Mabel at the Wheel

1914 film

Mabel at the Wheel

Normand and Chaplin in a still from the film

Directed by| Mabel Normand
Mack Sennett
Written by| Mabel Normand
Produced by| Mack Sennett
Starring| Charles Chaplin
Mabel Normand
Harry McCoy
Chester Conklin
Mack Sennett
Al St. John
Joe Bordeaux
Mack Swain
William Hauber
Cinematography| Frank D. Williams

Production
company

Keystone Studios

Distributed by| Mutual Film

Release date

* April 18, 1914 (1914-04-18)

Running time

| 18 minutes
Country| United States
Languages| Silent film
English (Original titles)
Mabel at the Wheel

Mabel at the Wheel is a 1914 American motion picture starring Charles Chaplin and Mabel Normand, and directed by Mabel Normand and Mack Sennett.[1][2] The film is also known as Hot Finish.[2]

## Plot[edit]

Charlie offers Mabel a ride on his two-seater motorcycle, which she accepts in preference to his rival's racing car. Unfortunately, as they go over a bump, she falls off into a puddle. The rival, who has followed in his car, picks up the now stranded Mabel. He lets her drive, sitting tight beside her.[3]

Charlie at last notices she is gone and falls off the bike. He sees them together now stopped and standing beside the car. They leave the car for a short while and Charlie lets down the rear tyre. His rival returns and is furious. They throw rocks at Charlie and he throws them back. The rival's friend appears and gets caught up in the rock-throwing confusion.

We cut to "The Auto Race" where Charlie hovers round the cars. The drivers usher him away when they see he has a sharp pin. Charlie stands puffing heavily on a cigarette. He uses his pin to get through the crowd, where he propositions Mabel and gets slapped. Charlie then whistles and two thugs appear and kidnap his rival just before the race starts. But Mabel decides to don his racing clothes and take the wheel in his place.

As the race progresses, despite a very late start, Mabel, with a co-driver beside her, manages to gain a lead of three laps. Charlie with his henchmen, tries to sabotage the race by using oil and bombs on the track. The oil temporarily spins Mabel's car, no.4, around and it goes backwards for a lap until the oil spins it around again to continue the right way. The car tips over on a bend but a group of men push the heavy 1913 Stutz Bearcat upright again. Meanwhile, the rival escapes his ropes and sees Mabel driving his car. The crowd stand as she crosses the finishing line. The rival and his friend go to congratulate her. Meanwhile, Charlie throws a bomb in the air and blows up both himself and his two thugs.

## Review[edit]

A reviewer from the New York Dramatic Mirror wrote of the film, "The bright particular star who carries the lead [in Mabel at the Wheel] is Charles Chaplin. Long acquaintance with the speaking stage, and a naturally funny manner of appearing have made him, in the three months' experience that he has had in motion pictures, second to none. Mabel Normand carries the female lead with her usual bright success. This is a Keystone comedy, having said which you proceed to qualify with all the adjectives standing for funny, burlesque, grotesque, farcical or screaming that you can think of, and leave with the fear that you have not done it justice. Yes, there is no sense in it, as usual."

## Cast[edit]

* Charles Chaplin \- Villain
* Mabel Normand \- Mabel
* Harry McCoy \- Mabel's boyfriend
* Chester Conklin \- Mabel's father
* Mack Sennett \- Reporter
* Al St. John \- Henchman
* Joe Bordeaux \- Dubious character
* Mack Swain \- Spectator
* William Hauber \- Mabel's co-driver
* Dan Albert - Cheering Spectator (uncredited)
* Charles Avery - Spectator in Grandstand (uncredited)
* Charley Chase \- Race Spectator (uncredited)
* Alice Davenport \- Spectator in Grandstand (uncredited)
* Minta Durfee \- Spectator in Grandstand (uncredited)
* Edgar Kennedy \- Spectator in Grandstand (uncredited)
* Charles Lakin - Cheering Spectator (uncredited)
* Grover Ligon - Henchman (uncredited)
* Fred Mace \- Dubious character (uncredited)
* Edward Nolan \- Spectator (uncredited)
* Fred Wagner - Race Starter (uncredited)

