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Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema. Composed of thin Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and heavy American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957) they became well known during the late 1920s to the mid-1940s for their slapstick comedy, with Laurel playing the clumsy and childlike friend of the pompous Hardy.[1] They made over 100 films together, initially two-reelers (short films) before expanding into feature length films in the 1930s. Their films include Sons of the Desert (1933), the Academy Award winning short film The Music Box (1932), Babes in Toyland (1934), and Way Out West (1937). Hardy's catchphrase "Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!" is still widely recognized.[N 1]

Prior to the double act both were established actors with Laurel appearing in over 50 films and Hardy in over 250 films. Although the two comedians first worked together on the film The Lucky Dog (1921), this was a chance pairing and it was not until 1926, when both separately signed contracts with the Hal Roach film studio, that they began appearing in movie shorts together.[2] Laurel and Hardy officially became a team the following year in the silent short film Putting Pants on Philip (1927). The pair remained with the Roach studio until 1940, then appeared in eight "B" comedies for 20th Century Fox and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer from 1941 to 1945.[3] After finishing their movie commitments at the end of 1944, they concentrated on stage shows, embarking on a music hall tour of England, Ireland, and Scotland.[3] In 1950 they made their last film, a French/Italian co-production called Atoll K, before retiring from the screen. In total they appeared together in 107 films. They starred in 40 short sound films, 32 short silent films and 23 full-length feature films, and made 12 guest or cameo appearances, including the recently discovered Galaxy of Stars promotional film (1936).

A common comedy routine was a tit-for-tat fight. Their silent film Big Business (1929), which includes one of these routines, was added to the Library of Congress as a national treasure in 1992. Notable Laurel traits included crying like a baby while being berated and scratching his hair when in shock. On December 1, 1954, the team made their only American television appearance, surprised by Ralph Edwards on his live NBC-TV program, This Is Your Life.

The works of Laurel and Hardy have been re-released in numerous theatrical reissues, television revivals, 16mm and 8mm home movies, feature-film compilations, and home video since the 1930s. They were voted the seventh greatest comedy act in a 2005 UK poll by fellow comedians. The duo's signature tune, known variously as "The Cuckoo Song", "Ku-Ku", or "The Dance of the Cuckoos", played on the opening credits of their films. The official Laurel and Hardy appreciation society is known as The Sons of the Desert, after a fraternal society in their film of the same name.

Before the teaming

Stan Laurel

Stan Laurel (June 16, 1890 – February 23, 1965) was born Arthur Stanley Jefferson in Ulverston, Lancashire, England.[4] His father, Arthur Joseph Jefferson, was a theatrical entrepreneur and theatre owner in Northern England and Scotland, who with his wife was a major force in the industry.[5] Laurel was born into a family with theatre in its blood.[6] In 1905 the Jefferson family moved to Glasgow to be closer to their business mainstay, The Metropole Theatre,[7] with Laurel making his stage debut in a Glasgow hall called the Panoptikon, a month short of his 16th birthday.[8] Arthur Jefferson secured Laurel his first acting job with a theatrical juvenile company, Levy and Cardwell, specialising in Christmas Pantomimes.[9] In 1909 he was employed by Britain's leading comedy impresario, Fred Karno,[10] working as a supporting actor and as an understudy of Charlie Chaplin.[11] Laurel said of Karno "There was no one like him. He had no equal. His name was box-office."[12]

In 1912, Laurel left England with a Fred Karno Troupe, to tour the United States of America. Laurel expected the tour to be merely a pleasant interval in his life before returning to London; however, he had, in actuality, emigrated.[13] In 1917 Laurel was teamed with Mae Dahlberg: they worked as a double act for stage and film and were common law husband and wife.[14] Laurel made his film debut with Dahlberg in Nuts in May (1917).[15] It was while working with her that he started using the stage name Stan Laurel, changing his name legally in 1931.[16] Dahlberg held Laurel's career back because she demanded parts in Laurel's films and her tempestuous nature made her difficult to work with; dressing room arguments between the two were common, so film producer Joe Rock paid her to leave Laurel and return to her native Australia.[17] In 1925 Laurel joined the Hal Roach film studio as a director and writer and between May 1925 and September 1926 he was credited in at least 22 films.[18] Laurel starred in over 50 films for various producers before teaming up with Hardy,[19] but without Hardy he experienced only modest success because it was difficult for producers, writers and directors to figure out what character he might be playing, and American audiences knew him either as a "nutty burglar" or as a Charlie Chaplin imitator.[20]

Oliver Hardy

Oliver Hardy (January 18, 1892 – August 7, 1957) was born Norvell Hardy in Harlem, Georgia.[21] He took his father's first name, calling himself "Oliver Norvell Hardy."[22] His offscreen nicknames were "Ollie" and "Babe." Hardy's nickname "Babe" originated from an Italian barber near the Lubin Studios in Jacksonville, Florida, who would rub Hardy's face with talcum powder and say, "That's nice a baby!" which the other Lubin actors mimicked.[23] Hardy was billed as "Babe Hardy" in his early films.[24] By his late teens, Hardy was a popular stage singer, and he operated his own movie house in Milledgeville, Georgia, the Palace Theater, partly financed by his mother.[25]

Seeing film comedies inspired him with an urge to take up comedy himself and in 1913 he began working with Lubin Motion Pictures in Jacksonville, Florida. He started out by helping around the studio with lights, props and other duties, gradually learning the craft as a script-clerk.[25] Around the same time, he married his first wife, Madelyn Salosihn.[26] In 1914, Hardy acted as Babe in his first film called Outwitting Dad.[24] Between 1914 and 1916, Hardy made 177 shorts as Babe with the Vim Comedy Company, which were released up to the end of 1917.[27] Exhibiting a versatility in playing heroes, villains and even female characters, Hardy became much in demand as a supporting actor, comic villain or second banana. For the next 10 years he memorably assisted star comics Billy West, a Charlie Chaplin imitator, Jimmy Aubrey, Larry Semon and Charley Chase.[28] In total, Hardy starred or co-starred in more than 250 silent shorts, about 150 of which have been lost. While in New York, his abortive effort to enlist in 1917 led him and his wife, Madelyn, to seek new opportunities in California.[29]

History

Films

The first film pairing of the two comedians, although as separate performers, took place in The Lucky Dog (1921). The exact date the film was produced isn't recorded, but film historian Bo Bergulund dated it between late 1920 and January 1921.[30] The association was so casual that based upon interviews given in the 1930s both had forgotten it entirely.[31] The plot sees Laurel befriended by a stray dog who after a number of lucky escapes saves him from being blown up by a stick of dynamite, while Hardy is a mugger attempting to rob him.[32] Several years later, both comedians had separately signed for the Hal Roach film studio and next appeared in 45 Minutes From Hollywood (1926).[33]

Hal Roach was the most important person in their film careers; he brought them together officially as a team and paid their wages for over 20 years.[34] Charley Rogers worked closely with the three men for many years and said "It could not have happened if Laurel, Hardy and Roach had not met at the right place and at the right time.[35] Their first "official" film together was Putting Pants on Philip (1927).[36] The plot sees Laurel as Philip, a young Scottish man newly arrived in the United States in full kilted splendor: after various mishaps surrounding the kilt, his uncle, played by Hardy, tries to put him in trousers.[37]

