Here is some footage taken in 1956--one of their last times together before Hardy died.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...LJrbzHAQ&hl=en
Here is some footage taken in 1956--one of their last times together before Hardy died.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...LJrbzHAQ&hl=en
There is a L&H marathon on TMC August 23. Their best work from th roach years are featured...
June 16 marks Stan Laurel's 118th birthday!
"Men At Work" was the first VHS tape I had. I still have it!!
Actually it was his older half-brother, who had the STAR WARS character like name of Bardy Tant. I used to live in Milledgeville, Georgia, where the drowning happened and where Ollie is a fairly major local celebrity (along with author Flannery O'Connor, the World's Largest Abandoned Lunatic Asylum, and the inspiration for the story PARIS TROUT).
Hardy's father was an old man, a Confederate officer who married Hardy's mom, a widow with several kids (including Bardy) and left her broke with baby Oliver when he died. She took Bardy and the other kids with her to Milledgeville where she was a cook and hotel manager for a number of years.
Bardy Tant, the older maternal half-brother, was a slim, athletic, very good looking guy who starred in all of the local plays and talent shows and was loved by all the ladies, old and young and in-between. It was always assumed he'd one day be a celebrity of some sorts. Meanwhile Oliver, then known as Fatty (rural Georgians being nothing if not creative) looked pretty much the same as he looked in later years, just without the moustache. He was so fat that when he was a student at the local military academy he passed out during maneuvers and it took eight students to carry him back to the dorms. He was totally in his older brother's shadow (which is ironic considering how much larger his own was) with the exception of one talent: he was said to have one of the most beautiful singing voices ever heard, at least until his voice changed (after which it was still nice, but not as striking).
Anyway, "Fatty" was just the sort of pathetic kid brother of the city's most eligible bachelor. When Bardy drowned, Oliver was devastated- so was his mom and so was the town (think Buddy's death in FRIED GREEN TOMATOES). However, in the aftermath Fatty started to emerge a bit from the shadows. He'd always had a sense of humor, but it became more ribald and more noticed after his brother's death.
Fatty also was something of an entrepreneur: he noticed how many people were traveling by the carload to Macon 40 miles away (this in the 1910s when car rides over dirt roads were a misery) and decided to borrow all he could, make an arrangement with a local dry goods merchant, and start showing films in the mercantile. It was a success, he made his money back, and then as now the most popular films were comedies and action films. Sometimes Fatty would entertain the crowd himself when there was a technical problem or just between reels, and many much preferred that to the movies themselves. Somewhere along the line he heard from enough people "You're funnier than anyone in them there picture shows" and he decided to go for it; he loaded up the truck and he moved to...
Jacksonville, Florida, which is where most of the movies he showed were being made. (Jackonville was, believe it or not, on par with Hollywood [and New Jersey] for a very brief window of time.) Obviously he eventually left Florida for Hollywood by way of quickly forgotten no-budget silents (most of them long gone) and nightclubs, and then- pardon the cliche- the rest is film history. A funny story though about "a Prophet in his own country"-
A few years later when he was an unqualified smash as a film star, one of his films finally made it to Milledgeville. (Film distribution in those days wasn't like today- it sometimes took years for a hit film to play the small towns.) By this time he was living the high life in Hollywood, had the home in Beverly Hills and all that, and had teamed with Laurel. His impressive success was treated with a headline in the Milledgeville paper (the Union Recorder) that's still on display in local businesses and museums:
FATTY HARDY A HIT IN MOVIES: BARDY TANT'S BABY BROTHER A SUCCESS
C'est la vie. (Unfortunately his entrepreneurial success from his teen years wasn't a lifelong habit as he wound up near broke due to gambling, the Depression, divorces, etc..)
The other major Georgia connection to Laurel and Hardy was through GONE WITH THE WIND. As, of course, the official state epic of Georgia, it played for years on circuits around the state and if the promoters could get ANY of the film's stars to come it was a big deal and there'd be balls and banquets and the like. Naturally Vivien Leigh and the other "name on the poster" talents were very seldom enticed to appear, but some of the lesser known actors who needed extra money were often glad to come to Macon or Savannah or Augusta or wherever and be treated like royalty (while in Hollywood they were 1940s D-list). The most frequent ones on this circuit of GWTW revivals were Scarlett's sister Careen (Ann Rutherford) and Scarlett's first two husbands. The first husband, Charles Hamilton, was played by Rand Brooks, who was married to Stan Laurel's daughter Lois, and so basically the people felt they got a two-fer (there are three cities in Georgia that claim Oliver Hardy [Dublin, Milledgeville, and Harlem] and this gave them a claim on both.)
