Al St. John was one of the most prolific silent comedians, but today he is one of the most overlooked and under-appreci­ated. The son of Roscoe Arbuckle’s older sister, Al was brought into show business by his uncle, just six years his senior. At Keystone, the persona that St. John de­veloped was something like an evil grem­lin’s country cousin, as Fatty’s rival and chief nemesis. After supporting Arbuckle for many years, in 1919 he moved to his own solo comedies. Eventually the last remnants of his country boob character were discarded. Red Pepper was his first for Jack White Comedies, and not only highlights his character of a clean-cut (but still bumbling) young man about town, but also his great talent as a trick bicycle rider. St. John would continue his comedy shorts into the early 1930s, and then embark on a whole new career as western sidekick “Fuzzy” St. John.

Steve Massa