Laurel said to John McCabe: "Of all the questions we're asked, the most frequent is how did we come together? I always explain that we just came together naturally."[38] Laurel and Hardy were joined by accident and grew by indirection.[39] In 1926 both were part of the Roach Comedy All Stars - a group of actors of similar standing who took part in a series of films; quite unwittingly Laurel and Hardy's parts became larger and the parts of their fellow stars became less, because Laurel and Hardy were the best actors.[40] The teaming was suggested by Leo McCarey, who was their supervising director between 1927 and 1930; during this period McCarey and Laurel jointly devised the team's format.[41] After the teaming they played the same characters for 30 years.[42]

Although Hal Roach employed writers and directors such as H. M. Walker, Leo McCarey, James Parrott and James W. Horne on Laurel and Hardy films, Laurel would rewrite entire sequences or scripts, have the cast and crew improvise on the sound stage, and meticulously review the footage for editing.[43] By 1929 Laurel was the head writer. The writing sessions were gleeful chaos; Stan had three or four writers who joined him in a perpetual game of 'Can You Top This?'[44] As Laurel so obviously relished writing gags, Hardy was more than happy to leave the job to his partner.[45] From this point Laurel was also the uncredited film director. He ran the Laurel and Hardy set no matter who was in the director's chair, but never felt compelled to assert his authority. Roach remarked "Laurel bossed the production. With any director if Laurel said 'I don't like this idea,' the director didn't say 'Well, you're going to do it anyway.' That was understood."[46] As Laurel made so many suggestions there wasn't much left for the credited director to do.[47]

In 1929 the silent era of film was coming to an end and most silent-film actors saw their careers decline with the advent of sound.[48] Silent film actors failed to make the transition because they decided their prime duty was to tell stories in words, and they misused sound through over-emphasis, or there was poor recording. Laurel and Hardy avoided this pitfall because they decided to continue making primarily visual films.[49] They did not ignore sound but they were not ruled by it.[49] They proved skillful in their melding of visual and verbal humor,[50] and made a seamless transition to the talking era in their first sound film Unaccustomed As We Are (1929). The title took its name from the familiar phrase "Unaccustomed as we are to public speaking".[51] In the opening dialogue Laurel and Hardy began by spoofing the very slow and self conscious speech of the early talking actors, a routine they would use regularly.[52]

Laurel and Hardy's first starring feature film was Pardon Us (1931).[53] The most memorable Laurel and Hardy film is The Music Box (1932), the image of the duo forever pushing a piano up a tremendous flight of steps has stuck in the public consciousness.[54] The film won an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Subject in 1932.[55] While many enthusiasts claim the superiority of The Music Box, their silent film Big Business (1929) is by far the most consistently acclaimed.[56] The plot sees Laurel and Hardy as Christmas tree salesman involved in a classic tit-for-tat battle with James Finlayson, eventually destroying his house and their car.[57] Big Business was added to the Library of Congress in the United States as a national treasure in 1992.[58] Sons of the Desert (1933) is considered Laurel and Hardy's best feature film.[59]

Babes in Toyland (1934) retains a timeless appeal and remains a perennial on American T.V. at Christmas.[60] Hal Roach spoke scathingly about the film and Laurel's behavior during its making. Laurel was unhappy with Roach's plot and after an argument was allowed to make the film his own way. The rift permanently damaged Roach-Laurel relations to the point that Roach said that after Toyland he no longer wished to produce Laurel and Hardy films, although their association continued for another six years.[61]

Hoping for greater artistic freedom, Laurel and Hardy split with Roach and signed with major studios 20th Century-Fox and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. However, the working conditions were now completely different, as they were hired only as actors, relegated to the B-film divisions, and initially not allowed to improvise or contribute to the scripts. When the films proved popular, the studios allowed the team more input with Laurel and Hardy starring in eight features through 1944. These films, while not considered the team's best, were extremely successful. Budgeted at $250,000 to $300,000 each, the films earned millions at the box office. The films were so profitable that Fox kept making Laurel and Hardy comedies after discontinuing its other "B" series.[62]

Laurel and Hardy made one final film together, Atoll K (1951), a French-Italian co-production directed by Leo Joannon, which was plagued by language barriers, production problems, and both Laurel and Hardy's grave health issues. During shooting, Hardy began to lose weight precipitously and developed an irregular heartbeat while Laurel experienced painful prostate complications.[63] Critics were disappointed with its storyline, English dubbing, and Laurel's sickly physical appearance.[64] The film was not a success, and brought an end to Laurel and Hardy's film careers.[63]

A number of their films were re-shot with Laurel and Hardy talking in Spanish, Italian, French or German.[65] The plots for these films were similar to the English language version although the supporting cast were often native language actors. Laurel and Hardy could not speak a foreign language and they received voice coaching to reproduce their lines. Pardon Us (1931) was re-shot in all four foreign languages. Blotto (1930), Chickens Come Home (1931) and Below Zero (1930) had French and Spanish versions.

Most of the Laurel and Hardy films survive, and have never gone out of circulation permanently. Three of their 107 films are considered lost, as they have not been seen in full since the 1930s.[66] The silent Hats Off (1927) has vanished completely. The first half of Now I'll Tell One (1927) is lost and the second half has yet to be released on video. In the operatic Technicolor musical The Rogue Song (1930) Laurel and Hardy appear in 10 sequences, only one of which is known to exist along with the complete soundtrack.[67]

Style of comedy and characterizations

Main article: Laurel and Hardy: Style of comedy and characterizations

The humor of Laurel and Hardy was generally visual with slapstick used for emphasis. They often had physical arguments with each other, which were quite complex and involved cartoon violence, and their characters preclude them from making any real progress in even the simplest endeavors. Much of their comedy involves milking a joke, where a simple idea provides a basis from which to build several gags without following a defined narrative.

Laurel and Hardy had an inherent physical contrariety. Stan Laurel was of average height and weight, but appeared small and slight next to Oliver Hardy, who was 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) tall[64] and weighed about 280 lb (127 kg) in his prime. Laurel kept his hair short on the sides and back, but let it grow long on top to create a natural "fright wig". At times of shock he would simultaneously cry while pulling up his hair. In contrast, Hardy's thinning hair was pasted on his forehead in spit curls and he wore a toothbrush moustache. To achieve a flat-footed walk, Laurel removed the heels from his shoes. Both wore bowler hats, with Laurel's being narrower than Hardy's, and with a flattened brim. The characters' normal attire also called for wing collar shirts, with Hardy wearing a standard neck tie which he would twiddle and Laurel a bow tie. Hardy's sports jacket was too small for him and done up with one straining button, whereas Laurel's double breasted jacket was loose fitting.

