Abbott and Costello
Abbott and Costello were an American comedy duo composed of comedians Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, whose work in radio, film, and television made them the most popular comedy team of the 1940s and 1950s, and the highest-paid entertainers in the world during the Second World War. Their patter routine "Who's on First?" is considered one of the greatest comedy routines of all time,[1] a version of which appears in their 1945 film The Naughty Nineties.
For other uses, see Abbott and Costello (disambiguation).Abbott and Costello
Abbott and Costello made their film debut in the 1940 comedy One Night in the Tropics. The following year, they appeared in three war-themed comedies: Buck Privates, In the Navy, and Keep 'Em Flying. They also appeared in the 1941 horror comedy film Hold That Ghost, and went on to appear in several other horror comedies, including Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948), Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949), Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951), and Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955). Other films starring the duo include Pardon My Sarong, Who Done It? (both 1942), The Time of Their Lives (1946), Buck Privates Come Home (1947), Africa Screams (1949), and Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953).
Burlesque[edit]
The two comedians had crossed paths a few times previously, but first worked together in 1935 at the Eltinge Burlesque Theater on 42nd Street in New York City.[2] Their first performance resulted from Costello's regular partner becoming ill, and Abbott substituting for him.[3]
Other performers in the show, including Abbott's wife, encouraged a permanent pairing. The duo built an act by refining and reworking numerous burlesque sketches with Abbott as the devious straight man and Costello as the dimwitted comic.
Decades later, when AMC moved the old theater 168 feet (51 metres) further west on 42nd Street to its current location, giant balloons of Abbott and Costello were rigged to appear to pull it.[4]
Film[edit]
In 1940, Universal Studios signed them for a musical, One Night in the Tropics starring Allan Jones and Nancy Kelly. Cast in supporting roles, Abbott and Costello stole the picture with several classic routines, including "Who's on First?". Signed to a two-picture contract, their second film, Buck Privates (1941), directed by Arthur Lubin and co-starring The Andrews Sisters, was a massive hit, earning $4 million at the box office and launching Abbott and Costello as stars.[3]
Their next film was a haunted house comedy, Oh, Charlie!; however, Buck Privates was so successful that the studio decided to delay the release so the team could hastily film and release a second service comedy. In the Navy (1941), co-starred crooner Dick Powell and the Andrews Sisters, and initially out-grossed Buck Privates. Loew's Criterion in Manhattan was open until 5 a.m. to oblige over 49,000 customers during the film's first week.[3]
Oh, Charlie went back into production to add music featuring the Andrews Sisters and Ted Lewis. The film was eventually retitled Hold That Ghost (1941).[11] The duo next appeared in Ride 'Em Cowboy (1941), with Dick Foran, but its release was delayed so they could appear in a third service comedy, Keep 'Em Flying (1941). This was their last film directed by Arthur Lubin. All of their 1941 films were big hits, and Abbott and Costello were voted the third biggest box office attraction in the country in 1941.
Universal loaned the team to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for a musical comedy, Rio Rita (1942). During filming Abbott and Costello had their hand and foot prints set in concrete at what was then "Grauman's Chinese Theatre". Back at Universal they made Pardon My Sarong (1942), a spoof of South Sea Island movies; and Who Done It? (1942), a comedy-mystery.
In 1942, exhibitors voted them the top box office stars in the country, and their earnings for the fiscal year were $789,026.[12] The team did a 35-day tour during the summer of 1942 to promote and sell War Bonds. The Treasury Department credited them with $85 million in sales.[3]
After the tour the team starred in It Ain't Hay (1943), from a story by Damon Runyon; and Hit the Ice (1943).
Costello was stricken with rheumatic fever upon his return from a winter tour of army bases in March 1943 and was bedridden for approximately six months. On November 4, 1943, the same day that Costello returned to radio after a one-year hiatus due to his illness, his infant son Lou Jr. (nicknamed "Butch" and born November 6, 1942) died in an accidental drowning in the family's swimming pool.[13] Maxene Andrews remembers visiting Costello with sisters Patty and LaVerne during his illness, and remembered how Costello's demeanor changed after the tragic loss of his son, recalling, "He didn't seem as fun-loving and as warm...He seemed to anger easily...there was a difference in his attitude".
After Costello recovered, the duo returned to MGM for Lost in a Harem (1944) then were back at Universal for In Society (1944), Here Come the Co-Eds (1945) and The Naughty Nineties (1945). Their third and final film for MGM was Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945).
