Cohen on the Telephone

USA, 1929, 9 minutes, B&W
with sound, in English
Directed by Robert Ross

DIGITALLY RESTORED
by The National Center for Jewish Film

Questions about this title for Home or Classroom/ Library Use? Please email us at ncjf(at)jewishfilm(dot)edu

Arrange a Screening

Public Exhibition Formats: Blu-ray, DVD

Synopsis

With the advent of sound, the vaudeville-immigrant genre added comic speech to its repertoire of physical comedy and funny situations. Here, the Jewish immigrant, compassionately played by George Sidney, is characterized not simply by how he moves and looks, but by how he speaks. From his office, Cohen telephones his landlord to ask him to fix a window that was blown out by a storm. Unfamiliar with the telephone and still uncomfortable with the English language, Cohen embroils himself in a comic monologue of misunderstanding.

Selected Screenings

Atlantic Jewish Film Festival (2015)
Toronto Jewish Film Festival (2015)
Savannah Jewish Film Festival (2015)
World Premiere of New Digital Restoration NCJF's 17th Annual Film Festival Jewishfilm.2014
Washington Jewish Film Festival (2014)
Cinebeasts/Anthology Film Archive, New York (2012)

NCJF Film Restoration

Preservation and restoration was completed with support from The Rhoda and Louis Scovell Charitable Foundation Fund.

2014 Restoration © The National Center for Jewish Film
Executive Director Sharon Pucker Rivo
Co-Director Lisa Rivo
Technical Director Richard Pontius
Film Transfer Gamma Ray Digital
Digital Restoration Modulus Studios

Credits

Director Robert Ross
Film Editor Phil Cahn
Cinematographer George Robinson
Recording Supervision C. Roy Hunter

Cast
George Sidney (Cohen)