A common routine the team performed was a "tit-for-tat" fight with an adversary. This could be with their wives—often played by Mae Busch, Anita Garvin or Daphne Pollard—or with a neighbour, often played by Charlie Hall or James Finlayson. Laurel and Hardy would accidentally damage someone else's property, with the injured party retaliating by ruining something belonging to Laurel or Hardy. After calmly surveying the damage they would find something else to vandalize and conflict would escalate until both sides were simultaneously destroying property in front of each other. An early example of the routine occurs in their classic short, Big Business (1929), which was added to the Library of Congress as a national treasure in 1992, and one of their short films, which revolves entirely around such an altercation, was titled Tit for Tat (1935).

One of their best-remembered dialogue routines was the "Tell me that again" routine. Laurel would tell Hardy a genuinely smart idea he had come up with, and Hardy would reply, "Tell me that again." Laurel would attempt to repeat the idea, but jumble it into utter nonsense. Hardy, who had difficulty understanding Laurel's idea when expressed clearly, would understand perfectly when hearing the jumbled version.

While much of their comedy remained visual, various lines of humorous dialogue appeared in Laurel and Hardy's talking films. Some examples include: • "You can lead a horse to water, but a pencil must be led." (Laurel, Brats) • "I was dreaming I was awake, but I woke up and found meself asleep." (Laurel, Oliver the Eighth) • "A lot of weather we've been having lately." (Hardy, Way Out West)

In some cases, their comedy bordered on the surreal, a style Stan Laurel called "white magic".[68] For example, in Way Out West (1937), Laurel clenches his fist and pours tobacco into it, as if it were a pipe. Then, he flicks his thumb upward as if he held a lighter. His thumb ignites, and he matter-of-factly lights his "pipe." The amazed Hardy, seeing this, would unsuccessfully attempt to duplicate it throughout the rest of the film. Much later in the film, Hardy finally succeeds – only to be terrified when his thumb catches fire.

Rather than showing Hardy suffering the pain of misfortunes such as falling down stairs or being beaten by a thug, banging and crashing sound effects were often used so the audience could visualize the scene for themselves.

Why Girls Love Sailors (1927) was a significant film for Hardy because it gave him two of his most enduring trademarks. The first was his "tie-twiddle" to demonstrate embarrassment. Hardy, while acting, had been met with a pail of water in the face. He said "I had been expecting it, but I didn't expect it at that particular moment. It threw me mentally and I couldn't think what to do next, so I waved the tie in a kind of tiddly-widdly fashion to show embarrassment while trying to look friendly." [69] His second trademark was the "camera look" in which he breaks the fourth wall. Hardy said "I had to become exasperated, so I just stared right into the camera and registered my disgust"[70]

Offscreen, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were quite the opposite of their movie characters: Laurel was the industrious "idea man," while Hardy was more easygoing.[71]

Final years

After Atoll K, Laurel and Hardy took several months off, so that Laurel could recuperate. Upon their return to the European stage, they undertook a successful series of public appearances in short sketches Laurel had written: "A Spot of Trouble" (in 1952) and "Birds of a Feather" (in 1953).[72]

On December 1, 1954, the team made their only American television appearance, surprised by Ralph Edwards on his live NBC-TV program, This Is Your Life. Lured to the Knickerbocker Hotel as a subterfuge for a business meeting with producer Bernard Delfont, the doors opened to their suite #205, flooding the room with light and the voice of Edwards. The telecast was preserved on a kinescope and later released on home video. Partly due to the positive response from the television broadcast, the pair was renegotiating with Hal Roach Jr. for a series of color NBC Television specials to be called Laurel and Hardy's Fabulous Fables. However, plans for the specials were shelved, as the aging comedians suffered from declining health.[72]

In 1955, Laurel and Hardy made their final public appearance together, taking part in This Is Music Hall, a BBC Television program about the Grand Order of Water Rats, a British variety organization. Laurel and Hardy provide a filmed insert during which they reminisce about their friends in British variety. They made their final appearance on camera in 1956 in a home movie titled "One Moment Please". The film was shot by a family friend at Laurel's home; it is without audio and lasts three minutes.

Under doctor's orders to improve a heart condition, Hardy lost over 100 pounds (45 kg; 7.1 st) in 1956. Several strokes resulted in loss of mobility and speech. He died of a stroke on August 7, 1957. Longtime friend Bob Chatterton said Hardy weighed just 138 pounds (63 kg; 9.9 st) at the time of his death. Hardy was laid to rest at Pierce Brothers Valhalla Memorial Park, North Hollywood.[73]

Just after Hardy's death, Laurel and Hardy's films returned to movie theaters, as clips of their work were featured in Robert Youngson's silent-film compilation The Golden Age of Comedy. For the remaining eight years of his life, Stan Laurel refused to perform, even turning down Stanley Kramer's offer to make a cameo in his landmark 1963 movie, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. In 1960, Laurel was given a special Academy Award for his contributions to film comedy. Despite not appearing onscreen after Hardy's death, Laurel did contribute gags to several comedy filmmakers. Most of his writing was in the form of correspondence; he insisted on answering every fan letter personally. Late in life, he hosted many visitors of the new generation of comedians and celebrities, including Dick Cavett, Jerry Lewis, Peter Sellers, Marcel Marceau and Dick Van Dyke. Laurel lived until 1965, surviving to see the duo's work rediscovered through television and classic film revivals. He died on February 23 in Santa Monica, and is buried at Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles, California.[74]

Supporting cast

Laurel and Hardy's films included a memorable supporting cast, some of whom appeared regularly.[75]

• Harry Bernard, played bit parts as waiter, bartender and cop.
• Mae Busch played a formidable Mrs. Hardy, and some other characters.
• Charley Chase, the Hal Roach film star and brother of James Parrott, Laurel and Hardy writer/director, made 4 appearances.
• Baldwin Cooke played bit parts as waiter, bartender and cop.
• James Finlayson, a small, balding, moustachioed Scotsman known for displays of indignation and squinting "double takes", made 33 appearances.
• Anita Garvin was a memorable Mrs. Laurel.
• Billy Gilbert, made many appearances, most notably in the classic The Music Box (1932).
• Charlie Hall, who usually played angry "little men", appeared nearly 50 times.
• Jean Harlow, the "Blonde Bombshell" had a small role in their short Double Whoopee (1929) and two other films, before her breakout stardom.
• Arthur Housman made memorable appearances as a comic drunk.
• Edgar Kennedy master of the "slow burn", often appeared as a cop, hostile neighbor or relative.
• Walter Long played grizzled, physically threatening villains.
• Sam Lufkin appeared several times.
• Daphne Pollard was featured, mostly as Oliver's shrewish wife.
• Charley Rogers, the English actor, appeared several times.
• Tiny Sandford was a very tall and burly man who played authority figures, notably cops.
• Thelma Todd appeared several times.
• Ben Turpin the cross-eyed actor made two memorable appearances.

