User reviews

Mack Sennett had a strong reputation for producing wild, violent, fast- paced slapstick that often got its laughs without even a superficial attempt to make sense. He got that reputation for the simple reason that it's true. However, it's interesting to see how when Sennett knew he had on his hands a comedian whose laughs come from subtleties or reactions rather than fast antics, he knows to slacken the pace. That was true with many of the brilliant Harry Langdon shorts he would produce later, and it is true here in "Mickey" with Mabel Normand.

Mabel is the star and it is she on which the movie turns. She steals every scene she appears in and has infinite screen magnetism, with her attractive, fascinating face, constantly changing expression, and childlike and uninhibited yet somehow ironic manner. The greatest moments of comedy come in little bits of performance, as Mabel comes up with many ingenious ways to hide dust she has swept up, or simply can't resist eating cherries off a cake.

That said, there are not actually a lot of scenes of overt comedy in this film, and sometimes when there is overt comedy it comes out as a digression or bit of broad slapstick that is well-executed but has a different feel -- the battle in the country store (which looks a lot like the one Arbuckle worked at in "The Butcher Boy") over Mable's dog or the animal the scurries up her pantleg. It's not actually an uproariously funny film, but doesn't usually try to be, and it's always pleasant.

The plot is simple and of a kind that has spawned infinite variations. Mabel is a rough-hewn girl from a miner town who loves playing with animals and skinny dipping (from a very wide angle); she is sent to her rich aunt and becomes involved in a kind of love square through no fault of her own. It's really as much melodrama as anything else, but it comes off. There are plenty of twists, especially as the end draws near, involving who is rich and who is poor when; these remain able to keep the interest, and make a kind of commentary too, intentional or not, on the true insignificance of wealth.

This has been cited as the first feature-length comedy starring a single comedian rather than an ensemble cast, but even so it feels fairly developed as a form, with decent pacing and plot developing in two places at once. This is a simple story well told, and really made by its star, who is well showcased.

Country tomboy Mabel Normand (as Mickey) is sent from rustic Feather River, California to live on her snooty aunt's Long Island, New York estate. The free-spirited Ms. Normand enjoys cavorting with animals - and skinny-dipping for cameramen with very long lenses. Nobody is sure if Normand owns a gold mine or is penniless, so she is treated as both an heir and a servant (at different times). Normand attracts debonair millionaire Wheeler Oakman (as Herbert Thornhill) and overly amorous Lew Cody (as Reggie Drake). After numerous hi-jinks, "Mickey" ends up with a winning man and (we hope) lives happily ever after...

That Mabel Normand did not survive the ravages of fame was a great loss...

Normand was an excellent actress and comedienne. Unfortunately, she did not leave behind enough material to fully appreciate her worth. This production reportedly took two years to complete, with Normand's personal problems contributing to the delays. Fortunately, her "partying" lifestyle does not adversely affect Normand's performance as "Mickey". This was one of Normand's best feature-length films. The plot is rather ordinary, but the star handles each situation well. Herein, she is most memorable portraying a carefree servant girl, sliding down the banister and ingeniously sweeping her aunt's dusty mansion floors.

******* Mickey (8/11/18) F. Richard Jones ~ Mabel Normand, Wheeler Oakman, Lew Cody, George Nichols

The adventures of a gold miner's daughter, Mickey stars Mabel Normand, who was one of the biggest film stars of the teens and 20s. In a series of episodes that are loosely connected, Normand plays a Cinderella-like character who goes to live with a relative (Laura La Varnie) but when it's discovered the gold mine is a bust, she is made a maid in the household. But she catches the eye of the old lady's daughter (Minta Durfee) and is eventually sent back to the country just as the mine strikes it big. The suitor (Wheeler Oakman) follows her. The plot seems to stray here and there without much narrative thread. At one point, a lecher (Lewis Cody) is chasing Mabel around a mansion, and then we're off to the horse races. But while the episodes are tacked together, Mabel Normand holds the viewer's attention throughout the 90 minutes.

