The Keystone Kid: Tales of Early Hollywood

by Coy Watson Jr.

Coy Watson, Jr., made his motion picture debut in 1912 when he was nine months old. Before he could walk or talk, Watson had appeared in several of Mack Sennett’s popular “Keystone Cop” comedies, earning him the nickname “Keystone Kid.” From 1912 to 1930, Watson acted in over 60 movies, including The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Puttin’ on the Ritz, I’m No Angel , and State’s Attorney. Here Watson shares his beautiful memories of the early days of Hollywood and of being raised as a member of “the First Family of Hollywood.” Watson and his five brothers and three sisters were featured in over one thousand movies, and their father acted alongside the biggest stars of popular Westerns before becoming the first special effects man—and the first animal trainer—in Hollywood. Watson’s marvelous tales are illustrated with several hundred photographs featuring behind-the-scenes images of such movie stars and directors as Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Jackie Coogan, Fatty Arbuckle, Lon Chaney, John Barrymore, D. W. Griffith, King Vidor, and Frank Capra.

Genres: Media Tie In, Memoir

304 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2001

Reviews

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful memoir of hi days as a Hollywood boy floating around the silent movie industry.

[Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

Man, this seemed like a steal at the time. Discount bookshop and a big, glossy full of rich pictures of old Hollywood and the real-life tales of everyday goings-on. Meh. I got bored with this kid's life quickly, and since he seemed not too keen on giving any real scoop on the early stars, and his rich pictures seemed to be mostly himself and his family, I bailed. Perhaps it got better. But even those early movie-makers knew you have to grab the audience from the get-go.