#Randy Skretvedt

[travsd]

March of the Wooden Soldiers: The Amazing Story of Laurel and Hardy's "Babes in Toyland"

On this day in 1934 Hal Roach released his deeply twisted Christmas classic Babes in Toyland a.k.a. March of the Wooden Soldiers starring Laurel and Hardy et al. It’s the day of the year when I usually re-share my 2014 post about the film, with all of its links to my posts on the various artists connected with the film. Today, however, there’s fresh news to report. Author Randy Skretvedt, whom…

[itcertainlyisl-n-h]

Empi's Bedtime Stories 2:

Busy Bodies 1933

Busy Bodies has virtually no story. It's basically Laurel and Hardy playing with props and devising some inspired gags out of them for 20 minutes.  This is the team at their best-- unhurried, unencumbered by too much plot or too many supporting characters, milking all the laughs they can out of a single situation and this is precisely the type of thing which they would be unable to do in their features. Twenty minutes was just the right length for an L&H film; stretch it to an hour or more and the extra time would have to be filled with subplots and musical numbers.

The team’s comedy would change too.  Instead of extended milkings of one situation, they would rely more upon set pieces-- brief, self-contained routines that could be sandwiched between the plot sequences. The surroundings which suited Laurel and Hardy best --like those in Busy Bodies-- unfortunately didn't suit features very well.

This story was tentatively titled Fifty-Fifty for a reason not evident in the film or the script.  The written outline doesn't suggest new routines, just slight variations on ones which exist in the film. For example:  In the film, Stan is planing a piece of wood and when Ollie inadvertently bends over it, Stan “planes off” the seat of his pants.  However, the script suggests that Stan accidentally tear away the seat of his underwear as well. When Stan glues everything back, we cut to Ollie's backside and see that Stan has glued the fabric on backwards, so that a big strip of underwear is plainly visible. Stan gets some paint and covers it up.

The script then proposes that Ollie should retaliate by having Stan bend over and get the same treatment. Once Ollie has planed away the seat of Stan’s  overalls and undies, he applies the sticky glue directly to Stan’s backside, “ending up with a violent dig with the brush into Stan's fanny,” before reapplying the material.  This may have been considered a little too risque...In any event, Ollie gets his revenge in the film by simply giving Stan a sharp snap on the head with a saw.

The final sequence was also a bit different as scripted. Ollie is ejected from what the script calls a “sawdust-and-shavings suction pipe” into a pile of sawdust -- despite Mr. Laurel’s attempt to catch his partner. Ollie gets out of the that mess, and immediately trips into a trough filled with lime.  Stan asks if he can do anything to help.  Enraged, Ollie chases him towards the bandsaw. 

Stan jumps over the moving conveyor belt, but Ollie lands on it, and is carried towards the deadly saw. As he runs on the belt, he pleads for Stan's help, so Laurel throws the gears into reverse while Ollie is still running; this sends him flying out of the scene. 

The script then again shows us how much Laurel and Hardy's ad-libbing abilities were relied upon: “There's another gag here, then go  into our last routine of cutting the Ford into. The end.”

A lot of ad-libbing went on, too, because many of the films best gags aren't in the written outline.  There's none of the business where the boys keep walking into a plank carried by two passing workmen (an old gag, but beautifully executed here) nor does Stan drive a nail into the wall (and a water pipe) so he can hang up his coat; nor does Ollie get contorted this way in that one his hands are locked into a window sash.

Neither pesky irritable coworker Charlie Hall nor burley irritable Foreman Tiny Sanford are mentioned in the script.

Writer Charles Barr in his 1968 book about the team, stated that the final gag with Stan and, Ollie driving their Model T through a bandsaw, “is said to have gone wrong and nearly killed them on set.” But special-effects wizard Roy Seawright asserted, “That gag was a collaboration between Fred Koth's mechanical department and my photographic department it was done with a traveling matte; a traveling split screen. We had one half go through first and then we introduced the other half.  So, ultimately, it was accomplished on an optical printer.”

Empi Notes:  When I read this I was like “WHAAAAA?”  I bet you never look at certain scenes the same way again...and I also bet you are like DANG IT!!! Why didn’t they add that!!  Naughty Naughty!!  

