Lisa Stein Haven is an Associate Professor of English at Ohio University Zanesville, a regional campus of Ohio University. She specializes in 20th century British and American literature and composition. Her research interests are exclusively in silent film comedy, especially the work of Charlie and Syd Chaplin, Buster Keaton and now Max Linder.
Haven organized and directed the first ever Charlie Chaplin conference on American soil, “Charlie in the Heartland: An International Charlie Chaplin conference” October 28-30, 2010. The event was attended by participants from 11 countries outside the United States. Luminaries such as Kate Guyonvarch (Roy Export S.A.S.), David Robinson (“Chaplin: His Life and Art”), Chuck Maland (“Chaplin and American Culture: The Evolution of a Star Image”), David Shepard, film preservationist and many others participated.
Haven has served on the board of the Buster Keaton Celebration in Iola, KS since 2009.
Haven frequently presents papers or lectures on silent film comedy topics. She presents at BKC every year and has presented at the EBSN (European Beat Studies Network) two times, both on Chaplin and the Beats. In 2014, she was a Keynote speaker at Charlot 100, the anniversary celebration of the creation of Chaplin’s Little Tramp in Bologna, Italy, June 2014. In 2015, she presented a program on Syd Chaplin at the Cinema Museum in London, UK. She’s also participated in several radio programs on Chaplin, including one on the BBC and most recently on France Radio Culture (July 2016). Most recently, Haven was interviewed from an upcoming documentary on Sydney Chaplin, produced by Steamboat Films, Paris (a division of Lobster) and Cine + Classic television, called “Sydney: l’autre Chaplin,” to be broadcast in November 2017.
In addition to her many publications, she has contributed to several DVD/Blu-ray packages on Chaplin, including Criterion films edition of “Modern Times” and “The Kid.”
Haven’s new book projects include an historical dictionary of Charlie Chaplin, which will be part of Scarecrow/Rowman & Littlefield’s well respected series. And, a new and exciting venture, the first life and art book-length study of Max Linder in English, for which Haven will travel at least to New York and Paris (for a month-long stay) and will be collaborating with Catherine Cormon of the Amsterdam EYE Film Museum.
Haven lives in Zanesville, OH with her violinist husband, Mark Haven, her two dogs, Kallie and Stella and her cat Charlie.
