This Leon Errol short, The Jitters, recreates in part one of his most famous eccentric comedy dancer routines from the Ziegfeld Follies 20 years after he first performed it. Many folks don't know that Leon Errol was one (if not THE) most important stage comedian of the 1910s. Not only did he create a racial breakthrough when he chose to partner in comedy skits with African American comedian Bert Williams in four Ziegfeld Follies but Errol was one of Ziegfeld's frequent directors of the Follies. Errol went on to star in and direct a number of very successful Broadway revues and stage musicals before making silent films (mostly lost). Determined to maintain a freelance control of his film career, Leon likely realized that he was considerably older than most comedians that studios were willing to invest and promote them into 1930s and 1940s stars like Joe E. Brown, W. C. Fields and Bob Hope. Although Leon's birth date is given as 1881, it could well be 1876--otherwise he would have been 14 or 15 while studying in medical school in Australia! The Jitters is one of his best and funniest shorts: 2 one-reel comedies melded into a two-reeler that displays Leon's talents to perfection.
Review of The Jitters
