H.M. Walker

WALKER, H.M. (Harley Marquis Walker) started as a telegrapher, tapping out the descriptions of sportswriters at boxing matches and sending them to the offices of their newspapers. In 1903 he became a sportswriter himself and wrote a column, “The Wisdom of Blinkey Ben,” for the Los Angeles Examiner before joining Roach in 1917 as a part-time scenario and title writer for Harold Lloyd. In 1920, he left newspaper work and joined Roach full time as head of the editorial department. A brilliant title writer in the silent era, Walker was less skilled at dialogue; he was credited for providing these elements on more than 350 Roach comedies. He usually came up with the title for each film and also wrote fairly severe critiques after each preview. A...