## See also[edit]

* List of American films of 1914
* Charlie Chaplin filmography

## References[edit]

1. ^ "Charlie Chaplin : Mabel at the Wheel". www.charliechaplin.com. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
2. ^ a b "Mabel at the Wheel". prod-www.tcm.com. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
3. ^ Silently, Movies (April 17, 2016). "Mabel at the Wheel (1914) A Silent Film Review". Movies Silently. Retrieved March 8, 2023.

## External links[edit]

* Mabel at the Wheel at IMDb
* Mabel at the Wheel at AllMovie
* Mabel at the Wheel on YouTube
* Mabel at the Wheel is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive

* v
* t
* e

Charlie Chaplin

* Filmography
* The Tramp
* Chaplin family

Books|

* My Autobiography
* Chaplin: His Life and Art
* Charlie Chaplin: Intimate Close-Ups
* Chaplin: A Life
* Sunnyside

Songs|

* "Smile" (1936 music, 1954 lyrics)
* "Eternally (Terry's Theme)" (1952 music, 1953 lyrics)
* "This Is My Song" (1967)

Other|

* United Artists
* 3623 Chaplin
* Charlie Chaplin Studios
* Manoir de Ban
* Montecito Inn
* Chaplin & Co
* Charlie Chaplin comics
* Charlie Chaplin's Comic Capers
* London statue

Films about Chaplin|

* Chaplinesque, My Life and Hard Times
* Unknown Chaplin
* Chaplin
* Charlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin

Musicals about Chaplin|

* Little Tramp
* Chaplin (1993)
* Chaplin (2006)

Films directed by Chaplin|

| Keystone Studios|

* Twenty Minutes of Love (1914)
* Caught in the Rain (1914)
* A Busy Day (1914)
* Her Friend the Bandit (1914)
* Mabel's Married Life (1914)
* Laughing Gas (1914)
* The Property Man (1914)
* The Face on the Bar Room Floor (1914)
* Recreation (1914)
* The Masquerader (1914)
* His New Profession (1914)
* The Rounders (1914)
* The New Janitor (1914)
* Those Love Pangs (1914)
* Dough and Dynamite (1914)
* Gentlemen of Nerve (1914)
* His Musical Career (1914)
* His Trysting Place (1914)
* Getting Acquainted (1914)
* His Prehistoric Past (1914)

|

Essanay Studios|

* His New Job (1915)
* A Night Out (1915)
* The Champion (1915)
* In the Park (1915)
* A Jitney Elopement (1915)
* The Tramp (1915)
* By the Sea (1915)
* Work (1915)
* A Woman (1915)
* The Bank (1915)
* Shanghaied (1915)
* A Night in the Show (1915)
* A Burlesque on Carmen (1915)
* Police (1916)
* Triple Trouble (1918)

Mutual Film Corp|

* The Floorwalker (1916)
* The Fireman (1916)
* The Vagabond (1916)
* One A.M. (1916)
* The Count (1916)
* The Pawnshop (1916)
* Behind the Screen (1916)
* The Rink (1916)
* Easy Street (1917)
* The Cure (1917)
* The Immigrant (1917)
* The Adventurer (1917)

First National|

* A Dog's Life (1918)
* The Bond (1918)
* Shoulder Arms (1918)
* Sunnyside (1919)
* A Day's Pleasure (1919)
* The Kid (1921)
* The Idle Class (1921)
* Pay Day (1922)
* The Pilgrim (1923)

United Artists|

* A Woman of Paris (1923)
* The Gold Rush (1925)
* The Circus (1928)
* City Lights (1931)
* Modern Times (1936)
* The Great Dictator (1940)
* Monsieur Verdoux (1947)
* Limelight (1952)

Later productions|

* A King in New York (1957)
* A Countess from Hong Kong (1967)

See also|

* The Chaplin Revue (1959)

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