[megan-the-artoonist]

Happy Pride! Many sources including Randy Skretvedt’s Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies have described the characters of Stan and Ollie as asexual. I personally agree and identify with that myself!

[makeitquietly]

I can’t find the whole movie on YouTube or elsewhere, so here’s a link to it on this NFPF site. Not sure why they have someone whose opinion on Jimmy Aubrey isn’t very positive writing about him/the movie. Could use some proof for Jimmy’s alleged jealousy towards Oliver Hardy too. Though might be that a negative opinion on Jimmy is considered mandatory in certain circles. Randy Skretvedt, for example, calls Jimmy a “putative star” who “does little to create laughter” and lacks “noticeable talent” when discussing That’s My Wife in his book about the L & H films. He also says that “Babe often seems to be the only thing ‘comic’ in Aubrey’s pictures”.

I’m just envious of everybody who’s had a chance to see all or at least most of the 26 Aubrey/Hardy comedies. I rather stupidly thought they were lost. Oh well. Maybe there’ll be a DVD collection to buy some day...

Seriously though, based on The Backyard, there’s really nothing wrong with Jimmy’s comedy skills, nothing whatsoever to make such harsh judgements necessary. Sure, everybody’s entitled to have and share their opinions, even copy somebody else’s without much own thought put into it. But I think that some film preservation foundation could and probably should be more neutral when commenting on something they’ve preserved. Did they even watch the movie? Don’t they want anybody else to? Would it kill to say one positive thing about the star? So bloody weird.

Anyhow, since there’s apparently some sort of need to compare Babe and Jimmy, let me offer an alternative for the funniest performance at least in this one comedy: Unknown Actor playing the neighbour. Of course it might be a tad unfair what with the advantage he’s got from playing a black woman, considering how extra hilarious it is nowadays to imagine certain people’s levels of appalment if they ever saw it. Bloods would be boiling. Kind of like mine does when reading unfounded criticism.

Also, Jimmy Aubrey is just delightful in That’s My Wife as the drunken man who tries to woo Stan, isn’t he?

Possibly I’m biased. I mean, how could anybody playing a character who finds Stan attractive be less than perfect at it? 😍

[survey0fphilippineliterature]

PROSE

A. Fiction

1. Short Story - To build a fire

2. Novel - Pride and Prejudice

3. Legends - Robin Hood and his Merry Men

4. Myth - The fall of Arthur

5. Folktales - Red Sky at Night

6. Fairy tales - Cinderella

7. Fables -  The Fox and the Grapes

8. Parables - The Parable of the Prodigal Son

B. Non-Fiction

1. Essay - Big Business By Randy Skretvedt

2. Newspaper - The New York Times, HIJACKED JETS DESTROY TWIN TOWERS AND HIT PENTAGON IN DAY OF TERROR

3. Journals - The companion to The Wisdom of Sundays by Oprah Winfrey

4. All My Road Before Me: The Diary of C. S. Lewis, 1922-1927 (Paperback)

5. Biography - Alexander Hamilton 

6. Autobiography - Becoming Michelle Obama by Ron Chernow

7. Brochures / Manuals - Spooktacular Halloween Books (Halloween Books)

8. Articles - Trump Destroyed the Most important Virtue in America

POETRY

A. Lyric

1. Song - The Show Must Go On by Queen

2. Sonnet 

2.1. Shakespearean - If There Be Nothing New, But That Which Is

2.2. Petrarchan - How Do I Love Thee? 

3. Ode - Ode on a Grecian Urn

4. Elegy - To an Athlete

B. Narrative

1. Ballad - Faithfully

2. Epic - Beowulf

C. Dramatic

1. Monologue - Medusa

2. Soliloquy - The Glass Menagerie

Among these literary pieces, one good read that I can highly think of and prescribe with other would be The companion to The Wisdom of Sundays written by Oprah Winfrey. Her practice of writing down how her whole day experience went as a way of showing gratitude and as therapy is a must practice habit for me. Aside from relieving the tension of our day brought to us, expressing things that we our heart grips, it can also be a form of piling up bunch of memories that you can recall in the near future. There is a quotation from Winfrey that catches my soul, saying that “The most valuable gift you can give yourself is the time to nurture the unique spirit that is you”. A lot may say that they truly know their self however, do they really know the fathomless soul that is within them? 

