Fatty Arbuckle's Fingerprints: Race, Photographic Evidence, and the Smudge.

  • Published In: JCMS: Journal of Cinema & Media Studies, 2025, v. 64, n. 2. P. 78 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Jeffay, Tory 3 of 3

Abstract

This article uses the historical entanglement of photography and fingerprinting in order to explore the racialized fallibility of visual evidence and the operation of a forensic imaginary in the interpretation of photographic imagery. Looking at the forensic evidence in the trials of silent film star Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, I argue that the over-investment in what can be known from photographic evidence stems from a racialized desire to make imagined difference visible and knowable. Ultimately, I suggest the figure of the smudge rather than the fingerprint better characterizes the unstable nature of photographic evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:JCMS: Journal of Cinema & Media Studies. 2025/01, Vol. 64, Issue 2, p78
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Visual Arts
  • Publication Date:2025
  • ISSN:2578-4900
  • DOI:10.1353/cj.2025.a951187
  • Accession Number:183178664
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of JCMS: Journal of Cinema & Media Studies is the property of Society of Cinema & Media Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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