The following is film historian Leonard Maltin’s “Legends of Laughter 2” introduction written specifically for Park Ridge Classic Film. LOL2 runs from March 3-May 26 only at the Park Ridge Public Library.
There is no guarantee that two or three comedians will provide double or triple the laughter of a single performer…yet comedy duos and trios were a staple of both vaudeville and movies. What’s more, the most successful teams bore no resemblance to each other.
Laurel and Hardy were overgrown children. Abbott and Costello were made up of a wiseguy and a schnook. The Three Stooges were as different from the Marx Brothers as oil and seltzer water.
In each instance, these entertainers found something that clicked when they worked together: a rhythm, a comic contrast, a balance or harmony. The stars aligned and magic was in the air. (Few of them had solid solo careers, although there were notable exceptions.)
I was lucky enough to grow up at a time when these films were ubiquitous on television. I got to watch Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy every single day, to the point where I not only memorized their films but felt as if I knew them. It might be tougher for a newcomer to embrace the duo right away, but I know that familiarity will breed the opposite of contempt: the more you see of them, the more you’ll understand and like them. That’s because they almost never broke character: there is no reason to believe that the fellows you see onscreen aren’t exactly who they seem to be.
In a similar vein, it’s impossible to think of Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and “Curly” Howard as actors playing characters: after just one short subject we are completely convinced that this is who they are. (And remember, in the 1930s and 40s, there were no talk shows to “expose” them to the public.)
On the other hand, Bob Hope and Bing Crosby gleefully broke the fourth wall and spoke directly to the audience—when that audience was gathered together in a theater, long before the advent of television—and made “inside” jokes that referred to their show business personas and popular radio shows. Moviegoers loved their irreverence.
Vaudevillians like Wheeler and Woolsey and nightclub performers like Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis found their own niche in movies…and, as I said before, bore no resemblance to any other duos.
This brand of show business has all but disappeared, but the enduring entertainment value of these films speaks to the timelessness of great comedy and the impact of watching inspired entertainers at work. So sit back and enjoy!
Copyright 2016 by Leonard Maltin