[detrixsta]

That’s That (1937)  This past Easter Sunday, I uploaded a link to Laurel & Hardy’s “PERFECT DAY” to my facebook page. The film was in need of restoration as the original master materials are rapidly deteriorating. (Reel One in particular! The opening scenes are gone & what we have today stems from the 1937 reissue.) Happily, they met the goal & this video upload was a “Thank you gift” to those who contributed to UCLA’s successful Kickstarter restoration of 1929’s “PERFECT DAY”.

Laurel & Hardy’s “THAT’S THAT” has been a rare curiosity as virtually the only “outtake” footage from any of Laurel & Hardy films. It was pieced together by Hal Roach Studios’ editor Bert Jordan as a gag reel in celebration of Stan Laurel’s 47th birthday back in 1937! Stan’s daughter, the late Lois Laurel Hawes, had the only extant print of the 1-reel film, in 16mm. According to Tracy Tolzman, of The Blockheads Tent, a copy without sound was in another archive. Something odd seems to happen with the audio around the 1:40 mark. Ham Kinsey, (Stan Laurel’s stand-in) seems to be doing a reading to get sound levels, I imagine.. The UCLA Film and Television Archive has acquired both elements & is promising to use copies of the film (presumably on DVD) as rewards for donors to the Laurel and Hardy Preservation Fund.This is the rarest of the rare & that you’re fortunate enough to watch it today is because of the generosity of all who contributed, & I hope at the end you feel equally compelled to donate to future UCLA restorations of Stan & Babe’s films! A big “thank you” among the good folks I am pleased to know; Randy Skretvedt, Patrick Picking , Neal Siegal , John Tefteller , Rick Greene , Bill Casara, Piet Schreuders & all the many others who helped..I feel quite certain I am forgetting some others…many more whom I do not know…“We Thank You!"I’ll certainly be thinking of you guys…& thanking you guys… whenever I see the restored version playing into this century! Listen out for Russ Powell’s "Donald Duck-like” voice randomly dropped in! (I know that “drop” was used by the Roach studios from time to time…) Also, a great version of “We Are The Sons Of The Desert” & Charley Chase “giving a damn!” There’s some very interesting stuff here & it goes by quickly…

[kevinpshanblog]

A discussion with Laurel and Hardy expert Randy Skretvedt about the new 4K restorations.

[captainpatriciahayesblog]

Buy it on Amazon - http://ift.tt/2DBLOtC - Buy Give More Love -- Click the link to buy now or to read the 11 4 & 5 Star Reviews.Subscribe to our Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCstLSZMe1St2bSh-WsRG-Tw?sub_confirmation=1 Like us on Facebook for videos, pictures, coupons, prizes and more - http://ift.tt/2wCDdi2 Buy Give More Love He's truly amazing..we first got hooked hearing him on BOYS back in 63..before we actually knew his group. After all these years and him getting us into the Beatles he still got it! Keep rocking on !!,, love his live shows.. ... Reviewer : AMD being a Beatles fan and collector for over 50 years im always eager for a new solo album. Ringos new album is Ringo. Over the past 4 decades he has developed his own musical style. It may not fit into todays mainstream but for his fans its always good enough. His voice is strong and drumming continues to provide a steady backbeat. I always find his albums like this one very listenable and upbeat. Ringo at 77 still has it. Thanks Ringo for bringing such joy to so many. Rock On! Recommended! ... Reviewer : james ahlgrim Click http://ift.tt/2DBLOtC to buy now on Amazon or to read more reviews. My copy of Ringo's latest album arrived today, and it's excellent -- the songs are melodic, the lyrics are by turns poignant and pointed, and the musicianship is first-rate throughout. Ringo seems to be singing better than ever (and clearly without the benefit of auto-tune). The bonus remakes of four earlier songs are not just re-treads, they're re-imaginings, with entirely new arrangements. Paul McCartney makes welcome appearances on two tracks, and his bass playing is, as always, astonishin... Reviewer : Randy Skretvedt Click http://ift.tt/2DBLOtC to buy now on Amazon or to read more reviews. ***Let Us Know What You Think… Comment Below!!*** Watch my other review Videos – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCstLSZMe1St2bSh-WsRG-Tw See other products on http://ift.tt/2xhK4Ru Subscribe to our Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCstLSZMe1St2bSh-WsRG-Tw?sub_confirmation=1 Like us on Facebook for videos, pictures, coupons, prizes and more - http://ift.tt/2wCDdi2 #UMe, #Give More Love This is a review video for : B073RZHHSD Manufacture : UMe Thanks for watching! http://ift.tt/2xhK4Ru Related Videos in Channel

