The WC Fields comedy International House seems like a regular sort of comedy that one would expect from him at the time. On its face, it certainly doesn't seem special.
This totally holds up and doesn't look creepy or inappropriate in any way...
But the filming of the movie took place during the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, which was felt up and down Southern California. This pre-dated modern earthquake building codes, so damage was extensive and devastating.
This was also the first major disaster to strike the area since it became the home of the major studios. While the tremor was felt in Hollywood, the movie colony didn't suffer the same damage as other areas. As it turns out, the cast of International House was filming during the tremor and they dealt with it in a calm, authoritative manner. The camera was left running and the resulting footage was made available to newsreel producers who included the amazing footage in their reports on the disaster. Newspapers worldwide reported on the film and its hectic moments on set. An amazing story, but it's now believed to be untrue. Some say that WC and the director faked the footage as a publicity stunt. True or not, it worked, bringing a lot of attention to the film.
