Ben Turpin
Actor

Ben Turpin Net Worth

Ben Turpin was a famous cross-eyed comedian of the silent era. Born in New Orleans in 1869, he was the son of a French-born confectionery store owner. He started his career by chance while bumming in Chicago, and went on to perform on the burlesque circuit and under circus tents. He joined Essanay Studios in 1907 and was introduced to Charles Chaplin, who set him up with Mack Sennett. With his trademark crossed eyes and thick mustache, he made scores of slapstick films alongside the likes of Mabel Normand and 'Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle'. He retired from full time acting in 1924 to care for his ailing wife, but returned after her death the following year. The advent of sound marked the end to his special brand of physical comedy, and he was only glimpsed from then on, mostly in comic cameos. He died of heart disease in 1940.
Ben Turpin is a member of Actor

Age, Biography and Wiki

Who is it? Actor, Director, Soundtrack
Birth Day September 19, 1869
Birth Place  New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Age 150 YEARS OLD
Died On July 1, 1940(1940-07-01) (aged 70)\nSanta Monica, California, U.S.
Birth Sign Libra
Birth name Bernard Turpin
Medium Comedian, actor
Years active 1907–1940
Genres Silent films
Spouse Carrie Lemieux (m. 1907–1925) (her death) Babette Dietz (m. 1926–1940)

💰 Net worth: $100K - $1M

Biography/Timeline

1869

Turpin was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on September 19, 1869, the son of a candy store owner, Ernest Turpin, and Sarah Buckley.

1907

Ben Turpin first appeared on film in 1907 for Essanay Studios in Chicago in various small parts and comic bits. In addition to his on-screen work, he worked as a carpenter and janitor for Essanay. In the 1909 film Mr. Flip, Turpin receives what is believed to have been the first pie-in-the-face. By 1912 he was an established – if not major – screen personality, giving interviews and writing articles for the new fan magazines (the first of which had started the year before).

1915

Charlie Chaplin joined the Essanay company in 1915, and the studio made Turpin his second Banana. Chaplin was maturing as a filmmaker, working slowly and intuitively. Turpin, however, was impatient with Chaplin's methods. The earthy Turpin understood straightforward slapstick more than comic subtlety. The Chaplin-Turpin duo didn't last long, with Chaplin abandoning Chicago for California. Turpin does share one additional credit with Chaplin: after Chaplin filmed Burlesque on Carmen in two reels, Essanay filmed new scenes with Turpin to pad the picture into a featurette, doubling its length.

1917

In 1917 Ben Turpin joined the leading comedy company, the Mack Sennett studio. Turpin's aptitude for crude slapstick suited the Sennett style perfectly, and Sennett's Writers often cast the ridiculous-looking Turpin against type (a rugged Yukon miner; a suave, worldly lover; a stalwart cowboy; a fearless stuntman, etc.) for maximum comic effect. Through the 1920s his roles often spoofed serious actors and celebrities of the time – e.g., "The Shriek" for "The Sheik" – and Turpin became one of film's most popular comics. Turpin appeared in both short subjects and feature films for Sennett. Delighted with his success, he took to introducing himself with the phrase, "I'm Ben Turpin; I make $3,000 a week."

1920

Turpin famously bought a $25,000 insurance policy with Lloyd's of London, payable if his eyes ever uncrossed. A 1920 version of the story had his eyes insured for $100,000. How serious this was is open to question; such publicity Stunts centered around a performer's "trademark" were Common at the time.

1928

Sennett terminated most of his staff's contracts in 1928, and closed the studio to retool for the new talking pictures. Turpin was signed by the low-budget Weiss Brothers-Artclass company, perhaps the most ambitious coup that Artclass ever attempted. Turpin made two-reel comedies there for one year. Artclass usually traded on his peculiar vision with titles like Idle Eyes and The Eyes Have It.

1929

1929 saw many silent-film stars uncertain about their Future employment, with the new talking pictures requiring new skills and techniques. Ben Turpin chose to retire. He had invested his earnings in real estate, and, being highly successful at this, had no financial need for more work. Producers soon sought him out for gag appearances in films. He commanded a flat fee of $1000 per appearance, regardless of whether it was a speaking role or a fleeting cameo. Among the most memorable of these cameos was in Paramount's Million Dollar Legs (1932) starring W. C. Fields, Jack Oakie, and Susan Fleming.

1935

He starred in only one more short subject, Keystone Hotel (Warner Bros., 1935), a two-reel reunion of silent-era comedians. Turpin's speaking voice was a gritty rasp that retained elements of the New Orleans "Yat" accent of his youth. His last feature film was Laurel and Hardy's Saps at Sea in 1940, in which his cross-eyed face served as a joke punchline. He was paid his $1000 for one quick shot of his face and just 16 words of dialogue. Death prevented his scheduled appearance in Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator.

1939

Turpin and Sennett both appeared as themselves (in Technicolor) in Hollywood Cavalcade (1939), a partly fictionalized movie about the silent-film era. This movie contains a sequence in which Turpin reports for work and prepares to go onto the set in character. In the dressing room he picks up a hand mirror and checks his reflection as he deliberately crosses his eyes as extremely as possible. In this sequence, it can be seen that Turpin's left eye was actually normal when he was not performing, and that he intentionally crossed it (to match his misaligned right eye) as part of his screen character.

1940

Ben Turpin died July 1, 1940 of a heart attack and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California, following a Requiem Mass at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills. He was eulogized as "a fine member of his church, strong in his faith" by Father J. P. Concannon. His pallbearers included Andy Clyde, Billy Bevan, James Finlayson, and Charlie Murray.

1969

In the film The Comic (1969), Mickey Rooney plays a fictional silent-film Comedian named "Cockeye Van Buren", who is genuinely cross-eyed. Although this character does not otherwise resemble Turpin, the handicap given to Rooney's role is clearly inspired by Turpin.

Some Ben Turpin images

About the author

Lisa Scholfield

As a Senior Writer at Famous Net Worth, I spearhead an exceptional team dedicated to uncovering and sharing the stories of pioneering individuals. My passion for unearthing untold narratives drives me to delve deep into the essence of each subject, bringing forth a unique blend of factual accuracy and narrative allure. In orchestrating the editorial workflow, I am deeply involved in every step—from initial research to the final touches of publishing, ensuring each biography not only informs but also engages and inspires our readership.