[laurelandhardy]

Stan and Babe's hair was still growing in, having been shorn for The Second Hundred Years; one day Stan tried to brush his hair back, but it stubbornly refused to lay down. People on the lot began doubling up with laughter at his appearance, which Stan, naturally, took as a compliment. The funny haircut was here to stay.

On the subject of Stan's trademark upraised hair, from Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies by Randy Skretvedt

[makeitquietly]

A quick recap of what criticism I remember reading about this Blu-ray set: nobody agrees about the picture quality, or on which films it’s best/worst, but it’s on the waxy/soft side mostly because of too much digital cleaning or whatever, the sound is said to be good, some hissing, out of sync in the 1936 version of Berth Marks, extras are good too, no Blu-ray logo on the case, no booklet, awkward menu always reverts back to beginning, no play-all possibility, the films are not in the order of making/release.

But a lot of people worked very hard for a long time to make this set available. Which is why nothing negative should be said about it? Eh. Next time go for quality instead. Or don’t sell your product. Make it a fanwork.

Anyhow, if I was all powerful and had commissioned someone to restore these films, I’d make them go back and do it again if this set was presented to my ruling eyes.

OTOH, I paid 99 euros for this package and have had lots of fun with it and if there’d been Stan’s scrapbook (pages) amongst the galleries, I’d happily paid double. It’s not about the money spent except when people imply that negative reviews aren’t allowed. I’d paid 99 euros for the galleries alone.

It’s about the fact that the films aren’t as well restored as they should/could be. Beyond me, why it’s so difficult to admit. And it’s clearly not only an issue of getting waxified during some final cleanup or somehow being ruined when transferred to Blu-ray disks.

Any idiot (me) knowing nothing about the processes involved can easily confirm this by watching how different films on the same disk have different quality, likewise first reel can be almost okay, the second much worse, scenes and cuts have often annoyingly varying quality, even single frames look like they came from different prints and nothing was done to make them fit more seamlessly in their surroundings. And I’m not talking about that one wandering frame in Scram!, which must be some person’s idea of a joke, how else could it be so out of place?

Or didn’t anyone watch these that one last important time since it wasn’t removed, nor were the countless spots still there in most of the films? I know, when things get cleaned up that one remaining crumb is much easier to spot... er... see my point?

There are also jumpy frames, which I imagine would’ve been easy to adjust, and to prevent those ubiquitous flashy cuts, you’d only needed to adjust the brightness of that single frame causing the flashing. Even I have done that on GIMP when making gifs. I’m guessing too much contrast on, say, Me and My Pal isn’t a problem created by the wax people either.

The ridiculously softly glowing Brats might be, there’s an awful lot of glowing in One Good Turn too, and in parts of Sons of the Desert, for example, where faces are dangerously close to have that overly scrubbed look, which is a big problem in The Chimp and Come Clean.

When it comes to wax, Helpmates and County Hospital are the most hideous, the latter must be the worst looking of all the films in this set, being also awfully spotty as well as too dark. It’s got other faults too, like wonky frames. The Music Box has a pretty decent first reel (except for the opening scene), and despite not being able to see the stripes on Stan’s and Ollie’s pants because of too much contrast, Me and My Pal is also clearly better wax-wise in the first reel.