Oliver hardy is from a little town in Ga near here and I always say I want to go the the laurel & Hardy festival they have but never do.
http://www.harlemga.org/ohfest.htm
I must respectfully disagree with Sampiro on one point of his marvelous post. Hardy did not start out in no budget films. Hardy first went to Jacksonville in early 1913 and auditioned for the Edison Studios (a major studio) and was turned down. He tried again in late 1913 and was hired by Lubin studios as the comic "Fat-Boy". Lubin was a General Services Associate and had national distribution and was one of the top ten of major studios at the time, headquartered in Philadelphia. In less than six months Hardy went from bit player to full fledged star. He then went to Vim studios where he not only starred, but wrote and directed his comedies. While at Vim he was part of the comedy team Plump and Runt who were very popular making Hardy a national star. Hardy then went to work for a Chaplin imitator Billy West. Though an imitator, the West comedies were very popular. After West's studio folded, Hardy went to work for a comedian named Larry Semon. Larry Semon was a rival of Chaplin and Arbuckle. Larry Semon was the first silent comedian to sign a million dollar contract. Hardy plays the Tin Woodman in Semon's version of the WIZARD OF OZ. It was while working for Semon Hardy enjoyed worldwide fame for the first time as Semon's films had worldwide distribution due to their popularity. Larry Semon hit the skids in 1925 and Hardy for the first time in his movie career was working aimlessly in supporting roles at studios big and small. At one of those studios, the Hal Roach Studios, former Billy West director Charley Chase convinced Roach to change Hardy's day worker status to full blown stock company member. While supporting other comedians at Roach, Hardy was directed in several films by Stan Laurel. Hardy supported Laurel in a one-off film for a minor studio in 1921 called LUCKY DOG. In 1926 Laurel and a fellow named Syd Crossley were to star in a film when Crossley became ill and could not be in the picture. He was replaced with Oliver Hardy and the rest is history.
"Everybody is born, and everybody dies. Being born wasn't so bad , was it?"
Peter the Hermit
what marvelous information! thank you for this insight! l and h are my surrogate papa's and i will love them til i die!
pull the string!
If he was turned down, then no film was made, and if no film was made then there was no budget. Quad erat demonstrandum.
(Security Eunuchs---arrest this person! I believe this matter tends to treason and is clearly pro al-Quaeda in its sympathies and its inception.)
I LOVE Laurel and Hardy, I believe the "Way Out West" dance is the funniest shit i've ever seen!! My Fav movie is "Babes in Toyland" Some of the funniest stuff ever in that movie! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPf8HTipQxc
Oliver Hardy was born in the same town I was...
I believe Lois Laurel lives in Solvang California. I love Laurel & Hardy. The comedians of today could take lessons from them. I just wish their movies were played more these days.
now that is interesting! the times ive been to solvang and not tried to visit or get in contact! thanks for that info ethel! i have the full collection of l and h tapes and she usually does a little intro at the beginning of each one and tells a little anecdote about her dad with pictures!
pull the string!
pull the string!
stan, daughter Lois, and dinah the mule, who featured in 'way out west'
pull the string!
I wish they were on TV more. Forget Mike Myers and Adam Sandler...Laurel & Hardy ARE the best!
I believe Stan's daughter lives in Solvang California.
Van Dyke delivered the eulogy at Stan's funeral. It was reprinted as the foreward in Jonh McCabe's Mr Laurel and Mr Hardy.
I met Van Dyke at a trade show about 10 years ago and asked him about his relationship with Stan. He is flattered by any comparison/connection to his style of comedy and L/H, and very sincere in his affection for Stan.
I Think They Have Some Of Thier Stuff On Youtube.com
I had no idea? I know they were stairs for that but the same ones that Laurel & Hardy? Hmm.
I have 1 Laurel & Hardy DVD. I usually give my Dad Laurel & Hardy DVDs for his birthday, like this year.
I understand they will have a marathon next month on TCM. They had it on every Saturday. I watch it every year. I do wish TCM would air Laurel & Hardy regularly, along with Three Stooges but thats for another thread.
