Oliver Norvell Hardy was an American comic actor and one half of Laurel and Hardy, the double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted from 1926 to 1957. He appeared with his comedy partner Stan Laurel in 107 short films, feature films, and cameo roles. He was credited with his first film, Outwitting Dad, in 1914. In most of his silent films before joining producer Hal Roach, he was billed on screen as Babe Hardy.
Lyda Roberti was an American singer and stage and film actress.
Mischa Auer (born Mikhail Semyonovich Unkovsky was a Russian-born American actor who moved to Hollywood in the late 1920s. He first appeared in film in 1928. Auer had a long career playing in many of the era's best known films. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1936 for his performance in the screwball comedy My Man Godfrey, which led to further zany comedy roles. He later moved into television and acted in films again in France and Italy well into the 1960s.
Way Out West is a 1937 Laurel and Hardy comedy film directed by James W. Horne, produced by Stan Laurel, and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was the second picture for which Stan Laurel was credited as producer.
Rosina May Lawrence was a British-Canadian actress and singer. She had a short but memorable career in the 1920s and 1930s in Hollywood before she married in 1939 and retired from entertainment. She is best known as the schoolteacher in the Our Gang comedies of 1936-37, and as the ingenue in the Laurel and Hardy feature Way Out West.
James Henderson Finlayson was a Scottish actor who worked in both silent and sound comedies. Balding, with a fake moustache, he had many trademark comic mannerisms—including his squinting, outraged double-take reactions, and his characteristic exclamation: "D'ooooooh!" He is the best remembered comic foil of Laurel and Hardy.
Patsy Kelly was an American actress. She is known for her role as the brash, wisecracking sidekick to Thelma Todd in a series of short comedy films produced by Hal Roach in the 1930s. Kelly's career continued in similar roles after Todd's death in 1935.
Pardon Us is a 1931 American pre-Code Laurel and Hardy film. It was the duo's first starring feature-length comedy film, produced by Hal Roach and Stan Laurel, directed by James Parrott, and originally distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1931.
Chickens Come Home is a 1931 American pre-Code short film starring Laurel and Hardy, directed by James W. Horne and produced by Hal Roach. It was shot in January 1931 and released on February 21, 1931. It is a remake of the 1927 silent film Love 'em and Weep in which James Finlayson plays Hardy's role and Hardy plays a party guest.
Block-Heads is a 1938 American comedy film directed by John G. Blystone and starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. It was produced by Hal Roach Studios for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film, a reworking of elements from the Laurel and Hardy shorts We Faw Down (1928) and Unaccustomed As We Are (1929), was Roach's final film for MGM.
Saps at Sea is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Gordon Douglas, distributed by United Artists. It was Laurel and Hardy's last film produced by the Hal Roach Studios, as well as the last film to feature Ben Turpin and Harry Bernard.
One Good Turn is a 1931 American Pre-Code short comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy. This film was the first Laurel and Hardy film to feature support from Billy Gilbert.
The Bohemian Girl is a 1936 comedic feature film version of the opera The Bohemian Girl by Michael William Balfe. Directed by James W. Horne and Charles Rogers, and it was produced at the Hal Roach Studios, and stars Laurel and Hardy, and Thelma Todd in her final film role. This was also the only appearance of Darla Hood in a full-length feature produced by Hal Roach.
Bonnie Scotland is a 1935 American film directed by James W. Horne and starring Laurel and Hardy. It was produced by Hal Roach for Hal Roach Studios. Although the film begins in Scotland, a large part of the action is set in British India.
The Hoose-Gow is a 1929 short film starring Laurel and Hardy, directed by James Parrott and produced by Hal Roach.
Three Cornered Moon is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Elliott Nugent, written by Ray Harris and S.K. Lauren, and starring Claudette Colbert, Richard Arlen, Mary Boland, and Wallace Ford. Based on a 1933 play by Gertrude Tonkonogy Friedberg, the film reached No. 9 in the National Board of Review Awards top-10 films in 1933. Film critic Leonard Maltin identifies it as one of the "25 Vintage Movies You Really Shouldn't Miss". This film is often mentioned as one of the earliest examples of screwball comedy.
Pitts and Todd were a 1930s movie comedy duo consisting of actresses ZaSu Pitts and Thelma Todd. Assembled by Hal Roach as the female counterparts to Laurel and Hardy, the duo's members changed over the years and included actresses Patsy Kelly, Pert Kelton and Lyda Roberti.
Million Dollar Legs is a 1932 American pre-Code comedy film starring Jack Oakie and W.C. Fields, directed by Edward F. Cline, produced by Herman J. Mankiewicz and B.P. Schulberg, co-written by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and released by Paramount Pictures. The film was inspired by the 1932 Summer Olympics, held in Los Angeles, California.
Nobody's Baby is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Gus Meins and written by Harold Law, Hal Yates and Pat C. Flick. The film stars Patsy Kelly, Lyda Roberti, Lynne Overman, Robert Armstrong, Rosina Lawrence, and Don Alvarado. The film was released on April 23, 1937 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Sandy Is a Lady is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Charles Lamont and written by Charles Grayson. The film stars Baby Sandy, Billy Lenhart, Kenneth Brown, Eugene Pallette, Nan Grey, Tom Brown, Mischa Auer, Billy Gilbert and Edgar Kennedy. The film was released on May 21, 1940, by Universal Pictures.
