Stan Laurel was born Arthur Stanley Jefferson on 16 June 1890 in Ulverston, England; died on 23 February 1965. Oliver Hardy was born Norvell Hardy on 18 January 1892 in Harlem, Georgia; died on 7 August 1957. Hal Roach paired Laurel with Hardy at the Hal Roach Studios in 1926, as silent films were nearing their end; three of their films employ a comedy device variously known in the comedy vocabulary around Hal Roach Studios as civilized violence, mutual abuse, or reciprocal destruction. Laurel & Hardy adapted with ease to talking in movies. Their voices matched their screen personalities. Laurel & Hardy also utilized a whole inventory of pantomimic mannerisms, devices and props which distinguished their work: the derbies, the cry, the hairstyles, the long- suffering camera looks, the eye-blink, the back-breaking pratfalls, the white magic, the tie-twiddle. Their active partnership lasted a quarter century. (Adapted from: Richard W. Bann, a film historian and co-author of "The Little Rascals: The Life And Times Of Our Gang" (New York, 1992) which appeared on the Laurel and Hardy Official Web Site):
http://www.laurel-and-hardy.com/html/home1.html.
From the description of Ponick Laurel and Hardy collection, 1924-1987. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 227908032