This film was co-produced by Normand and Mack Sennett. George Nichols, Minnie Devereaux, Tom Kennedy, and Edgar Kennedy co-star. And yes Minta Durfee was famous for being the wife of Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, a famous co-star with Normand in many short films. And the music by Neil Moret (who died in 1943) is absolutely great. I hummed the songs for days and learned to play them on the piano.

Normand's reputation is that she was a superbly gifted and beloved comedienne whose career was thwarted by scandal and her own reckless behavior. Having just read Lefler's "Mabel Normand The Life and Career of a Hollywood Madcap', I was surprised to learn that 'Mickey' - a HUGE box-office success - was in the public domain and available. This film was so popular it was in continual theatrical release for 4 years - an astonishing feat! - when the average film run was 2 weeks.

So I watched it. On YouTube. Not the ideal venue, of course, but even so, I fail to see why this film was so popular. Lefler explains the historical context for it's appeal to audiences, but still, 'Mickey' seems to me to be rather ordinary. And worse, I fail to see that Normand was superbly gifted as a comedienne. The biggest laughs - and there were too few of these - were provided by the dog - a good foil for Normand.

Because this film is historically important, it deserves to be given a top-tier restoration. Maybe the multi-million dollar Hollywood actors and producers can be cajoled into donating some of their millions for this purpose. Preserving the films of the industry of which they are a part should be to them a cause worthy of their support, one that is no less important - and definitely more achievable - than saving the planet.

Mack Sennett and star Mabel Normand co-produced this 1918 silent comedy/melodrama which, surely, satisfied the era's moviegoers. Normand, a natural comedienne, plays "Mickey," an orphan raised by a rough and grizzled down-on-his-luck miner abetted by a corpulent, exasperated but loving woman-of-all-chores.

Back East, New York to be exact, Mickey's aunt, as impecunious as she is extravagant, skirts with ruin as she hopes her daughter will win the affections of The Decent Man. Scheming mom and grasping daughter hope an engagement will bring them real solvency.

Not too hard to guess what happens. As the piano music goes on - and on and on and on - the hero goes West to handle a mine boundary issue. He meets the sparkling Mickey and her menagerie before she leaves for the East with her miner guardian. But the seeds of love have been planted.

Mickey's been cordially invited to live with auntie under that harridan's very mistaken and soon to be blown belief that the young girl is the key to a rich mine's bounty. Finding that to be very wrong, Mickey is ordered into domestic service by nasty auntie. Yep, Cinderella story, sort of. And we all know - as did the Great War audiences - how such stories MUST end. A happy Mickey and her guy.

Sennett was a master at comedies that entertained without surprising. No dazzling or innovative cinematography here, just a guaranteed good hour and a half at the theater (or, now, in front of a TV).

Normand strayed off the reservation of both respectability and sobriety not that many years after "Mickey" when she was at the height of popular acclaim with a Goldwyn contract. Stars didn't have the bounce-back capability many seem to enjoy today and her close association with two lurid murders, neither of which she was implicated in, hastened a downward spiral already in freefall.

She died fairly young of tuberculosis, her career practically ended. But she remains alive in films that show the depth of comedic ability of a talented actress who could make audiences laugh without their ever hearing her utter a syllable. "Mickey" is one of her best efforts.

In 1970, Bernadette Peters, who just opened in a well-received Broadway revival of "Gypsy," played Mabel in "Maude and Mack," a musical about the director/star duo. The play didn't do well on the Great White Way but it's become something of a staple for amateur theatrical groups. Normand would have appreciated that.

Well worth renting or buying.

8/10.

'Mickey' jumps quickly from one silly scene to another, with the idea of being a comedy, but having so few laughs it feels more like drama. When the mean carer at the beginning is nothing but dominant and restrictive towards her it evokes sympathies, not laughs. With a complete lack of cleverness in the script then it falls solely on Mabel Normand's lively facial expressions to achieve this, but talented as she is, it is a bridge too far. Furthermore, her bright, energetic, cutesy performance doesn't sell tomboy to me at all - it doesn't sell to me that she has been raised by this insensitive man for most of her years - and it is either miscasting, misdirection, poor scripting or a combination of all three.