In 1945, a rift developed when Abbott hired a domestic servant who had been fired by Costello. Costello refused to speak to his partner except when performing. The following year they made two films, (Little Giant and The Time of Their Lives), in which they appeared as separate characters rather than as a team. This was likely the result of the tensions between them, plus the fact that their most recent films had not performed as well at the box office. Abbott resolved the rift when he suggested naming Costello's pet charity, a foundation for underprivileged children, the "Lou Costello Jr. Youth Foundation." The facility opened in 1947 and still serves the Boyle Heights district of Los Angeles.
Abbott and Costello reunited as a team in Buck Privates Come Home (1947), a sequel to their 1941 hit. In The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (1947) they were supported by Marjorie Main. They signed a new contract with Universal which allowed them to appear in films outside of their studio contract.[3] The first of these, The Noose Hangs High (1948), was distributed by Eagle-Lion.
The team's next film, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948), co-starring Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney Jr, was a massive hit and revitalized the duo's careers. It was followed by Mexican Hayride (1948), an adaptation of a Cole Porter musical without the songs. They followed with Africa Screams (1949) for Nassour Studios, an independent company which was released through United Artists. Back at Universal, they returned to horror comedy with Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949).
The pair was sidelined again for several months when Costello suffered a relapse of rheumatic fever. They returned to the screen in Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950). They returned the following year in Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951); then Comin' Round the Mountain (1952), a hillbilly comedy.
Their first color film, Jack and the Beanstalk (1952), was an independent production distributed by Warner Bros. After filming Lost in Alaska (1952) back at Universal, they made a second independent color movie, Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1953) co-starring Charles Laughton, which was also distributed by Warner Bros.
At Universal, they starred in Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) and Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953). They were forced to withdraw from Fireman Save My Child in 1954 due to Costello's ill health, and were replaced by lookalikes Hugh O'Brian and Buddy Hackett along with Spike Jones and his City Slickers. Their last two films for Universal were Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955) and Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955). In 1956, they appeared in their final film together, Dance With Me, Henry, an independent production released through United Artists.
Personal lives[edit]
Abbott and Costello both married performers they met in burlesque. Abbott wed Betty Smith, a dancer and comedienne, in 1918, and Costello married a chorus girl, Anne Battler, in 1934. The Costellos had four children; the Abbotts adopted two. Abbott and Costello faced personal demons at times. Both were inveterate gamblers and had serious health problems. Abbott suffered from epilepsy and turned to alcohol for seizure management. Costello had occasional, near-fatal bouts with rheumatic fever.[16]
Later years[edit]
In the 1950s, Abbott and Costello's popularity waned with the emergence of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Another reason for their decline was overexposure.[3] Each year they made two new films, while Realart Pictures re-issued their older hits; their filmed television series was widely syndicated, and the same routines appeared frequently on the Colgate program. (Writer Parke Levy told Jordan R. Young, in The Laugh Crafters: Comedy Writing in Radio and TV's Golden Age, that he was stunned to learn that the pair were afraid to perform new material.)
Universal dropped the comedy team in 1955 after they could not agree on contract terms. In the early 1950s, the Internal Revenue Service charged them for back taxes, forcing them to sell their homes and most of their assets, including the rights to most of their films.[3]
In 1956, they made one independent film, Dance with Me, Henry, and Costello was the subject of the television program This Is Your Life,[17] then formally dissolved their partnership in 1957.[18][19] In his posthumously published 1959 autobiography, My Wicked, Wicked Ways,[20] Errol Flynn claims that he triggered the breakup. Flynn, a chronic practical joker, invited them, along with their wives and children, to his house for dinner, and afterwards, he commenced to show a home movie that "accidentally" turned out to be hard-core pornography. While Flynn pretended to be baffled, Costello and Abbott each blamed the other for the film's substitution.
In his last years, Costello made about ten solo appearances on The Steve Allen Show doing many of the old routines without Abbott. Costello performed stand-up in Las Vegas, and appeared in episodes of GE Theater and Wagon Train. On March 3, 1959, not long after completing his lone solo film, The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock, he died of a heart attack three days short of his 53rd birthday.[21]
Abbott attempted a comeback in 1960 with Candy Candido. Although the new act received good reviews, Abbott quit, saying, "No one could ever live up to Lou." Abbott made a solo, dramatic appearance on an episode of General Electric Theater in 1961. In 1966, Abbott voiced his character in a series of 156 five-minute Abbott and Costello cartoons made by Hanna-Barbera.[22] Costello's character was voiced by Stan Irwin. Bud Abbott died of cancer on April 24, 1974.[23]