Music

Main article: Laurel and Hardy music

The duo's famous signature tune, known variously as "The Cuckoo Song", "Ku-Ku", or "The Dance of the Cuckoos", was composed by Roach musical director Marvin Hatley as the on-the-hour chime for the Roach studio radio station.[76] Laurel heard the tune on the station, and asked Hatley to use it as the Laurel and Hardy theme song. In Laurel's eyes, the song's melody represented Hardy's character (pompous and dramatic), while the harmony represented Laurel's own character (somewhat out of key, and only able to register two notes: "coo-coo").^{[citation needed]} The original theme, recorded by two clarinets in 1930, was re-recorded with a full orchestra in 1935. Leroy Shield composed the great majority of the music used in the Laurel and Hardy short sound films.[77] A compilation of songs from their films titled Trail of the Lonesome Pine was released in 1975. The title track was released as a single in the UK and reached #2 in the charts.

Influence and legacy

Catchphrases

The catchphrase most used by Laurel and Hardy on film is:

“

Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!

”

The phrase, which was earlier used by W. S. Gilbert in The Mikado (1885) and again in The Grand Duke (1896), was first used by Hardy in The Laurel-Hardy Murder Case (1930). In popular culture the catchphrase is often misquoted as "Well, here's another fine mess you've gotten me into." The misquoted version of the phrase was never used by Hardy on film; the misunderstanding stems from the title of their film Another Fine Mess (1930).[78] Numerous variations of the quote appeared on film. In Chickens Come Home (1931), Ollie says impatiently to Stan, "Well...." with Stan replying, "Here's another nice mess I've gotten you into." In Thicker than Water (1935) and The Fixer-Uppers (1935), the phrase becomes "Well, here's another nice kettle of fish you pickled me in!" In Saps at Sea (1940) it becomes "Well, here's another nice bucket of suds you've gotten me into!"

“

D'oh!

”

"D'oh!" is a catchphrase used by James Finlayson, the mustachioed Scottish actor who appeared in 33 Laurel and Hardy films. The phrase, expressing surprise, impatience, or incredulity, was the inspiration for "D'oh!" as spoken by the fictional character Homer Simpson in the long running animated comedy The Simpsons. Homer's first intentional use of "d'oh!" occurred in the Ullman short "Punching Bag" (1988).[79]

 

The Sons of the Desert

Main article: The Sons of the Desert

The official Laurel and Hardy appreciation society is known as The Sons of the Desert, after a fraternal society in their film of the same name (1933).[80] It was founded in New York City in 1965 by Laurel and Hardy biographers John McCabe, Orson Bean, Al Kilgore, Chuck McCann and John Municino, with the sanction of Stan Laurel. Since the group's inception, well over 150 chapters of the organization have formed across North America, Europe and Australia. An Emmy-winning film documentary about the group, Revenge of the Sons of the Desert, has been released on DVD as part of The Laurel and Hardy Collection, Vol. 1.

 

Posthumous revivals

Since the 1930s, the works of Laurel and Hardy have been re-released in numerous theatrical reissues, television revivals (broadcast, especially public television, and cable), 16mm and 8mm home movies, feature-film compilations, and home video. After Stan Laurel's death in 1965, there were two major motion-picture tributes: Laurel and Hardy's Laughing '20s, Robert Youngson's compilation of the team's silent-film highlights; and The Great Race, a large-scale salute to slapstick which director Blake Edwards dedicated to "Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy." For many years the duo were impersonated by Jim MacGeorge (as Laurel) and Chuck McCann (as Hardy) in children's TV shows and television commercials for various products.[81]

There are two Laurel and Hardy museums, one in Laurel's birthplace, Ulverston, United Kingdom,[82] and the other in Hardy's birthplace, Harlem, Georgia, United States.[83]

Maurice Sendak showed three identical Oliver Hardy figures as bakers preparing cakes for the morning in his award-winning children's book In the Night Kitchen (1970).[84] This is treated as a clear example^{[by whom?]} of "interpretative illustration" wherein the comedians' inclusion harked back to the author's own childhood.[N 2]

The Beatles used cut-outs of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy as two of the cutout celebrity crowd for the cover of their 1967 album, Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

A 2005 poll by fellow comedians and comedy insiders of the top 50 comedians for The Comedian's Comedian, a TV documentary broadcast on UK's Channel 4, voted the duo the seventh greatest comedy act ever, making them the most popular double act on the list.[87]

Numerous colorized versions of copyright-free Laurel and Hardy features and shorts have been reproduced by a multitude of production studios. Although the results of adding color were often in dispute, many of the popular titles are currently only available in the colorized version. The color process often renders the print into an "unwatchable" state, while some scenes were altered or deleted, dependent on the source material used.[88] Helpmates (1932) was the first film to undergo the process; it was experimented upon by Colorization Inc., a subsidiary of Hal Roach Studios in 1983. Colorization became a success for the studio and Helpmates was released on home video with the colorized version of The Music Box (1932) in 1986. The technology for this process was inferior compared to today's digital colorization technology. There were numerous continuity errors and garish color design choices. However the most significant criticism that these versions received revolved around their editing: whole scenes were altered or deleted altogether, changing the character of the film.

Merchandiser Larry Harmon claimed ownership of Laurel's and Hardy's likenesses, and issued Laurel and Hardy toys and coloring books. He co-produced a series of Laurel and Hardy cartoons in 1966 with Hanna-Barbera Productions.[89] His animated versions of Laurel and Hardy guest-starred in a 1972 episode of Hanna-Barbera's The New Scooby-Doo Movies. In 1999, Harmon produced a direct-to-video feature, the live-action comedy The All-New Adventures of Laurel and Hardy: For Love or Mummy, with actors Bronson Pinchot and Gailard Sartain playing the lookalike nephews of the original Laurel and Hardy, Stanley Thinneus Laurel and Oliver Fatteus Hardy.[90]

Filmographies

Silent short films (starring roles)

1921

The Lucky Dog

Hal Roach silent short films (starring roles)

1927

• ▪ Duck Soup
• ▪ Slipping Wives
• ▪ Love 'em and Weep
• ▪ Why Girls Love Sailors
• ▪ With Love and Hisses
• ▪ Sugar Daddies
• ▪ Sailors, Beware!
• ▪ Now I'll Tell One (partly lost film)
• ▪ The Second Hundred Years
• ▪ Hats Off (lost film)
• ▪ Do Detectives Think?
• ▪ Putting Pants on Philip
• ▪ The Battle of the Century (partly lost film)


1928

• ▪ Leave 'Em Laughing
• ▪ Flying Elephants
• ▪ The Finishing Touch
• ▪ From Soup to Nuts
• ▪ You're Darn Tootin'
• ▪ Their Purple Moment
• ▪ Should Married Men Go Home?
• ▪ Early to Bed
• ▪ Two Tars
• ▪ Habeas Corpus
• ▪ We Faw Down

1929

• ▪ Liberty
• ▪ Wrong Again
• ▪ That's My Wife
• ▪ Big Business
• ▪ Double Whoopee
• ▪ Bacon Grabbers

Angora Love

 

Hal Roach talking short films (starring roles)

1929

• ▪ Unaccustomed As We Are
• ▪ Berth Marks
• ▪ Men O' War
• ▪ Perfect Day
• ▪ They Go Boom
• ▪ The Hoose-Gow

 

1930

• ▪ Night Owls
• ▪ Blotto
• ▪ Brats
• ▪ Below Zero
• ▪ Hog Wild
• ▪ The Laurel-Hardy Murder Case
• ▪ Another Fine Mess
• ▪ La Vida Nocturna (Spanish)
• ▪ Ladrones (Spanish)

