Keystone Cops

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Keystone Cops were a group of bumbling, slapstick policemen featured in early 20th-century silent film comedies, known for their chaotic chases and physical humor.

All labels observed (7)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf fictional police group ⓘ
silent film comedy characters ⓘ
slapstick comedy troupe ⓘ
activePeriodEnd 1920s ⓘ
activePeriodStart 1912 ⓘ
alsoKnownAs Keystone Kops ⓘ
associatedWith Mack Sennett ⓘ
silent era Hollywood ⓘ
countryOfOrigin United States ⓘ
createdBy Mack Sennett ⓘ
culturalImpact their name became a metaphor for inept, disorganized activity ⓘ
era early 20th century ⓘ
featuredIn numerous Keystone Studios short comedies ⓘ
fictionalUniverse Keystone Studios comedy shorts ⓘ
linked to: Keystone comedies
filmFormat short subjects ⓘ
filmTechnology black-and-white ⓘ
firstAppearance Hoffmeyer’s Legacy ⓘ
firstAppearanceYear 1912 ⓘ
genre silent film comedy ⓘ
slapstick comedy ⓘ
historicalContext silent film era of American cinema ⓘ
influenced later film comedy depictions of bumbling police ⓘ
slapstick chase sequences in cinema ⓘ
language silent ⓘ
legacy iconic image of early Hollywood slapstick ⓘ
term used in journalism to describe bungled operations ⓘ
medium silent short films ⓘ
movementCharacteristic frantic, uncoordinated running ⓘ
narrativeRole comic antagonists and protagonists ⓘ
notableFor chaotic chase scenes ⓘ
ensemble slapstick routines ⓘ
incompetent police behavior ⓘ
physical humor ⓘ
notableWork Hoffmeyer’s Legacy ⓘ
In the Clutches of the Gang ⓘ
The Bangville Police ⓘ
partOf Keystone Studios productions ⓘ
portrayedAs bumbling policemen ⓘ
incompetent law enforcement officers ⓘ
primaryAudience mass popular entertainment ⓘ
producedBy Keystone Studios ⓘ
productionCompany Keystone Film Company ⓘ
linked to: General Film Co.
style exaggerated physical stunts ⓘ
fast-paced ensemble choreography ⓘ
typicalGag collisions and pileups ⓘ
crowded car chases ⓘ
misdirected arrests ⓘ
typicalSetting urban American streets ⓘ
visualCharacteristic uniformed policemen in ill-fitting outfits ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (15)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Keystone Studios → hasPart → Keystone Cops ⓘ
Hank Mann → notableRole → Keystone Cop ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
Mack Sennett → notableFor → Keystone Cops comedies ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
Keystone comedies → hasPart → Keystone Cops films ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
Mabel Normand → employer → Mack Sennett Comedies ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
Ford Sterling → memberOf → Keystone Cops ⓘ
The Goat → plotSummary → Buster Keaton’s character is mistaken for a dangerous criminal and pursued through the city by police and townspeople. ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
David William Lieberman → notableRole → Keystone Cop ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
Mack Swain → partOf → Keystone Cops era of comedy ⓘ
subject linked to: Moroni Swain
linked to: Keystone Cops
Billy Bevan → workedFor → Mack Sennett Comedies ⓘ
linked to: Keystone Cops
Ben Turpin → employer → Mack Sennett Comedies ⓘ
subject linked to: Bernard Turpin
linked to: Keystone Cops
Michael Sinnott → notableWork → Keystone Cops ⓘ
The Bangville Police → features → Keystone Cops ⓘ
The Bangville Police → associatedWith → Keystone Cops ⓘ