A former professor offers film critic Simon the chance of a lifetime--to write a book on one of the greatest long-lost comedians of the silent-film era, Tubby Thackeray. Simon is determined to find out the truth behind the jolly fat man’s disappearance from film--and from the world.

Tubby’s work carries the unmistakable stamp of the macabre. People literally laughed themselves to death during his performances. Soon, wherever Simon goes, laughter--and a clown’s wide, threatening grin--follow. Is Simon losing his mind? Or is Tubby Thackeray waiting for him to open the door back to the world?