Mable Normand is forever remembered for her comedies for Mack Sennett. These two-reel films were fun but also quite short and were done strictly for laughs. "Mickey" was a major change for Ms. Normand, as now she was making a full-length film and one which was more of a melodrama. In fact, it's very much a style film that Mary Pickford made famous from the late 1910s through the 1920s--playing a very young lady who, by the end of the film, has found love and happiness.

Mickey is a young tom-boy (Normand) who lives with her father's old mining partner. It seems her father died and this man has cared for her for many years. However, as she gets older, he realizes he's not much good teaching her how to become a lady and he sends her off to live with her aunt. As for the aunt, she only wants Mickey because she learns she owns a mine. When she discovers the mine isn't productive, she makes Mickey a servant in the home--much like Cinderella. But, just after the aunt gets rid of Mickey, she learns the mine has finally paid off and Mickey is rich--and suddenly she DOES want Mickey to live with her! Well, in the meantime, there is a man who has fallen for Mickey--and he cannot find her in order to propose. But the aunt decides to sic her no-good son on her and he proposes to Mickey. Can the old boyfriend find her before it's too late?!

While this film is a VERY predictable old fashioned melodrama (aside from the bizarre horse race sequence near the end--I did NOT see that coming), it's a NICE predictable old fashioned melodrama! Sure, you can figure out what's going to happen long before it does, but the film is so well made and enjoyable you don't really mind. Sweet and quite charming. It's sure a shame that Mable's career and life were cut so short--I would have loved to see more films like this one.

By the way, I think parts of the end of this film must have been missing. That's because there are very few intertitle cards early in the film. Yet, near the end, there are several with extensive exposition--like it's filling in for gaps in the film.

Mickey lives out west with her guardian, Joe Meadows, who tends the mine owned by Mickey's father. Mickey meets Herbert Thornhill, who has traveled west to check on his own mine. The two begin to develop a friendly relationship. When her father dies, Meadows sends Mickey to live with her Aunt and cousins back east. The aunt, Cousin Elsie, and Cousin Reggie are taken aback by Mickey's tomboyish looks and ways, and reduce her to no more than a servant when they learn she is poor. Mickey is surprised to meet up with Thornhill again, who is to be engaged to Elsie. Eventually, Mickey's aunt tosses Mickey out of the house. But just moments later, the aunt receives a telegram saying that Mickey's mine has come in and the girl is a millionaire. The aunt races after Mickey and brings her back. Then Reggie sets his sights on Mickey, and attempts to have his way with her. It's Thornhill to the rescue.

I was a bit disappointed in this film. This is certainly not a bad movie, but for all the hoopla surrounding it, I expected better. This just came across as a standard story, with no surprises. Well, there is one surprise. Normand (or a double) goes skinny-dipping, but she is seen in a long shot, so she's mostly a blur. Overall, Normand is appealing, and the other actors are more than competent. Of some interest is the performance by a Native American named Minnie, who plays Joe Meadows' housekeeper. She has some good scenes, acting motherly/grandmotherly towards Normand. Trade papers described her as Cheyenne.

There are some emotional scenes that are touching, particularly when Mickey is ordered out of the house. She is abused and her clothes are torn off her; the pain and humiliation are plainly written across her face. But then this is followed with a wild chase scene involving a train and car, definitely played for laughs.

There are delightful recurring shots of Mickey sliding down the banister in her aunt's home, reveling in childlike joy. Then, there are some unbelievable developments, such as when Mickey disguises herself as a jockey to win a horse race, after she learns Reggie has "fixed" the contest to wipe out Thornhill.

The constant shifts between drama and comedy were a bit too much for me. However, the film is worth a look.

'Mickey', as all Mabel Normand films, has her at the centre of attention from the beginning till the end. The camera, the action, the entire plot, are all attracted to her like magnets. And Normand is excellent in this film, establishing her status as silent era's first lady of comedy.

And we do have a great comedy. Full of suspense, 'Mickey' is never tiring, never boring. We are to witness the adventures of a mine-owner young girl, who cares for mining as much as donkeys care for belts being pushed down their throats. She is a mischievous child who, even when she is brought in the rich household of her aunt in the East, never tires to be a child. Yet it is remarkable what love can do.

