Stan Laurel

Stan Laurel (June 16, 1890 – February 23, 1965), born Arthur Stanley Jefferson, was a comedian and member of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy.

Laurel and Hardy

The first encounter of the two comedians in a film took place in The Lucky Dog (1921). They first appeared in the same Hal Roach film in Forty-Five Minutes From Hollywood (1926), and their first 'official' film was The Second Hundred Years (June 1927). This was the birth of the Laurel and Hardy partnership that would last for the next 30 years.

Related Topics:
1921 - 1926 - 1927

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

On December 10th, 1927, another birth took place, that of Laurel's daughter, Lois. In 1929, Stan and Ollie (Oliver Hardy's nickname) made a transition from making silent movies to talking pictures. Their first talking picture was Unaccustomed As We Are.

Related Topics:
December 10 - 1927 - 1929

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

At Roach Studio, Stan did not have the creative control he wanted, but it was nonetheless productive and profitable. Stan arranged for his lifelong friends, Alice and Baldwin Cooke, to work at the studio. In 1930, Lois Nielson, his wife, gave birth to a boy. However, he was two months premature and died nine days later. In spite of his sorrow, Laurel began filming Pardon us.

Related Topics:
Roach Studio - Premature

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In December 1931, he began the filming of The Music Box, one of his best films. It won an Oscar for "Best Comedy Short Subject" in 1932. Stan, Oliver Hardy and their families left for a vacation, which was impeded by the hordes of fans who continuously greeted them. During the trip, Stan and Ollie got to know each other more and soon became best friends. Stan Laurel later said about Oliver 'Babe' Hardy "Babe was like a brother to me. We seemed to sense each other. Funny, we never really got to know each other personally until we took the tours together. When we made pictures, it was all business even though it was fun. Between pictures, we hardly saw each other. His life outside the studio was sports, and my life was practically all work. Even after work was over, I loved editing and cutting the pictures, something he was not interested in. But, whatever I did was tops with him. There were never any arguments between us, never".

Related Topics:
December - 1931 - The Music Box - Oscar - 1932

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~