Laurel and Hardy.

[RealityChuck]

@Jim_s_Son

Gleason also said that Laurel was the brains of the group. That fits in with what other people have said. I noticed recently in reading about Gracie Allen on wiki that while her comedic character was often silly and stupid (although often she could do things quickly, like a jigsaw puzzle that stumped everyone else), in reality she was a very bright person.

I’ve noticed that is not uncommon for comedy teams. Martin and Lewis, Abbott and Costello, and Rowan and Martin are other ones where the dumber character on stage was the main creative force.

I was never a big fan, finding them inferior to people like the Marx Brothers, W.C. Fields, and Mae West at the same time period. Andrew Sarris pointed out that they were always second string, even being eclipsed by Abbott and Costello at the end. But they seem much better compared to modern comedians.

[BobLibDem]

I like all the classic comic artists. Personally, I’m partial to W.C. Fields but Laurel and Hardy are still funny to me.

[C_K_Dexter_Haven]

@RealityChuck

I’ve noticed that is not uncommon for comedy teams. Martin and Lewis, Abbott and Costello, and Rowan and Martin are other ones where the dumber character on stage was the main creative force.

Add the Smothers Bros to this list.
My favorite Gracie Allen: "She is the man who owns the grocery store’s sister.

[Labdad]

I’ve searched on you tube, but I can’t find the clips.

Two of my favorite L&H routines:

Stan and Ollie are both drinking something. Stan asks Ollie for the time. Oliie, while still holding his glass, turns his arm to look at his wrist watch, and dumps the drink in his lap! Angry, he then asks Stan for the time. Stan, still holding his glass, walks over to Ollie and shows him HIS watch, and in the process dumps HIS drink in Ollie’s lap. I know, the description isn’t that funny, but the bit makes me howl.

The other bit is when Stan “smokes his pipe” by stuffig tobacco into his clenched fist, lights it up while sucking on his thumb, and proceeds to smoke away to Ollie’s astonishment. Again, you have to see it to appreciate it.

[Hogfather65]

@Labdad

I’ve searched on you tube, but I can’t find the clips.

Two of my favorite L&H routines:

Stan and Ollie are both drinking something. Stan asks Ollie for the time. Oliie, while still holding his glass, turns his arm to look at his wrist watch, and dumps the drink in his lap! Angry, he then asks Stan for the time. Stan, still holding his glass, walks over to Ollie and shows him HIS watch, and in the process dumps HIS drink in Ollie’s lap. I know, the description isn’t that funny, but the bit makes me howl.

The other bit is when Stan “smokes his pipe” by stuffig tobacco into his clenched fist, lights it up while sucking on his thumb, and proceeds to smoke away to Ollie’s astonishment. Again, you have to see it to appreciate it.

Ollie had his watch on the outside of his wrist - Stan had his on the inside - maybe that will help…

[terentii]

@Jim_s_Son

Did see one of their films recently (they are in same army outfit in WWI, Stan gets left behind and patrols the trench for 20 years before he his found, Ollie brings him into his house, etc..forget the name). Still works pretty well.

I remember Jackie Gleason saying he used to go drinking with “Babe Hardy” as he called him (I assume some people made a connection with Babe Ruth) and that Hardy drank like his character..exaggerated motions with his pinky raised. Gleason also said that Laurel was the brains of the group.

The movie you’re referring to was Blockheads, made in 1938, I believe.

I remember one documentary that said Oliver picked up the nickname “Babe” as a very young man in Georgia from a barber that, uhm, took a liking to him. :rolleyes: Without his mustache, he really did look like a chubby little angel, even later in life. He was in fact quite athletic. It wasn’t so much that Stan Laurel was the “brains” of the outfit (Oliver gave many brilliant comic performances on his own, before they were teamed together), it was just that Oliver didn’t have the patience for the nuts-and-bolts of film production and happily entrusted it all to Stan. Ollie was much happier outdoors playing golf than he would have been sitting around the studio writing gags or editing film.

[terentii]

@RealityChuck

Andrew Sarris pointed out that they were always second string, even being eclipsed by Abbott and Costello at the end.

Hardly that. By the late '30s, the situation in Hollywood was changing rapidly, especially at the Hal Roach Studios. Laurel and Hardy had been at it for 20 years already, and were being forced to do bits they didn’t want to do more and more often. They were also starting to show signs of physical aging. Rather than “eclipsing” Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and Costello simply represented the upcoming generation of comic actors and the change in comedy film production as the big studios gained prominence and the makers of shorts declined.

[Doug_K]

I don’t think “Babe” was an uncommon nickname way back when. Jerome “Curly” Howard was also known as “Babe” to family and close friends.

[astorian]

@terentii

The movie you’re referring to was Blockheads, made in 1938, I believe.

I remember one documentary that said Oliver picked up the nickname “Babe” as a very young man in Georgia from a barber that, uhm, took a liking to him. :rolleyes: Without his mustache, he really did look like a chubby little angel, even later in life. He was in fact quite athletic. It wasn’t so much that Stan Laurel was the “brains” of the outfit (Oliver gave many brilliant comic performances on his own, before they were teamed together), it was just that Oliver didn’t have the patience for the nuts-and-bolts of film production and happily entrusted it all to Stan. Ollie was much happier outdoors playing golf than he would have been sitting around the studio writing gags or editing film.

Calling Stan Laurel the “brains” of the team (as I did) is not to suggest that Oliver Hardy was stupid.

It’s merely to recognize that Laurel was the undisputed idea man and decision maker of the team.

And Oliver Hardy LIKED it that way. He was generally perfectly willing to do whatever Stan thought would work best.

That’s not always the case, with musical or comedic duos. Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel often butted heads, as did Abbott & Costello, Rogers and Hammerstein, and many others. When you have TWO guys with healthy egos who both want to be the boss, clashes are inevitable. But that didn’t happen with Stan and Ollie because, as you say, Oliver Hardy was only too HAPPY to go play golf or go out to dinner, and let Stan Laurel write new bits or handle the business end of things. “Whatever Stan decides is okay with me” was his guiding philosophy.

That doesn’t mean Hardy wasn’t a vital member of the team. Laurel knew he was lucky to have a partner who always seemed to understand exactly what Laurel wanted from him, with minimal explanations.

[Scarlett67]

Best Laurel & Hardy clip ever: “Shine On, Harvest Moon”

[Becky2844]

@Dendarii_Dame

I don’t remember much of their film work, but I did enjoy March of the Wooden Soldiers.

I read an anecdote years ago in which Oliver Hardy’s daughter was taking care of him after he’d had a stroke. He could no longer speak. Stan Laurel would come over to visit with him and they would communicate in pantomime perfectly.

This touched me. Why don’t they have stuff like this on E! TV?

[TreacherousCretin]

@Jim_s_Son

I noticed recently in reading about Gracie Allen on wiki that while her comedic character was often silly and stupid (although often she could do things quickly, like a jigsaw puzzle that stumped everyone else), in reality she was a very bright person.

I used to watch the Burns And Allen show on TeeVee when I was younger. I always thought that when Gracie would say something idiotic, then look at George as he reacted, her eyes would give her away. Dumb stuff came out of her mouth, but her eyes blazed with intelligence.
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