The supporting cast is all first rate, with Wheeler Oakman, George Nichols, Minnie Devereaux or Laura La Varnie, all delivering some great comedic performances that seem to be untouched by the axe of time. But they are all there for Normand, who does everything from jumping nude into the water to riding horses and some impressive high altitude stunts. She was one of a kind, and 'Mickey' is there to prove it.

I sure wish someone would restore the prints and create new soundtracks for these silent gems. This one, Mickey, a Mabel Normand - Mack Sennett comedy, is virtually screaming out for a restoration. It was extremely popular when it first came out in 1918, and a song "Mickey" sold a million sheets, and was recorded by many of the orchestras and singers of the day on 78 rpm records.

It's great fun, with Mabel (Mickey) playing a country miner's daughter who is sent East to live a privileged life in Great Neck, Long Island. Only the aunt who takes her in discovers that Mickey's mine is failing and so the poor girl is made a servant.

There is a sweet romance that brightens up the action, fight scenes, and a rather risque sequence where Mabel runs through the woods and dives from a rock into a lake stark naked. Definitely made before censorship came in!

Mickey is a great feature to watch if you are interested in what made Mabel Normand such a great star in her day. Drama queens in the silents are a dime a dozen, but true comedy stars, especially female, are rare and should never be forgotten.

Dogs love her, cats love her, jackasses love her and squirrels love to run up her pants legs. Well, who can blame them, right after a scene where she is shown diving nude.... with a suitably long lens of course. Darn it.

There is nothing terribly novel about this Cinderella story of a movie, but it is all carried off with a great deal of charm. Mabel even gets to cut a few capers, instead of simply looking charming while the comedians around her make a mess of things. She's not a great physical comedian, but she is a fine actress and under the direction of comedy *wunderkind* Richard Jones, she gives a fine performance, as does just about everyone in this movie.

Mabel Normand gives a very lively, engaging performance that makes "Mickey" an entertaining movie with several other strengths. The supporting cast all help out as well, and the story effectively moves back-and-forth between the backwoods and the big city. It combines comedy and melodrama effectively, and while it contains mostly familiar elements, it's the kind of movie that is quite enjoyable to watch.

The role of "Mickey" gives Normand some good material to work with, and as always she is sympathetic and charming. Part of the story is set in a mining settlement, where Mickey is right at home, and part of it moves into high society, where she is ill at ease. Both settings are believable and make good backdrops for comedy, and both are also used to bring things out about Mickey and the other characters.

The supporting cast, which includes Wheeler Oakman as Mickey's suitor, has its own comic moments, and Minta Durfee gives an effective performance as the snobbish society girl who is Mickey's romantic rival.

While none of the components of "Mickey" are especially imaginative or innovative, they are all of good quality. It all fits together to make an enjoyable movie.

The zenith of Mabel Normand's career, and probably of Mack Sennett's as well. After things went sour between Mack and Mabel in late 1915, the Queen of Keystone departed her kingdom in Edendale, and relocated in New York to make a series of Fatty and Mabel films. On her return Mack pre-empted the queen's abdication, and met Mabel with the promise of her own studio, and funding to make a feature film. The film was to be called 'Mountain Bred' – now known as 'Mickey'. Mabel put her heart and soul into the studio (a mile from Keystone), making it into a palace, resplendent with carpets and fresh flowers. Her dressing room was in a garden alongside the studio. Massive signboards proclaimed this as The Mabel Normand Studio. Problems were encountered with the series of directors Mack put in place, and he eventually agreed to Mabel's choice of F. Richard Jones, a young man mistrusted by Sennett.

This film is really superb, and was, as Mack intended, the movie that 'would make D.W. Griffith want to boil himself in oil'. Griffith's 'Birth Of A Nation' grossed a then record $15 million dollars against Mickey's $18 million. Mabel was at her very best in the movie, risking life and limb to perform amazing stunts at the behest of Jones – he seems to have spent the next nine years attempting to kill her. Minta Arbuckle tried to prevent Mabel from performing hazardous scenes on days when she seemed far from well. Minta played the sister of playboy Reggie Drake (Mabel's future husband Lew Cody) whose mother is a conniving, money-grabbing eastern socialite.