 

1931

• ▪ Be Big!
• ▪ Chickens Come Home
• ▪ Politiquerias (Spanish remake of Chickens Come Home)
• ▪ Laughing Gravy
• ▪ Our Wife
• ▪ Come Clean
• ▪ One Good Turn
• ▪ Beau Hunks

 

1932

• ▪ Helpmates
• ▪ Any Old Port!
• ▪ The Music Box
• ▪ The Chimp
• ▪ County Hospital
• ▪ Scram!
• ▪ Their First Mistake
• ▪ Towed in a Hole

 

1933

• ▪ Twice Two
• ▪ Me and My Pal
• ▪ The Midnight Patrol
• ▪ Busy Bodies
• ▪ Dirty Work

 

1934

• ▪ Oliver the Eighth
• ▪ Going Bye-Bye!
• ▪ Them Thar Hills
• ▪ The Live Ghost

 

1935

• ▪ Tit for Tat
• ▪ The Fixer Uppers
• ▪ Thicker than Water

 

Short films (guest appearances)

• ▪ 45 Minutes From Hollywood (1926)
• ▪ Call of the Cuckoo (1927)
• ▪ The Stolen Jools (1931)
• ▪ On the Loose (1931)
• ▪ Wild Poses (1933)
• ▪ On the Wrong Trek (1936)
• ▪ Galaxy of Stars (1936)
• ▪ The Tree in a Test Tube (1942)

 

Hal Roach feature films (starring roles)

• ▪ Pardon Us (1931)
• ▪ Pack Up Your Troubles (1932)
• ▪ Fra Diavolo/The Devil's Brother/Bogus Bandits (1933)
• ▪ Sons of the Desert (1933)
• ▪ Babes in Toyland/March Of the Wooden Soldiers (1934)
• ▪ Bonnie Scotland (1935)
• ▪ The Bohemian Girl (1936)
• ▪ Our Relations (1936)
• ▪ Way Out West (1937)
• ▪ Swiss Miss (1938)
• ▪ Block-Heads (1938)
• ▪ A Chump at Oxford (1940)
• ▪ Saps at Sea (1940)

 

Feature films (starring roles)

• ▪ The Flying Deuces (1939)
• ▪ Great Guns (1941)
• ▪ A-Haunting We Will Go (1942)
• ▪ Air Raid Wardens (1943)
• ▪ Jitterbugs (1943)
• ▪ The Dancing Masters (1943)
• ▪ The Big Noise (1944)
• ▪ Nothing But Trouble (1944)
• ▪ The Bullfighters (1945)
• ▪ Atoll K / Utopia (1951)

 

Feature films (guest appearances)

• ▪ The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929)
• ▪ The Rogue Song (1930) (lost film)
• ▪ Hollywood Party (1934)
• ▪ Pick a Star (1937)

 

 

References

 

Notes

1. ^ Oft misquoted as "another fine mess", see section on Catchphrases.
2. ^ Sendak described his early upbringing as sitting in movie houses fascinated by the Laurel and Hardy comedies.[85][86]

 

Citations

1. ^ "Laurel and Hardy." Britannica Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved: June 12, 2011.
2. ^ Smith 1984, p. 24.
3. ^ a b McGarry 1992, p. 67.
4. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 11.
5. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 14.
6. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 12.
7. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 22.
8. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 200.
9. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 25.
10. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 159.
11. ^ Louvish 2001, p. 18.
12. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 26.
13. ^ McCabe 1987, pp. 42–43.
14. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 169
15. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 158.
16. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 113.
17. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 170.
18. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 182.
19. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 249.
20. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 117.
21. ^ Louvish 2001, p. 37.
22. ^ Cullen et al. 2007, p. 661.
23. ^ McIver 1998, p. 36.
24. ^ a b McCabe 1989, p. 19.
25. ^ a b Bergen 1992, p. 26.
26. ^ Everson 2000, p. 22.
27. ^ McCabe 1989, p. 30.
28. ^ Louvish 2001, pp. 107–108.
29. ^ McCabe 1989, p. 32.
30. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 181.
31. ^ Barr 1967, p. 9.
32. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 180.
33. ^ Gehring 1990, p. 273.
34. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 98.
35. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 100.
36. ^ Gehring 1990, p. 62.
37. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 229.
38. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 117.
39. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 118.
40. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 120.
41. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 188.
42. ^ Skretvedt 1987, p. 54.
43. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 28.
44. ^ Skretvedt 1987, p. 50.
45. ^ Skretvedt 1987, p. 52.
46. ^ Skretvedt 1987, pp. 59–61.
47. ^ Skretvedt 1987, p. 61.
48. ^ Sagert 2010, p. 40.
49. ^ a b McCabe 1987, p. 153.
50. ^ Gehring 1990, p. 42.
51. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 305.
52. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 252.
53. ^ Gehring 1990, p. 23.
54. ^ Skretvedt 1987, p. 230.
55. ^ McCabe 2004, p. 73.
56. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 39.
57. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 38.
58. ^ "Big Business awards." Retrieved: December 19, 2011.
59. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 268.
60. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 27.
61. ^ Mitchell 2010, p. 28.
62. ^ McCabe 1987, pp. 214–215.
63. ^ a b McGarry 1992, p. 73.
64. ^ a b Mitchell, Glenn. The Laurel & Hardy Encyclopedia. London: Batsford, 1995. ISBN 0-7134-7711-3.
65. ^ Fullerton, Pat. "Laurel & Hardy Overseas." com. Retrieved: April 20, 2011.
66. ^ Dorman, Trevor. "A Guide to the Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy - Update." The Laurel and Hardy Magazine. Retrieved: April 20, 2011.
67. ^ Haines 1993, p. 13.
68. ^ McCabe 1975, p. 18.
69. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 123.
70. ^ McCabe 1987, p. 124.
71. ^ Gehring 1990, p. 5.
72. ^ a b McCabe 1975, p. 398.
73. ^ Smith 1984, p. 191.
74. ^ Smith 1984, p. 187.
75. ^ "Laurel and Hardy Films: The People." com, Retrieved: April 3, 2011.
76. ^ Louvish 2001, p. 267.
77. ^ Louvish 2002, p. 268.
78. ^ Andrews 1997, p. 389.
79. ^ "What’s the story with... Homer’s D’oh!". The Herald, Glasgow, July 21, 2007, p. 15. Retrieved: July 25, 2010.
80. ^ MacGillivray, Scott. "Welcome to Sons of the Desert." International Laurel & Hardy Society. Retrieved: April 20, 2011.
81. ^ McCann, Chuck. "Laurel & Hardy Tribute." net: Chuck McCann, November 30, 2007. Retrieved: March 1, 2010.
82. ^ "Laurel & Hardy Museum: Ulverston co.uk, June 2004. Retrieved: March 1, 2010.
83. ^ Root, Robin. "Laurel and Hardy Museum and Harlem, Georgia Visitor Info Center." laurelandhardymuseum Retrieved: March 1, 2010.
84. ^ Lewis,Peter. "In the Night Kitchen." org. Retrieved: April 20, 2011.
85. ^ Lanes 1980, p. 47.
86. ^ Salamon, Julie. "Sendak in All His Wild Glory." The New York Times, April 15, 2005. Retrieved: May 28, 2008.
87. ^ "The List." The Comedian's Comedian, 2005. Retrieved: 3 March 2010.
88. ^ Tooze, Gary. "Laurel & Hardy - The Collection (21-disc Box Set)." com. Retrieved: April 20, 2011.
89. ^ Krurer, Ron. "Laurel and Hardy cartoons by Hanna-Barbera." com. Retrieved: March 1, 2010.
90. ^ "The All New Adventures of Laurel & Hardy in 'For Love or Mummy' (1999)." IMDb. Retrieved: March 1, 2010.