It’s interesting to watch some of these films for the first time, thinking that this is crap quality picture, but then the second reel is even worse and suddenly there’s a whole new level of crappiness.

I think the sound is ever so slightly out of sync for a bit in Way Out West and One Good Turn. At least it is compared to those same films on my 21 DVD set. In addition to being very clearly out of sync in that Berth Marks reissue like others have noticed. Berth Marks also has a weird stripey “cover” over the actual film. I suppose it was impossible to remove.

Even with some sync problems, if I had to choose the best restorations from this new collection, Way Out West would be on my list, together with Busy Bodies, Hog Wild and Towed in a Hole. Some parts of Sons of the Desert look gorgeous. With grain and all. Pretty much like Atoll K but unfortunately not as consistently. (Atoll K was restored by different people, I gather.)

The much anticipated but already online for free since 2019 The Battle of the Century then? Well, the first reel is quite good, or would be if it wasn’t a weird blend of an ugly greenish yellow or yellowish green. Sepia isn’t what it used to be. And I would’ve thought they’d made sure to get all those black spots removed at least from this one what with it being one of the “new” things on this set. The second reel is worse except colour-wise. But at least it’s there complete with Charlie Hall and the “what pie fight” ending.

Haven’t mentioned The Midnight Patrol, Their First Mistake or Twice Two yet. The last two are pretty evenly waxy, and comparing The Midnight Patrol to Come Clean and The Chimp makes it not that bad. There’s no actual need to bleach faces or an excuse for Billy Gilbert’s patternless shirt, is there?

For me the treasures from this set can be found on each disk under galleries. Even for those not interested in scripts, press material, posters and assorted documents, there are circa 1,400 photos, many of which really are rare, or at least I’d never seen them before. One of the gems are the about 140 photos from Babe’s Vim days. Awesome! Nothing as gemmy from Stan’s past before Laurel and Hardy, and someone put wrong names on the photos where he appears with the Hurleys, not the Cookes. Yes, there’s a short, handy description for most of the photos. 

So many of them and I must peruse more, of course, but I’m going give a special mention to Stan with both Loises on the set of Brats for adorableness and likewise to Thelma Todd for previously unseen (by me) variations from her photoshoot on that bathroom set. Love the six new-to-me photos of Stan and Babe together on the 1932 British tour especially. Great stuff. Oh, and Mae Busch, Dorothy Christy and Charley Chase in their Sons of the Desert portraits look fabulous.

Another treasure are the interviews with only a couple of slightly dubious moments. Joe Rock made me grin. George Marshall made me cry. Walter Woolf King made me laugh. Most wonderful. Short introduction by Randy Skretvedt for each interview. He’s the one who did the interviewing too. There’s 15 of them altogether. Plus a chance to hear composer Marvin Hatley perform Honolulu Baby and Will You Be My Lovey-Dovey. The audio only interviews come with some more great photos.

I kind of adore how Richard W. Bann casually debunks Anita Garvin’s The Battle of the Century story with one dry line during his commentary of the film. Hurts so good. Let’s have more debunking!

Speaking of the commentaries, and maybe more about them on some other occasion, Bann only comments The Battle and The Music Box, all the rest, including That’s That and The Tree in a Test Tube have commentaries by Randy Skretvedt.

I was expecting Bann to tell the whole story of why it took so long to get The Battle on video but he didn’t; fair enough, I thought, but then in his other commentary he goes on about his grudge with a dead guy, so I guess it was not his, um, politeness that stopped him from dishing on the much more recent and therefore interesting stuff. What then?

Perhaps a third person sharing the commentary duties would’ve been a good idea. That was my thought when Skretvedt obsessed over Stan’s smoking for the third time. By obsessed I mean he listed all the films where, according to him, Stan smokes. What for, you may wonder. I did. No answer. I remember reading somewhere that Stan not smoking in the movies means he’s a child. (Yes, some Laurel and Hardy fans are somewhat weird sometimes. Aren’t we all?) Maybe Skretvedt was trying to debunk that theory? Hehe, okay, I know he wasn’t, because he did the “they’re children, Hal Roach said so” routine in his Their First Mistake commentary, complete with Charles Barr quotes to prove there’s nothing gay about Ollie liking Stan more than his own wife. Made me fume. I don’t know why. Nothing new.