When the film opens we find Mickey living in a remote mountain wilderness under the guardianship of miner Joe Meadows (George 'Pops' Nichols). As usual Mabel is a tomboy who enjoys horse-riding and swimming in mountain lakes, among other capers. When Joe loses patience with Mickey's antics, he gives her a stern lecture in their cabin, and shows her his belt. Mickey escapes the cabin with Joe's belt, and feeds it to the donkey.

It is while swimming one day that Mickey (apparently naked) is spotted by Herbert Thornhill, who is in the mining business, surveying the land. Mickey is courted by Thornhill, much to the chagrin of Joe, who realizes Mickey is no longer a child, and decides to put her with relatives, the Drakes. When Joe and Mabel arrive at the Drake's eastern residence, she is shocked at the sight of the huge mansion. When Mrs Drake finds Mickey has no money she is put to work as a 'slavey', but Reggie Drake is fascinated by Mickey. However, Thornhill, it transpires, has become engaged to Elsie Drake, but realizes his mistake when he finds Mickey at the house. In a nutshell, Reggie turns out to be a crook and a cad, while Herbert turns out to be a millionaire, who proffers bankruptcy to avoid marrying Elsie. Of course, righteousness wins through, and Herbert marries Mabel, whose inherited mine has come good.

There are some very good scenes in the film, such as where Mickey tells Minnie Ha Ha how Thornhill kissed her hand, sending her into raptures. Hazardous scenes include Mickey climbing onto a steeply sloping roof, and jumping onto a horse from behind, Indian style. The dramatic scene where a fast-running racehorse tumbles over, was filmed using a stuntman, but Mabel did break her arm falling from a horse in the backwoods. Mabel is simply delightful all the way through.

This film was made during a tumultuous time at Keystone. Mack was embroiled in multiple business disputes, and he lost control of the film. After filming 'Mickey', Mabel fled into the arms of Sam Goldwyn, and the studio was sold off. Mack pursued Mabel, sending lawyers to New York to re-negotiate her Goldwyn contract. Unfortunately for Mack (and us) Mabel accepted a $1,500 per week salary from Goldwyn (compare with the $13,000 per week Chaplin was then getting). The 18 films Mabel starred in for Goldwyn were not a patch on Mickey, although Mabel's name ensured they made money. Mabel's Mickey and Sennett films of the 1920s are so much better than those put out by producers Goldwyn and Roach. This is because Sennett was 'hands on' and not an absentee producer like the other two.

One of the mysteries of this film is the name change from 'Mountain Bred' to 'Mickey'. This might be due to Adolph Zukor taking over the distribution of Sennet's films in 1917. Zukor had a daughter with the nickname 'Mickey', and Sennett always bowed low before the mighty Zukor. If so, then what did Mabel think of this — she had once threatened to 'brain' Zukor with a heavy book, and later wrote him an impertinent letter. Needless to say, Mabel never did not receive offers from Zukor's companies (e.g. Paramount) in spite of fatally sucking up to Paramount director W. D. Taylor.

Minnie Devereaux plays pipe-smoking Indian squaw Minnie Ha Ha. Minnie was a genuine Cheyenne Indian. When given a book about Amerindians, she threw the volume across the room exclaiming 'White man speak with forked tongue!' Asked to appear in a film about Custer, she simply spat on the floor and stormed off. Minta Arbuckle wears a large cameo in 'Mickey'. This has a picture of herself, commissioned by husband Fatty. Mabel also had one made, later worn by niece Mabel at the first showing of musical 'Mack and Mabel'. The famous full-length portrait of Mickey once hung in the Normand family's Staten Island home, but Stephen Normand tells that Mabel's trunk containing costumes and mementos from 'Mickey' was 'stolen' by friend Julia Benson and sold at auction.

