Modern Family star Eric Stonestreet will be bringing the real life drama and downfall of Fatty Arbuckle to HBO in The Day the Laughter Stopped. The project will detail how the popular movie star lost his career and became the victim of what could be considered the first trial by media. Vulture reported this news exclusively and also revealed that HBO favourites Kirk Ellis (John Adams) and Barry Levinson (You Don't Know Jack) are slated to perform writing and directing duties. The venture is based on David A. Yallop's book of the same name and the title is taken from this Buster Keaton quote:
"But one day in September, 1921, all of the laughter stopped. Overnight what had been innocent fun was suddenly being denounced as 'another Hollywood drunken orgy' or 'one more shocking example of sex depravity.' The day our laughter stopped was the day that Roscoe Arbuckle was accused of having caused the death of Virginia Rappe."
Eric Stonestreet has been interested in the tragic story of Arbuckle for some time, and told Vulture that it is partly because they are both from Kansas but also that "he went from this jolly person who fell down and entertained people into a sexual deviant. It's a true story people don't know about, with a twist." Thanks to the success of Modern Family (including an Emmy win for Stonestreet last year) he was able to become involved with this Fatty Arbuckle production. However, he was concerned that this popularity of Modern Family might hamper his chances of playing the legendary figure as people might see him only as Cam. To avoid this Stonestreet transformed himself with the help of friends into Arbuckle using make-up, prosthetics and costume and took those photographs to the HBO pitch meeting. Stonestreet says that these visual aids helped the HBO executives see that he "could disappear into character."
The story really is a fascinating one; Arbuckle went from being the biggest movie star to a pariah after he was accused of the rape and murder of Virginia Rappe in San Francisco, on Labor Day weekend in 1921. Paramount shelved 3 of his completed films before a verdict in his trial had even been given, as they feared political interference if they didn't act swiftly. The notorious William Randolph Hearst used his tabloid empire to lead a campaign against Arbuckle that also contributed to his swift decline. It didn't matter that Arbuckle was in fact acquitted after not one but three trials, his career and immense popularity had been destroyed. One important factor in this time period was prohibition and the conservative leanings of the country that were in motion when this tragic event occurred.
The Day the Laughter Stopped sounds like a terrific project and is the kind of HBO story that will do well come award season. Eric Stonestreet has already shown that he is well equipped in the comedy department and this looks like it could showcase his dramatic side. With another Emmy nomination this year for Modern Family it looks like Stonestreet should clear some space on his shelves.