I don’t know why it doesn’t occur to him that if Ollie didn’t spend so much time with Stan, Mae wouldn’t be the lonely, disappointed wife who ends up wanting a divorce after one too many lies from Ollie and accuses Stan of alienation of Ollie’s affections. But no, apparently it’s no wonder that Ollie likes Stan more than his wife because she hits him with the broom. So the hitting came first and then too much time spent with Stan? I don’t think so.

Anyhow, third person, more variety, something newer, or at least an explanation for Stan’s smoking being of particular importance. Ollie’s smoking isn’t mentioned. Also, to digress even more, I always found the claim that Stan doesn’t smoke because he is a child odd, not only because he does, but also because he drinks alcohol too and manages to be married in several films. But the Laurel & Hardy child squad of course thinks the wives are actually their mothers. (Yes & again, weird.)

I did and do also wonder if there would’ve been anyone available and even if there had been, if these old school fans had accepted someone with different views. Probably not.

Still waiting for Skretvedt to notice Stan’s camera looks. Maybe he just hasn’t been a fan for long enough yet... 😛

I’m out of steam now. Need to rehydrate.

One more thing: No booklet, so maybe nobody involved wanted to spread about their name more than absolutely necessary knowing the restoration work was, shall we say, uneven?

Tl;dr: Uneven restoration work. Great extras. Mostly interesting commentaries.

[makeitquietly]

Hello -- I am Randy Skretvedt; I wrote a little opus called "Laurel & Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies." The latest edition has 43 years of my research in it. Anyway, I hope you will enjoy the forthcoming Blu-Ray or DVD of "The Ultimate Restorations." The discs will play worldwide. "The Battle of the Century" looks as though it has been carefully preserved for 93 years; you'd never know its tortured history. The other films are in magnificent quality, too, honest.

Hello! Delighted to hear that the films can be watched here too. Maybe it was mentioned somewhere and I just didn't see it. Not much luck in seeing/finding things for me lately; turns out that the near-complete "Battle" has been online for at least a year! I randomly found it while searching for something completely different a couple of weeks after ranting about it taking so long to become available. Kind of weird to have it on some video site before it's on DVD if the aim is to make people buy it now. Loved the added Charlie Hall bits and Stan's bump being similar to Charlie's in Laughing Gravy and the "what pie fight" ending.

Another great thing that happened not so long ago was me writing that Brothers Under the Chin is a lost film, and then I listened to a podcast with Rob Stone saying that it's not only been found but will be available on DVD soon, and more importantly, so will When Knights Were Cold! (I have high hopes for that one based on the stills I've seen.)

I might need to make a post about Hats Off! and just lean back and await for the announcement of its recovery... Better yet, maybe I should whine about how Stan's sold-page-by-page (Who does that? I hope they got fuck all for them.) scrapbook isn't available for everyone to peruse somewhere, and then inevitably stumble onto some scans or whatever by accident.

Will be getting all the DVDs and whatnots of course, and not doubting the quality very much at all, really. You do endorse the 21 DVD boxset in your book, though. I mean, I know nothing about film preservation/restoration but if those are "painstakingly preserved" as is so eagerly announced in connection with every single film, I can do without more of the same. But the promised rare photos and documents alone would be enough to make me curious, not to mention the commentaries.  

I consult your great opus all the time, just reread the "Battle" chapter; it's of course an invaluable resource for anyone wanting to know about the Laurel & Hardy films, the making of them and everybody involved. And good thing that it's relatively free from interpretations, although when I first started reading it I feared the worst what with your idea of Stan and Ollie the characters being so very different from mine. Also, I was surprised that you "dared" to name Helpmates as their finest short movie. It definitely has more soul than you-know-what. Beautifully expressed, btw.

