On the Fire
About On the Fire
Harold Lloyd, a lazy chef, cooks from his chair with pulleys, long tools, and a hoe that gathers eggs. A seafood order sends him fishing in the restaurant fountain, and he is demoted to waiter. He plays up to the women at the tables, Bebe Daniels among them, and annoys the men. A fire breaks out, he fights it with a hose, and the manager pulls a gun on him.
Cast & crew
More about On the Fire
Hal Roach produced the short and is credited as director. Pathé Exchange released it on 23 February 1919, and some prints are titled The Chef. A production log dates the shooting to 12–20 August 1918 and names Walter Lundin as cameraman and H. M. Walker as title writer.
Themes
Making
The restaurant in the titles on one viewing log is the Restaurant de la Sordide, with William Gillespie as the owner.
Look
Walter Lundin is credited as cameraman on the Roach production log for the short.
Preservation
Prints survive in several film archives.
Notes
- Snub Pollard plays the assistant chef. Bud Jamison is a diner.
- Lloyd's gadgets include ropes that lower saucepans onto the stove.
- When he aims a shot at a fish in the fountain, Pollard is the one who gets hit.
- Prints are in several archives, and the short has been issued on DVD.
Scenes
- From his chair he lowers pans by rope and rakes eggs in with a hoe.
- He fires at a fish and hits Snub Pollard instead.
- He turns a hose on the restaurant fire, and the manager draws a gun.
Also available
- Wikimedia Commons (On the Fire (1919).webm)
