When Arthur Stanley Jefferson, a 20-year-old from Lancashire, boarded a ship bound for America more than 100 years ago, he had no idea he would become one of the biggest comedy stars in history. He was on the ship with a comedy group whose main attraction was a rising star – Charles Chaplin.
He wanted to be a clown
Although it took Chaplin less than two years to establish himself in the emerging art of cinema, it took Jefferson another twenty years, a change of name to Stan Laurel, and a pairing with Oliver Hardy to form one of the greatest comedy duos of all time.
Stan was born in 1890. His father, AJ Jefferson, was a playwright, acting manager, and later a tenant of various theaters. After spending his childhood in Ulverston, Lancashire, Stan moved with his family to Tyneside, on the Scottish Borders. He spent his time making theater toys and doing puppet shows. As soon as he grew up a little, he became part of his father’s acting company, where he played roles in melodramas. But in his heart he secretly longed for clowning.
Name change due to superstition
Eventually, he left the company and embarked on a solo career. In 1912, he went to try his luck in America. He started by changing his last name. It bothered him that the name “Stan Jefferson” had 13 letters – he thought it might bring bad luck.
Meeting Oliver Hardy changed his life
He met Hardy for the first time in 1918 in the film The Lucky Dog, but at that time there was no big bang yet. It wasn’t until much later that they found out how great the chemistry was between them and how wonderfully they complemented each other. The breakthrough came in 1926 when Laurel began working for Hal Roach Studios as a screenwriter and was asked to fill in for Hardy, who had burned his hand while cooking dinner the day before. And the history of an inseparable pair began to be written.
Ruthless as little children
Laurel and Hardy’s farces, simple dialogues and plots were immensely appealing to both children and adults. It has been said that the characters Laurel and Hardy embodied were essentially children in adult bodies, that they represented a more innocent time with simpler values. However, most of their work took place in the dark times of the Great Depression and Prohibition, which was anything but easy. They represented ordinary boys without a pittance, without education and seemingly without perspective, who nevertheless tried to get ahead and cope with the absurdities of life in an even more absurd way. While Chaplin often dealt with social and political issues in his films, Laurel and Hardy focused solely on making the audience laugh. Remember how they moved the piano?
Friends for life
But their innocent humor was not the only factor that contributed to their fame. It also helped that they managed the transition from silent films to talkies better than anyone else. And also the fact that their personal friendship lasted, which a lot of other acting couples failed to do.
Fame made them cry
It is said that when they toured Britain in the 1950s, thousands of fans were waiting for their ship in the harbor. Both comedians were so humble at heart that it never occurred to them that the crowds would be there for them. They believed that the royal family was traveling with them on the boat. Stan was so moved by the welcome he received from the country he left 40 years ago that he burst into tears on the spot.
Like fire and water
Although Stan Laurel presented a childlike and innocent character in comedy skits, off screen it was exactly the opposite. Stan was the leadership type and he was the one who had creative control over the direction of their films. Oliver, lively in farces, was, on the other hand, a very quiet person and completely trusted his mate’s decisions.
At the height of their fame, Laurel and Hardy rarely interacted. Stan rewrote scripts, made props, worked late into the night in the editing room. Oliver, known as Babe, was much less single-minded. When he was in front of the camera, he gave it one hundred percent. But once work was done, he would hit the golf course or go out drinking with a bunch of friends.
Through it all, the two comedians were inseparable friends. When Laurel and Hardy left Hal Roach Studios in the late 1930s, neither went on to pursue stardom as a stand-up comedian. They searched for a new studio until they found one that was willing to respect both of their interests. 20th Century Fox and MGM eventually agreed to these conditions.
A lifetime’s work still fascinates today
Together they made 106 short and feature films. When they ended their careers in the film industry in 1950, Stan and Oliver continued their efforts together, touring Europe with a comedy act.
Friendship beyond the grave
Oliver Hardy was the first to go to comedy heaven. He died of a stroke in 1957 at the age of 65. His funeral had to be done without Stan, who had also just had a stroke. But he expressed his grief not long after the funeral in a letter “I feel lost without him after 30 years of close friendship and happy relationship.” After the death of his best friend, Stan did not continue his career. He continued to write comic sketches, but he no longer acted. In 1961, he received an honorary Oscar for pioneering work in the field of film comedy. However, he was already so ill at that time that he could not receive the award in person. He died in 1965 of a heart attack. He was 74 years old.
2024-02-24 17:02:59
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