Mickey (1918)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

When Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand's personal relationship took a hit (two stories are out there), he tried to bring some peace by forming the Mabel Normand Feature Film Company, a separate division of Keystone. This new studio only turned out one film but it was a hit for the studio even after a disastrous production. In the film Normand plays Mickey, a poor girl helping her uncle in a worthless mine. Feeling she's all grown up, the uncle sends her to New York to live with an aunt hoping that she will turn the young lady into a woman. MICKEY is pretty predictable from start to finish and I even though some of the 74-minute running time dragged in spots. Still, it's easy to see that everything going on was just done so that Normand could shine and I think she does just that. There's no question that it's Normand who makes the film worth seeing due to her very strong performance. She's pleasant no matter what situation is in front of her. It could be the early tomboy stuff in the mines, the scenes where she's trying to figure out you don't sweep dirt under a rug or the scenes where she must make decisions for the rest of her life. Mabel is clearly the star of this picture and without her the bland story would have killed any shot at an entertaining movie.

Following a two-year gestation, 'Mickey' finally hit cinemas in the summer of 1918. Although none of the existing prints appear to bear any technical credits, two directors and three directors of photography are attributed to it, hinting at the stop-start nature of its production, to which the disjointed nature of the completed production - with its frequent and abrupt changes of locale - attests. No matter, 'Mickey' then went on to be the year's top box office earner.

Although the film is frequently confusing, the money is certainly up on the screen, and the scenes in auntie's Long Island mansion if anything look even better than the rural ones, particularly during the final chase sequence, which is considerably enhanced by the atmospheric set design. Mabel herself throws herself into the proceedings with gusto, whether illicitly scoffing the cherries off a cake, skinny dipping off a cliff or riding a racehorse dressed as a jockey. I've commented before on the remarkable frequency with which adventure films from this era put their leading ladies into trousers, and as Mickey, Mabel spends most of the film wearing them; from her first appearance as a tomboy out in the sticks to the finale when she clambers across a rooftop in jodhpurs.

During the Coronavirus Pandemic of 2020, Hollywood was forced to drastically trim its production pipeline because of restrictions. One hundred years before, the Pandemic of 1918 more or less had the same effect on the film industry. The Spanish Flu had caused major disruptions in the output of feature films, despite some shorts, such as the vast quantity of Harold Lloyd's productions, from being released.

A Bayside, Long Island, New York theater owner, desperate for movies to show over the summer of 1918, contacted producer Mack Sennett, who had an inventory of movies he made during his days with Triangle Pictures. The theater owner asked if there were any little seen motion pictures laying around Sennett could provide him. The former Keystone Studio owner, caught in the middle of Triangle's breakup, remembered a Mabel Normand feature film two years before which he unsuccessfully peddled. He shipped a print to the theater. Word of mouth quickly spread in the New York area how surprisingly good "Mickey' was, and before long other movie houses clamored for prints.

In the end, Adolph Zukor's Paramount Pictures was able to scoop up the remnants of Triangle's films, which included "Mickey." His company made some edits and widely distributed the movie, which became the box office hit of 1918, making $8 million (over $200 million in 2020 inflationary figures). Paramount continued to re-release the film annually for the next three years, raking in the dough each time.

Despite the film being silent, August 1918's nationwide re-release of "Mickey" became so popular songwriter Harry Williams composed "Mickey," a song where he had based his lyrics on the film. Some cite this as the first tie-in song to a film, assuring a best-selling status for the record and furthered the publicity of the the movie even more .

For Normand, the immense success of "Mickey" came a bit late to secure a very lucrative contract. She had left Sennett, both romantically as well as businesswise and signed with the newly formed Goldwyn Pictures for $3,500 a week. Samuel Goldfish, former chairman of the Board with Famous Players-Lasky Company, had left the corporation in a dispute, and with two Broadway producers formed Goldwyn Pictures. Goldfish legally changed his name in December 1918 to Goldwyn, and became romantically involved with Normand, who allegedly had a miscarriage with his baby.

During the earlier production of "Mickey," Normand was going through a pretty rough time. Her romance with Sennett was drawing to a close when she discovered he was having an affair with actress Mae Busch. Legend has it Normand confronted the fiery Busch, who, during the argument, threw a vase right at her head. She was rushed to the hospital and major surgery was able to save her. Normand never quite recovered from her injuries, suffering much pain the rest of her life, which kicked off her rumored cocaine addiction.

Singer/songwriter Stevie Nicks, in her "24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault," included her 1985 song on the actress, heavily relying on the age-old accusation of Normand's drug use. The actress herself, in a later interview, denied such stories and her addiction to the drug.