 

Bibliography

• Andrews, Robert, Famous Lines: A Columbia Dictionary of Familiar Quotations. New York: Columbia University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-23110-218-6.
• Barr, Charles. Laurel & Hardy (Movie Paperbacks ). Berkeley, California: University of California Press, 1974, first edition 1967. ISBN 0-520-00085-4.
• Bergen, Ronald. The Life and Times of Laurel and Hardy. New York: Smithmark, 1992. ISBN 0-8317-5459-1.
• Cullen, Frank, Florence Hackman and Donald McNeilly. Vaudeville, Old and New: An Encyclopedia of Variety Performers in America. London: Routledge, 2007. ISBN 978-0415938532.
• Everson, William K. The Complete Films of Laurel and Hardy. New York: Citadel, 2000, First edition 1967. ISBN 0-8065-0146-4.
• Gehring, Wes D. Laurel & Hardy: A Bio-Bibliography. Burnham Bucks, UK: Greenwood Press, 1990. ISBN 978-0313251726.
• Haines, Richard W. Technicolor Movies: The History of Dye Transfer Printing. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., 1993. ISBN 0-89950-856-1.
• Lanes, Selma G. The Art of Maurice Sendak. New York: Harry N. Abrams; 2nd revised edition, 1998, first edition, 1980. ISBN 0-81098-063-0.
• Louvish, Simon. Stan and Ollie: The Roots of Comedy. London: Faber & Faber, 2001. ISBN 0-571-21590-4.
• McCabe, John with Al Kilgore and Richard W. Bann. Laurel & Hardy. New York: Bonanza Books, 1983, First edition 1975, E.P. Dutton. ISBN 978-0491017459.
• McCabe, John. Laurel & Mr. Hardy: An Affectionate Biography. London: Robson Books, 2004, First edition 1961, ISBN 1-86105-606-0. Reprint: New York: Doubleday & Co., 1987, 1966.
• McCabe, John. The Comedy World of Stan Laurel. New York: Robson Press, 2004, First edition 1974, Doubleday & Co. ISBN 978-0940410237.
• McGarry, Annie. Laurel & Hardy. London: Bison Group, 1992. ISBN 0-86124-776-0.
• MacGillivray, Scott. Laurel & Hardy: From the Forties Forward, Second Edition, Revised and Expanded. New York: iUniverse, 2009; First edition Lanham, Maryland: Vestal Press, 1998. ISBN 1-440172-39-0.
• McIver, Stuart B. Dreamers, Schemers and Scalawags. Sarasota, Florida: Pineapple Press Inc., 1998. ISBN 9781561641550.
• Mitchell, Glenn. The Laurel & Hardy Encyclopedia. New York: Batsford, 2010, First edition 1995. ISBN 978-1905287710.
• Sagert, Kelly Boyer. Flappers: A Guide to an American Subculture. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood, 2010. ISBN 978-0313-37690-0.
• Smith, Leon. Following the Comedy Trail: A Guide to Laurel & Hardy and Our Gang Film Locations. Littleton, Massachusetts: G.J. Enterprises, 1984. ISBN 978-0938817055.
• Skretvedt, Randy. Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies (2nd ed.) Anaheim, California: Past Times Publishing Co., 1996,ISBN 0-940410-29-X, First edition 1987, Moonstone Press.

 

Further reading

• Anobile, Richard J., ed. A Fine Mess: Verbal and Visual Gems from The Crazy World of Laurel & Hardy. New York: Crown Publishers. 1975. ISBN 0-51752-438-4.
• Brooks, Leo M. The Laurel & Hardy Stock Company. Hilversum, Netherlands: Blotto Press. 1997. ISBN 90-9010461-5.
• Byron, Stuart and Elizabeth Weis, eds. The National Society of Film Critics on Movie Comedy. New York: Grossman/Viking, 1977. ISBN 978-0670491865.
• Crowther, Bruce. Laurel and Hardy: Clown Princes of Comedy. New York: Columbus Books, 1987. ISBN 978-0862873448.
• Durgnat, Raymond. "Beau Chumps and Church Bells" (essay)." The Crazy Mirror: Hollywood Comedy and the American Image. New York: Dell Publishing, 1970. ISBN 978-0385281843.
• Everson, William K. The Films of Hal Roach. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1971. ISBN 978-0870705595.
• Gehring, Wes D. Film Clowns of the Depression: Twelve Defining Comic Performances. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 2007. ISBN 978-0786428922.
• Guiles, Fred Lawrence. Stan: The Life of Stan Laurel. New York: Stein & Day, 1991, First edition 1980. ISBN 978-0812885286.
• Harness, Kyp. The Art of Laurel and Hardy: Graceful Calamity in the Films. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2006. ISBN 0-78642-440-0.
• Kanin, Garson. Together Again!: Stories of the Great Hollywood Teams. New York: Doubleday & Co., 1981. ISBN 978-0385174718.
• Kerr, Walter. The Silent Clowns. New York: Da Capo Press, 1990, First edition 1975, Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 978-0306803871.
• Lahue, Kalton C. World of Laughter: The Motion Picture Comedy Short, 1910-1930. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1966. ISBN 978-0806106939.
• Maltin, Leonard. The Great Movie Comedians. New York: Crown Publishers, 1978. ISBN 978-0517532416.
• Maltin, Leonard. The Laurel & Hardy Book (The Curtis Films Series). Sanibel Island, FL: Ralph Curtis Books, 1973.
• Maltin, Leonard. Movie Comedy Teams. New York: New American Library, 1985, First edition 1970. ISBN 978-0452256941.
• Maltin, Leonard, Selected Short Subjects (first published as The Great Movie Shorts. New York: Crown Publishers, 1972.) New York: Da Capo Press, 1983. ISBN 978-0452256941
• Marriot, A.J. Laurel & Hardy: The British Tours. Hitchen, Herts, UK: AJ Marriot, 1993. ISBN 0-9521308-0-7.
• Mast, Gerald. The Comic Mind: Comedy and the Movies. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979, First edition 1973. ISBN 978-0226509785.
• McCabe, John. Babe: The Life of Oliver Hardy. London: Robson Books, 2004, First edition 1989, Citadel. ISBN 1-86105-781-4.
• McCaffrey, Donald W. "Duet of Incompetence" from The Golden Age of Sound Comedy: Comic Films and Comedians of the Thirties. New York: A.S. Barnes, 1973. ISBN 978-0498010484.
• McIntyre, Willie. The Laurel & Hardy Digest: A Cocktail of Love and Hisses. Ayrshire, Scotland: Willie McIntyre, 1998. ISBN 978-0953295807.
• Nollen, Scott Allen. The Boys: The Cinematic World of Laurel and Hardy. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 1989. ISBN 978-0786411153.
• Robb, Brian J. The Pocket Essential Laurel & Hardy. Manchester, UK: Pocket Essentials, 2008. ISBN 978-1842432853.
• Robinson, David. The Great Funnies: A History of Film Comedy. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1969. ISBN 978-0289796436.
• Sanders, Jonathan. Another Fine Dress: Role Play in the Films of Laurel and Hardy. London: Cassell, 1995. ISBN 978-0304331963.
• Scagnetti, Jack. The Laurel & Hardy Scrapbook. New York: Jonathan David Publishers, 1982. ISBN 978-0824602789.
• Sendak, Maurice. In the Night Kitchen. New York: HarperCollins, First edition 1970. ISBN 0-06026-668-6.
• Staveacre, Tony. Slapstick!: The Illustrated Story. London: Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1987. ISBN 978-0207150302.
• Stone, Rob et al. Laurel or Hardy: The Solo Films of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Manchester, New Hampshire: Split Reel, 1996. ISBN 0-965238-407.
• Ward, Richard Lewis. A History of the Hal Roach Studios. Carbondale, Illinois: Southern Illinois University Press, 2006. ISBN 978-0809326372.
• Weales, Gerald. Canned Goods as Caviar: American Film Comedy of the 1930s. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1985. ISBN 978-0226876641.