Anyways, if you see this and aren't too miffed with my suspicions regarding the Ultimate/Definitive Restorations, maybe I could ask the one thing that's bugged me ever since I became a fan four years ago: Stan's first wife had a long life, why isn't she amongst anybody's interviewees? I'd like to think that people didn't just forget her existence or think that their daughter was some sort of substitute. I prefer imagining Lois Senior telling everybody to piss off and them being too embarrassed to tell that they tried, although I can't see how that would be worse than just plain forgetting her.

[makeitquietly]

“Laurel & Hardy: The Definitive Restorations” Comes To Blu-ray And DVD June 16

“It's no exaggeration to say that the films haven't looked this good since they were first released in the 1930s.” - Leonard Maltin.

The comedy films of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy have been beloved around the world since they were first released between 1927 and 1940. So beloved that many of the available copies are blurred dupes printed from worn-out negatives. Now, the best of their short comedies and two of their finest features have been fully restored. They look and sound as spectacular as when they were first released… Here are a few videos that prove it:

[Not posting the videos. Not sure why they chose ones that don’t have Stan in them. Not not posting because of that. Just wondering.]

Blu-ray & DVD Special Features:

NEW! 2K and 4K transfers from the finest original 35mm materials in the world.

WORLD PREMIERES! Laurel and Hardy’s legendary 1927 silent “pie fight” film THE BATTLE OF THE CENTURY makes its video debut after being “lost” for 90 years! The only reel of L&H bloopers and out-takes, THAT’S THAT!

Classic short comedies BERTH MARKS, BRATS, HOG WILD, COME CLEAN, ONE GOOD TURN, HELPMATES, THE MUSIC BOX (the legendary Academy Award-winning “piano moving” short), THE CHIMP, COUNTY HOSPITAL, SCRAM!, THEIR FIRST MISTAKE, TOWED IN A HOLE, TWICE TWO, ME AND MY PAL, THE MIDNIGHT PATROL, and BUSY BODIES in addition to the feature films SONS OF THE DESERT and WAY OUT WEST (which includes the team’s famous soft shoe dance routine).

EIGHT HOURS of EXCLUSIVE extras – 2,500 rare photos and studio documents, audio and film interviews with L&H co-workers, original music tracks and trailers plus a full restoration of their one surviving color film, THE TREE IN A TEST TUBE.

Commentaries by L&H historians Randy Skretvedt and Richard W. Bann

Restorations provided by Jeff Joseph/SabuCat in conjunction with UCLA Film & Television Archive and Library of Congress.

Since I’m in a foul mood anyway, and since it doesn’t say anywhere if these go to watch in Europe too, or perhaps it does say and I’m too stupid to understand (what does NTSC mean?), here's some whining. Not to be taken too seriously. At least not the matters of taste. 

I don’t know who wrote the press release but it’s hardly confidence-inducing that they think Laurel and Hardy stopped making movies after 1940. The after 1940 ones have been available on Blu-ray for years and even Atoll K now is.

No silent films included?! And do I really have to believe that there is a person who thinks those 16 are the best of the sound shorts? Please. I mean, sure there may be people who adore Come Clean and One Good Turn but... okay, no, I don’t believe anybody’s top 16 list has those two on it. Maybe the first reel of OGT and maybe the ice cream buying from CC but never the whole movies. Where are Laughing Gravy, Beau Hunks, Our Wife, Them Thar Hills? How about Night Owls and Another Fine Mess? All funnier that the “legendary” Music Box. I wonder what made it so revered? Is it the Oscar Award Certificate?

One silent film included after all. Apparently The Battle of the Century has now been lost for 90 years. Well, I’ve got it on DVD already. It’s just the complete version of the pie fight that was lost or “lost” until five years ago and took them long enough to get it released. My guess is that the people responsible aren’t the same ones who worked ever so fast and smoothly and put the results for everybody to see when new footage for Stan’s Detained was found. Anyway, the boxing match is funnier than the pie fight and nobody’s saying anything about the part with Eugene Pallette been found either, so what’s the big deal?

Already planning a drinking game for the commentaries: take a sip when “childlike innocents” or a version thereof is mentioned and when Stan and Ollie are supposedly victims of a cruel world never themselves wanting/causing any harm etc. A sip of something nausea reducing.

I feel better now. 😛😛😛