Great Post Thank's
I went to L.A a good few years ago now and went to check out the steps from the music box, had my picture taken with my mates.
It wasn't until a good few years later when i saw a photo of the steps that we had sat on the wrong bloody ones, not best pleased i can tell you lol.
I was also warned it was a pretty rough area, but it seemed ok to us at the time.
And Yes, THE GREATEST EVER, i just love the guys
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...LJrbzHAQ&hl=en
Here's a nice little video of Laurel's funeral. It's very touching.
Renowned Death Hag
These two may be in a class all to themselves. I'm not sure if anybody was or is as funny as them. I was watching the TMC marathon today and was blown away by their comic genius. These guys make you laugh out loud even after you've seen the scene ten times before. Such as when Ollie lit the stove after Stan left the gas at full blast for two minutes............KA-BOOM!
That's the Great thing about these guys, you know scene after scene but keep watching all the time.
I always remember watching 'The Crazy World Of Laurel & Hardy' and right at the end, it says 'time to say goodbye for a while' to two funny Gentlemen
and two funny Gentle men, always sums them up for me.
If you ever get the chance to go to the laurel & hardy museum in Ulverston, then do so
This is a thread that needs to be bumped, and bumped it will be.
As with many of us, I grew up watching Laurel and Hardy. I loved their movies, but I liked their short features even more. My favorite was always the one discussed above, 'The Music Box.'
I got a shock a year or so ago while watching 'Blazing Saddles' with my son. He's usually pretty quick on the uptake with things like puns and plays on words, but when he got to the scene with the guy practicing the speech for the new sheriff ('we give you this laurel [wreath], and hearty welcome...) he never cracked a smile. I told him he had missed one, and backed the scene up and played it again. Still nothing. That's when I found that my son, who was raised in the age of 200 channels on cable, had never seen Laurel and Hardy before, and had no idea who they were. It took me a month, but I finally got a DVD that includes, among other shorts, 'The Music Box.' To me, that counts as an educational tool. No child of mine will grow up ignorant of Laurel and Hardy!
One more quick story to add to MagnusDippytack's excellent recounting of their last days. I read a story that mentioned that Hardy received few visitors after his stroke. People came to see him when it first happened, but in the long run few people were comfortable spending time with a paralyzed mute. The one exception was Laurel, who visited regularly. It seems that the old partners, who had worked originally in silent movies, communicated every bit as well silently as they did in words.
I tell you something, anyone who doesn't find Laurel & Hardy funny or endearing must've had a sense of humour bypass.
Decades on, they're still up there with the best. That surely is a measure of their greatness and popularity.
Thankyou for all the info on here,I absolutly love these guys.They were and will forever remain the best and funniest.
My mum,sisters son and daughter,neices and nephews,infact everone I know still regard them as timeless and incredibly gifted and funny.
My sister and myself are coming to LA next week,our first time to the us.And will be going to visit there graves and the steps.
Thanx kev
Welcome kev. If you search around enough, you'll find lots of great information here. We are an eclectic bunch!
Thankyou ratkin638 I have booked a dearly departed tour.I can't wait woo hoo
Great team and quite timeless, always a pleasure to watch, and I think I shall :P
One would think you would need sound to be really funny but
silent films accomplished hilarious films without sound.
The silent OUR GANG comedies are priceless with humor!
When I was a kid they used to show the silent Our Gang films
on our local TV station and they were hilarious!!!!
They have actually moved the museum in Ulverston now to just up the road, my folks went recently, and they have not long erected a statue
That is such a cool statue!!! Thanks for sharing!!!!
http://www.lettersfromstan.com/stan_1958a.html
This site is interesting!!!
my mom always watched their movies when i was growing up. my favorite was always The Music Box.
i think they were really an inspiration for a lot of more current comedians/comic actors. i remember watching the extras on the Office dvd (the original way funnier British version, that is!), and the actor who played Tim said he used a lot of cues from Stan Laurel for his characters flustered expressions..and once he said that i really noticed it. his expressions are very Stan Laurel! if you ever get the chance to watch the original version of the Office, i highly suggest it. such a different brand of comedy compared to the U.S. version!
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
From my rotting body, flowers shall grow and I am in them and that is eternity. ~Edvard Munch
Statue returns after 7 years along with diary of adventures:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotlan...-west-12773490
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.