External links

• Stan Laurel at the Internet Movie Database
• Oliver Hardy at the Internet Movie Database
• The Official Sons of the Desert Website
• The Official Laurel and Hardy Website
• Laurel and Hardy Films Official Website
• Laurel and Hardy Central.com
• Laurel and Hardy Forum.com

Original source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurel_and_hardy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurel_and_Hardy_filmography

 

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of use for details.
Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Born	11 August 1933 Rzeszów, Poland
Died	14 January 1999 (aged 65) Pontedera, Italy
Occupation	Theatre director

Jerzy Grotowski (11 August 1933 - 14 January 1999) was a Polish theatre director and innovator of experimental theatre, the "theatre laboratory" and "poor theatre" concepts.

Grotowski was born in Rzeszów, Poland on 11 August 1933 and died in Pontedera, Italy on 14 January 1999, aged 65.[1]

Biography

Career

Theatre of Productions

Grotowski made his directorial debut in 1958 with the production "Gods of Rain" which introduced Grotowski's bold approach to text, which he continued to develop throughout his career, influencing many subsequent theatre artists. Later in 1958 Grotowski moved to Opole where he was invited by the theatre critic and dramaturg Ludwik Flaszen to serve as Director of the Theatre of 13 Rows. There he began to assemble a company of actors and artistic collaborators which would help him realize his unique vision. It was also there that he began to experiment with approaches to performance training which enabled him to shape the young actors - initially allocated to his provincial theatre - into the transformational artists they eventually became.

Among the many productions for which his theatre company became famous were "Orpheus" by Jean Cocteau, "Shakuntala" based on text by Kalidasa, "Dziady (Forefathers' Eve)" by Adam Mickiewicz and "Akropolis" by Stanisław Wyspiański. This last production was the first complete realization of Grotowski's notion of 'poor theatre.' In it the company of actors (representing concentration camp prisoners) build the structure of a crematorium around the audience while acting out stories from the Bible and Greek mythology. This conceptualization had particular resonance for the audiences in Opole, as the Auschwitz concentration camp was only sixty miles away. "Akropolis" received much attention, and could be said to have launched Grotowski's career internationally due to inventive and aggressive promotion by visiting foreign scholars and theatre professionals. A film of the production was made with an introduction by Peter Brook, which constitutes one of the most accessible and concrete records of Grotowski's work.

In 1964 Grotowski followed success with success when his theatre premiered "The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus" based on the Elizabethan drama by Marlowe, featuring Zbigniew Cynkutis in the title role. Foregoing the use of props altogether, Grotowski let the actors' bodies represent different objects, establishing an intimate dynamic of relation between actors and spectators by seating audience members as the guests at Faust's last supper, with the action unfolding on and around the table where they were seated.

In 1965 Grotowski moved his company to Wrocław relabeling them a "Teatr Laboratorium", in part to avoid the heavy censorship to which professional 'theatres' were subject in Poland at that time. Work had already begun on one of their most famous productions, "The Constant Prince". Debuting in 1967, this production is thought by many to be one of the greatest theatrical works of the 20th century. Ryszard Cieslak's performance in the title role is considered the apogee of Grotowski's approach to acting. In one of his final essays, Grotowski detailed how he worked individually with Cieslak for more than a year to develop the details of the actor's physical score before combining this central element of the performance with the work of other actors and the context of torture and martyrdom intrinsic to the play.

The last professional production from Grotowski as a director was in 1969. Entitled "Apocalypsis Cum Figuris" it is widely admired. Again using text from the Bible, this time combined with contemporary writings from authors such as T.S. Eliot and Simone Weil, this production was cited by members of the company as an example of a group 'total act'. The development of Apocalypsis took more than three years, beginning as a staging of Slowacki's Samuel Zborowski and passing through a separate stage of development as a staging of the Gospels, Ewangelie (elaborated as a completed performance though never presented to audiences) before arriving to its final form. Throughout this process, Grotowski can already be seen abandoning the conventions of traditional theatre, straining at the boundaries of what he later termed Art as presentation.

Grotowski revolutionized theatre, and, along with his first apprentice Eugenio Barba, leader and founder of Odin Teatret, is considered a father of contemporary experimental theatre. Barba was instrumental in revealing Grotowski to the world outside the iron curtain. He was the editor of the seminal book, Towards a Poor Theatre (1968) which Grotowski wrote together with Ludwik Flaszen, in which it is declared that theatre should not, because it could not, compete against the overwhelming spectacle of film and should instead focus on the very root of the act of theatre: actors co-creating the event of theatre with its spectators.

