Mack Sennett (January 17, 1880 – November 5, 1960) was a Canadian -born Academy Award-winning director and was known as the innovator of slapstick comedy in film. During his lifetime he was known at times as the "King of Comedy."
Born Michael Sinnott in Richmond, in the province of Quebec, Canada. Sennett was a son of Irish Catholic immigrant farmers; his father was a blacksmith in the small Eastern Townships village. At age 17 his family moved t...
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Mack Sennett (January 17, 1880 – November 5, 1960) was a Canadian -born Academy Award-winning director and was known as the innovator of slapstick comedy in film. During his lifetime he was known at times as the "King of Comedy."
Born Michael Sinnott in Richmond, in the province of Quebec, Canada. Sennett was a son of Irish Catholic immigrant farmers; his father was a blacksmith in the small Eastern Townships village. At age 17 his family moved to Connecticut.
The family lived for a time in the Massachusetts town of Northampton, where, according to his autobiography, Sennett first got the idea to go on stage after seeing a vaudeville show. He claimed that the most respected lawyer in town, sometime Northampton mayor and later president of the United States Calvin Coolidge, and Sennett's mother tried to talk him out of his theatrical ambitions.
In New York City, Sennett became a singer, dancer, clown, actor (mostly playing low comedy parts, usually oafish rural types), set designer and...
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