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Max Linder

Max Linder

Director & actor · born 16 December 1883 · Cavernes, Saint-Loubès, Gironde, France

Although all too frequently neglected by fans of silent comedy, Max Linder is in many ways as important a figure as Charles Chaplin, Buster Keaton, or Harold Lloyd, not least because he predated (and influenced) them all by several years, and was largely responsible for the creation of the classic style of silent slapstick comedy.

He started out as an actor in the French theatre, but after making his screen debut in 1905 he quickly became an enormously famous and successful film comedian on both sides of the Atlantic, thanks to his character "Max", a top-hatted dandy. By 1912, he was the highest-paid film star in the world, with an unprecedented salary of one million francs. He began to direct films in 1911 and showed equal facility behind the camera, but his career suffered an almost terminal blow when he was called up to fight in World War I. He was gassed, and the illness that resulted would blight his career.

Where to start: The Three Must-Get-Theres (1922).

As director 69

As actor 114

Frequently asked questions

What is the best Max Linder movie?

By viewer score, The Three Must-Get-Theres (1922) at 6.4/10.

What are Max Linder’s most popular movies?

Seven Years Bad Luck, Seven Years Bad Luck.

How many movies has Max Linder made?

183 films on TMDB, 69 as director, 114 as actor.

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