Laurel and Hardy : The Magic Behind the Movies

The beloved comedy team comes to life in this behind-the-scenes look at their unique working methods. The most detailed and accurate account of the team's career, based on exclusive interviews with their friends and associates, original shooting scripts, studio publicity material and production logs, family scrapbooks and legal depositions. Includes a who's who of supporting players and technical crew members, details on newly rediscovered films, lost footage and a resource guide.

Skretvedt, coauthor of a biography of Steve Martin and host of a Los Angeles radio show, Forward into the Past, has uncovered a wealth of fascinating information about the lives and careers of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Setting out to tell how the pair "actually made their films," the author spent seven years researching and interviewing some 60 friends and associates of the comedy team, and discovered a collection of original scripts with many scenes that were never filmed. His narrative combines biography with filmography and presents memorable, amusing anecdotes, over 200 illustrations (many previously unpublished) and a meticulous analysis of the scripts, including comparisons of scripted scenes with the finished films. Besides providing a revealing look at Laurel and Hardy, this lengthy, illuminating study offers unusual insights into the complex art of creating comedy.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Drawing upon production records and new interviews with those who appeared with Laurel and Hardy, Skretvedt presents a chronological survey of the comedians' films. He argues that their screen career ended so dismally because the strict rules of big studio filmmakingimposed upon them when they were forced to make only feature-length filmsnecessarily stifled the improvisation that had made their two-reelers so successful. Curiously, Skretvedt supports his thesis by offering the most commentary about the worse films. Thus, despite fresh anecdotal material in this readable survey, John McCabe's Laurel & Hardy (1975) remains the more substantial guide. Movie Entertainment Book Club selection. Marshall Deutelbaum, English Dept., Purdue Univ., W. Lafayette, Ind.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.