The Silent Clowns Film Series is New York’s longest-running regularly scheduled silent film showcase. Our programming reaches the serious film buff by including rarely-screened titles and rare prints, yet it also introduces kids and new audiences to the classics of the silent screen. Screenings feature live piano accompaniment by MoMA’s Ben Model, with an introduction and Q&A by film historians Model and Steve Massa.

Although Sydney Chaplin’s solo work has always been over shadowed by that of his younger half-brother, the “other” Chaplin was a talented comic and behind the scenes comedy creator. Oh! What a Nurse! (1926) is a rare example of the late 1920’s features that Syd starred in for Warner Brothers, which showcased his own sizeable talents and mastery of English music hall comedy. A selected short subject opens the bill.