 00:15:50.659 shaking hands, signing autographs, doing the 00:15:50.659 --> 00:15:53.320 bits. He became a living piece of nostalgia. 00:15:53.960 --> 00:15:56.740 For a lot of people in small towns, seeing Fuzzy 00:15:56.740 --> 00:16:00.700 in person was a huge event. And sadly, that is 00:16:00.700 --> 00:16:03.620 where his story ends. Out on the road? Yes. It 00:16:03.620 --> 00:16:06.120 was 1963. He was still touring with The Wild 00:16:06.120 --> 00:16:08.379 West Show. They were in Lyons, Georgia. And he 00:16:08.379 --> 00:16:10.500 was preparing for a show, right? He was. He was 00:16:10.500 --> 00:16:12.720 at a motel getting ready for a special appearance 00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:15.740 at a nearby American Legion club. The sources 00:16:15.740 --> 00:16:17.960 say he suffered a massive heart attack. There 00:16:17.960 --> 00:16:20.039 is a detail in the reports about his passing 00:16:20.039 --> 00:16:22.519 that really stuck with me. That he died in the 00:16:22.519 --> 00:16:25.769 arms of his wife, Flo Belmore. Yeah. It's incredibly 00:16:25.769 --> 00:16:28.350 poignant. He was 70 years old, still working, 00:16:28.590 --> 00:16:31.429 still preparing to entertain people, and he passes 00:16:31.429 --> 00:16:33.690 away with his wife right there. It's a very human 00:16:33.690 --> 00:16:36.809 end to a larger -than -life career. There is 00:16:36.809 --> 00:16:40.009 no tragic Hollywood overdose, no lonely decline. 00:16:40.350 --> 00:16:42.549 He was working until the very last moment. He 00:16:42.549 --> 00:16:44.529 died with his boots on, essentially. And I noticed 00:16:44.529 --> 00:16:47.330 his ashes weren't just kept in an urn on a mantle 00:16:47.330 --> 00:16:49.889 somewhere. No. They were sent back to his permanent 00:16:49.889 --> 00:16:52.519 residence in Homasasa Springs, Florida. It was 00:16:52.519 --> 00:16:54.960 a place called the Double F Ranch. Double F. 00:16:55.279 --> 00:16:57.840 As in Fuzzy and Flowbell. Exactly. Even in his 00:16:57.840 --> 00:16:59.980 estate, he was fuzzy. The character and the man 00:16:59.980 --> 00:17:02.480 had completely merged by the end. So when we 00:17:02.480 --> 00:17:04.960 look back at El St. John, we see a guy who started 00:17:04.960 --> 00:17:07.339 in the fashionable West Adams district of Los 00:17:07.339 --> 00:17:11.079 Angeles, living at 4300 Victoria Park Drive. 00:17:11.450 --> 00:17:13.910 real high society stuff. Oh yeah, top of the 00:17:13.910 --> 00:17:17.049 world. And he ended up as a hero of the Dusty 00:17:17.049 --> 00:17:20.369 B Westerns, beloved by folks at rodeos and local 00:17:20.369 --> 00:17:23.930 fairs. It is a trajectory of incredible adaptability. 00:17:24.160 --> 00:17:26.859 He went from high concept silent art with Keaton 00:17:26.859 --> 00:17:28.980 stuff that is literally studied in film schools 00:17:28.980 --> 00:17:31.799 today to the grindhouse efficiency of poverty 00:17:31.799 --> 00:17:34.400 row. Yeah. He saw the industry change from a 00:17:34.400 --> 00:17:36.740 craft to an assembly line and he figured out 00:17:36.740 --> 00:17:39.380 how to survive in both worlds. It makes me think 00:17:39.380 --> 00:17:41.440 about what we value in Hollywood. You know, we 00:17:41.440 --> 00:17:43.619 build statues for the Waynes and the Chaplains. 00:17:43.980 --> 00:17:45.920 But listening to this story, I have to ask you, 00:17:46.000 --> 00:17:49.039 listening, was it the reliable, hardworking comics 00:17:49.039 --> 00:17:51.160 like St. John who were the real backbone of the 00:17:51.160 --> 00:17:53.750 industry? I think that is the key takeaway here. 00:17:54.450 --> 00:17:57.190 The industry runs on the people who show up day 00:17:57.190 --> 00:18:00.670 after day for 40 years and can turn a one -week 00:18:00.670 --> 00:18:04.009 shoot into a genuine hit. Al St. John proved 00:18:04.009 --> 00:18:05.849 that you don't have to be the leading man to 00:18:05.849 --> 00:18:07.970 be the reason people go to the movies. That is 00:18:07.970 --> 00:18:09.710 a great place to leave it. Next time you see 00:18:09.710 --> 00:18:12.130 a scruffy sidekick in an Old Western, take a 00:18:12.130 --> 00:18:14.250 closer look. You might be watching a legend who 00:18:14.250 --> 00:18:16.910 taught the world how to fall down. Thanks for 00:18:16.910 --> 00:18:18.069 joining us on this deep dive.