Theatre - through the actor's technique, his art in which the living organism strives for higher motives - provides an opportunity for what could be called integration, the discarding of masks, the revealing of the real substance: a totality of physical and mental reactions. This opportunity must be treated in a disciplined manner, with a full awareness of the responsibilities it involves. Here we can see the theatre's therapeutic function for people in our present day civilization. It is true that the actor accomplishes this act, but he can only do so through an encounter with the spectator - intimately, visibly, not hiding behind a cameraman, wardrobe mistress, stage designer or make-up girl - in direct confrontation with him, and somehow " instead of" him. The actor's act - discarding half measures, revealing, opening up, emerging from himself as opposed to closing up - is an invitation to the spectator. This act could be compared to an act of the most deeply rooted, genuine love between two human beings - this is just a comparison since we can only refer to this "emergence from oneself" through analogy. This act, paradoxical and borderline, we call a total act. In our opinion it epitomizes the actor's deepest calling.[2]

Debut in the west

The year 1968 marked Grotowski's debut in the West. His company performed the Stanislaw Wyspianski play Akropolis/Acropolis (1964) at the Edinburgh Festival. This was a fitting vehicle for Grotowski and his Poor Theatre because his treatment of the play in Poland had already achieved wider recognition, and was published in Pamiętnik Teatralny (Warsaw, 1964), Alla Ricerca del Teatro Perduto (Padova, 1965), and Tulane Drama Review (New Orleans, 1965). It marked the first time many in Britain had been exposed to "Poor Theatre". The same year his great book called Towards A Poor Theatre appeared in Danish, published by Odin Teatrets Forlag. It appeared in English the following year, published by Methuen and Co. Ltd., with an Introduction by Peter Brook, then Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company. In it he writes feelingly about Grotowski's private consulting for the Company; he/they felt Grotowski's work was unique but equally understood that its value was diminished if talked about too much, if faith were broken with the consultant.

Grotowski's company made its debut in the United States under the auspices of the Brooklyn Academy of Music in the fall of 1969. BAM built a theatre for Grotowski's company in the Washington Square Methodist Church in Greenwich Village. Three productions were presented: Akropolis, The Constant Prince and Apocalypsis Cum Figuris during a three week run.

Paratheatrical phase

In 1973 Grotowski published "Holiday,"^{[citation needed]} which outlined a new course of investigation. He would pursue this 'Paratheatrical' phase until 1978. This phase is known as the 'Paratheatrical' phase of his career because it was an attempt to transcend the separation between performer and spectator. Grotowski attempted this through the organization of communal rites and simple interactive exchanges that went on sometimes for extended periods, attempting to provoke in participants a deconditioning of impulse. The most widely circulated description of one of these post-theatrical events (a "beehive") is given by Andre Gregory, Grotowski's longtime friend and the American director whose work he most strongly endorsed, in My Dinner with Andre. Various collaborators who had been important to Grotowski's work in what he termed his "Theatre of Productions" phase had difficulty following him in these explorations beyond the boundary of conventional theatre. Other, younger members of the group came to the foreground, notably Jacek Zmysłowski, whom many would consider Grotowski's closest collaborator in this period. Theatre critics have often exoticized and mystified Grotowski's work on the basis of these paratheatrical experiments, suggesting that his work should be seen in the lineage of Antonin Artaud, a suggestion Grotowski strongly resisted. Later in life, he clarified that he quickly found this direction of research limiting, having realized that unstructured work frequently elicits banalities and cultural cliché from participants.

Theatre of Sources

In this period of his work, Grotowski traveled intensively through India, Mexico, Haiti and elsewhere, seeking to identify elements of technique in the traditional practices of various cultures that could have a precise and discernible effect on participants. Key collaborators in this phase of work include Włodzimierz Staniewski, subsequently founder of Gardzienice Theatre Association, Jairo Cuesta and Magda Złotowska, who traveled with Grotowski on his international expeditions. His interest in ritual techniques linked to Haitian practice led Grotowski to a long-standing collaboration with Maud Robart and Jean-Claude Tiga of Saint Soleil. Always a master strategist, Grotowski made use of his international ties and the relative freedom of travel allowed him to pursue this program of cultural research in order to flee Poland following the imposition of martial law. He spent time in Haiti and in Rome, where he delivered a series of important lectures on the topic of theatre anthropology at the University of Rome La Sapienza in 1982 before seeking political asylum in the United States. His dear friends Andre and Mercedes Gregory helped Grotowski to settle in the US, where he taught at Columbia University for one year while attempting to find support for a new program of research.

Objective Drama

Unable (despite the best efforts of Richard Schechner) to secure resources for his projected research in Manhattan, in 1983 Grotowski was invited by Professor Robert Cohen to UC Irvine, where he began a course of work known as 'Objective Drama'. This phase of research was characterized by an investigation of the psychophysiological impact of selected songs and other performative tools derived from traditional cultures on participants, focusing specifically on relatively simple techniques that could exert a discernible and predictable impact on the doer regardless of her belief structures or culture of origin. Ritual songs and related performative elements linked to Haitian and other African diaspora traditions became an especially fruitful tool of research. During this time Grotowski continued several important collaborative relationships begun in earlier phases, with Maud Robart, Jairo Cuesta, and Pablo Jimenez taking on significant roles as performers and research leaders in the project. He also initiated a longstanding creative relationship with American director James Slowiak and discovered the individual to whom he would ultimately pass responsibility for his life-long research, Thomas Richards, son of legendary North-American black director Lloyd Richards.

Art as vehicle

In 1986, Grotowski was invited by Roberto Bacci of the Centro per la Sperimentazione e la Ricerca Teatrale to shift the base of his work to Pontedera, Italy, where he was offered an opportunity to conduct long-term research on performance without the pressure of having to show results until he was ready. Grotowski gladly accepted, taking with him three assistants from Objective Drama research (Richards, Jimenez and Slowiak) to help in founding his Italian Workcenter. Robart also led a work-team in Pontedera for several years, after which time funding cuts necessitated downscaling to a single research group, led by Richards. Grotowski took the term used to describe his final phase of research from a talk by Peter Brook, who coined the phrase "art as vehicle" to characterize the focus of his attention. "It seems to me," Brook said, "that Grotowski is showing us something which existed in the past but has been forgotten over the centuries; that is that one of the vehicles which allows man to have access to another level of perception is to be found in the art of performance." Toward that end, he drove Richards to take on increasingly greater responsibility and leadership in the work, until he was not only the primary doer in the practice of Art as Vehicle, but also its leader and "director" (if such a term can be accurately used) of the performance structures created around these Afro-Caribbean vibratory songs, most significantly 'Downstairs Action' (filmed by Mercedes Gregory in 1989) and 'Action', on which work began in 1994 and continues to the present. Italian actor Mario Biagini, who joined the Workcenter shortly after its founding, also became a central contributor to this research. In 1995, Grotowski changed the name of the Italian center to the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards to signal the unique and central place Richards held in his work. Although Grotowski died in 1999 at the end of a prolonged illness, the research of Art as Vehicle continues at the Pontedera Workcenter, with Richards as Artistic Director and Biagini as Associate Director. Grotowski's Will declared the two his "universal heirs," holders of copyright on the entirety of his textual output and intellectual property.

Bibliography

• Towards a Poor Theatre (Introduction by Peter Brook) (1968)
• The Theatre of Grotowski by Jennifer Kumiega, London: Methuen, 1987.
• At Work with Grotowski on Physical Actions by Thomas Richards, London: Routledge, 1995.
• The Grotowski Sourcebook by Lisa Wolford and Richard Schechner, London: Routledge, 1997.
• A Dictionary of Theatre Anthropology: The Secret Art of the Performer by Eugenio Barba (2001)

References

1. ^ The New York Times
2. ^ Jerzy Grotowski (19 June 2004). "Source Material on Jerzy Grotowski's Statement of Principles". Owen Daly. Retrieved 2008-09-18.

Original source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grotowski

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of use for details.
Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.