They made their final appearance on camera in 1956 in a private home movie, shot by a family friend at the Reseda, CA home of Stan Laurel's daughter, Lois. Understandably, Stan was devastated; shortly after the funeral, on August 19, Stan wrote in a letter,  “I feel lost without him after 30 odd years of close friendship & happy association.” With his partner and best friend gone, Stan refused to perform again. The the duo consisted of the thin British -born-and-reared Stan Laurel and his heavier American partner from the state of Georgia, Oliver Hardy. Amazed at seeing this, Hardy unsuccessfully attempts to duplicate it throughout the film. A famous routine the team often performed was a bizarre kind of "tit-for-tat" fight with an opponent. [31][32], Hal Roach has described how the two actors came together as a team. The two comedians worked together briefly in 1919, on The Lucky Dog released in 1921. Among their most popular and successful films were the features Sons of the Desert (1933), Way Out West (1937), and Block-Heads (1938); and the shorts Big Business (1929), Helpmates (1932), and their Academy Award-winning effort, The Music Box (1932). [27] Between 1914 and 1916 Hardy made 177 shorts as Babe with the Vim Comedy Company, which were released up to the end of 1917. First, Hardy had already been working for Roach (and others) when Roach hired Laurel, whom he had seen in vaudeville. But their off-screen friendship was special too as they both supported one another and remained a vital presence in each other’s lives. [90] Late in life, he hosted visitors of the new generation of comedians and celebrities including Dick Cavett, Jerry Lewis, Peter Sellers, Marcel Marceau, Johnny Carson and Dick Van Dyke. The original theme, recorded by two clarinets in 1930, was recorded again with a full orchestra in 1935. To achieve a flat-footed walk, he removed the heels from his shoes (usually Army shoes). "[98] [45] The association was casual, according to interviews given in the 1930s, and both of them had forgotten it entirely. Considering the close-knit relationship the two would develop later on — and the theme of comradeship that would be prevalent in all their future movies together — the synopsis of The Lucky Dog seems odd at the very least:  “Stan plays a penniless dog lover and Oliver plays a crook who tries to rob him and his new paramour.” As funny as they were in the movie, though, Hollywood didn’t immediately realize the potential that Stan and Oliver had as a comedic duo. Following the success of this film, the duo reduced the number of shorts they made in order to concentrate on feature films. Both wore bowler hats, with Laurel's being narrower than Hardy's, and with a flattened brim. Stan and Ollie are children in a grown-up world: A skinny-and-fat pair of life's innocent bystanders who always run afoul of irate landlords, pompous citizens, angry policemen, domineering women, antagonistic customers, and apoplectic bosses. The quasi-British formality of this headgear is in perfect consonance with their bone-bred politeness. Laurel had appeared in over 50 films as an actor (while also working as a writer and director), while Hardy had been in more than 250 productions. ", "Laurel and Hardy Museum of Harlem, Georgia", "Laurel and Hardy cartoons by Hanna-Barbera. [53] Also, in 1927, the pair starred in The Battle of the Century, a lost but now found classic short, which involved over 3,000 cream pies. Several years later, both men appeared in the Hal Roach production 45 Minutes from Hollywood (1926). During this period McCarey and Laurel jointly devised the team's format. Van Dyke (who became a great friend of Laurel) did an imitation of Stan on his television show in 1963, which Laurel saw and wrote—much to Van Dyke's amusement—a lengthy set of "tips" to perfect the imitation. The team was composed of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957). The film received positive reviews from critics, garnering a 94% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. While most silent-film actors saw their careers decline with the advent of sound, Laurel and Hardy made a successful transition in 1929, with the short Unaccustomed As We Are. Hardy. Difficult Times Turn Into Inspiring Moments, Top Interview Tips You Can Master Right Now, Hiring Friends Won’t Destroy Your Business, But Terrible Communication Will – Achieve | Teamwork & Productivity Resources from Flow. [23] By his late teens, Hardy was a popular stage singer and he operated a movie house in Milledgeville, Georgia, the Palace Theater, financed in part by his mother. He brought the team together and they worked for Hal Roach Studios for over 20 years. In 1956, while following his doctor's orders to improve his health due to a heart condition, Hardy lost over 100 pounds (45 kg; 7.1 st), nonetheless suffering several strokes resulting in reduced mobility and speech. Most of his writing was in the form of correspondence; he insisted on answering every fan letter personally, and his typewritten responses are highly prized souvenirs today. There are three Laurel and Hardy museums. To recall the traditional appearance of clowns, both comedians wore a light pancake makeup on their faces, and Roach's cameramen, such as Art Lloyd and Francis Corby, were instructed to light and film a scene so that facial lines and wrinkles would be "washed out."