With special thanks to
Laurel & Hardy- The Official Web-Site
The Players - Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy
Stan Laurel
was born Arthur Stanley Jefferson on 16 June, 1890 in Ulverston, England;
died on 23 February 1965.
The son of a British showman, Stan Laurel had been raised in British music halls.
In 1910 he made his first trip to America as a member of the Fred Karno
musical-comedy troupe, which also included Charlie Chaplin.
Laurel stayed in the United States, touring in vaudeville and landing an occasional movie job.
Oliver Hardy
was born Norvell Hardy on 18 January, 1892 in Harlem, Georgia;
died on 7 August 1957.
Oliver Hardy had been destined for a military career, but opened
a movie theater in Milledgeville, Georgia, instead.
He next found work as an actor in Jacksonville, Florida, home of the Lubin film company.
Hardy later moved to Hollywood, and by the mid 1920s,
he was working as an all-purpose comic at the Hal Roach studio.
Laurel and Hardy's partnership at the Hal Roach studio began in 1926.
Within a year of their first joint appearance, they were being touted
as the new comedy team.
After collaborating on many silent films, they took the transition to the talking film in stride.
As their success spread throughout the world, they began making feature films
as well and won an Oscar for their short subject entitled "The Music Box" (1932).
After the team left the Hal Roach studio, they formed their own production company
but were unable to repeat the success they had enjoyed under the guidance of Hal Roach.
Laurel & Hardy Feature Films
As the economics of motion picture exhibition changed in the 1930s,
Hal Roach needed to produce feature-length vehicles for Laurel & Hardy.
Filmgoers then and now treasure
WAY OUT WEST, BLOCK-HEADS and SONS OF THE DESERT
among their best full-length feature films.
After SAPS AT SEA (1940) Laurel & Hardy left the Hal Roach Studios and signed
with major studios 20th Century-Fox and MGM. From 1941-1945
they made eight feature films - six for Fox and two for MGM.
In 1951 Laurel & Hardy made their final film appearance together
in the disastrous UTOPIA, aka ATOLL K.
Laurel & Hardy Feature Films for the Hal Roach Studios (1931-1940)
1931
Pardon Us
1932
Pack Up Your Troubles
1933
Fra Diavolo (aka The Devil's Brother) Sons of the Desert
1934
Babes in Toyland (aka March of the Wooden Soldiers)
1935
Bonnie Scotland
1936
The Bohemian Girl Our Relations
1937
Way Out West
1938
Block-Heads
Swiss Miss
1940
A Chump at Oxford
Saps at Sea
Laurel & Hardy Feature Films for FOX and MGM (1941-1945)
1941
Great Guns (20th Century Fox)
1942
A-Haunting We Will Go (20th Century Fox)
1943
Air Raid Wardens (MGM)
Jitterbugs (20th Century Fox)
Dancing Masters (20th Century Fox)
1944
The Big Noise (20th Century Fox)
Nothing But Trouble (MGM)
The Bullfighters (20th Century Fox)
Other Laurel & Hardy Feature Films
1939
The Flying Deuces
1951
Utopia (aka Atoll K, Robinson Crusoeland)
