Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an Academy Award-winning American comic actor and filmmaker. Best known for his silent films, his trademark was physical comedy with a stoic, deadpan expression on his face, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face" Roger Ebert: The Films of Buster Keaton(referencing the Nathaniel Hawthorne story about the "Old Man of the Mountain").Nathaniel Hawthorne - Biography and Works He has also been called "The Michelangelo of Silent Comedy". In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Keaton the 21st greatest male actor of all time.

Keaton's career as a performer and director is widely considered to be among the most innovative and important work in the history of cinema. He was recognized as the seventh greatest director of all time by Entertainment Weekly.Greatest Film Directors and Their Best Films

A 2002 worldwide poll by Sight and Sound ranked Keaton's The General as the 15th best film of all time. Three other Keaton films received votes in the survey: Our Hospitality, Sherlock, Jr., and The Navigator.