“Classic Comedy Teams: A Screenshots Book” is a collection of more than 100 images from public domain films, TV shows and movie trailers of Abbott and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, Martin and Lewis, The Marx Brothers, The Three Stooges, and more. This “first of its kind” book captures many memorable moments from the days when movie comedy teams truly were king.

Includes material on Laurel and Hardy, Burns and Allen, Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello, Martin and Lewis, the Smothers Brothers, Rowan and Martin, among others.

Two for the Show outlines and gives examples of team comedy in the twentieth century in all media: stage, film, radios, TV, records, tapes, cassettes, and CDs. The book is unique in covering the comedy teams of the 60's, 70's, and 80's. Since 1982, there have been no new comedy teams. The only changes have been separate career credits (Jerry Stiller, Seinfeld, Dick Martin, TV Director) and the demise of the team comedians.

They were (and still are) the kings of movie comedy teams: Abbott and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, Martin and Lewis, The Marx Brothers and The Three Stooges. Today, new generations continue to discover their antics for the first time, thanks to reruns of their films on cable channels and the release of them on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming video. The Ultimate Classic Comedy Teams Movie Poster Book celebrates their legacies by presenting, for the first time together in one book, 100 full color movie posters originally used to promote their films (20 posters for each team). In addition, there are chapters containing sample posters for foreign releases and re-releases of their films, compilation films and film festivals, and solo films. If you're a fan of movie comedy teams or love collecting their posters, then The Ultimate Classic Comedy Teams Movie Poster Book is right up your alley. One hundred posters included by comedy team: Abbott and Costello: Buck Privates, Hold That Ghost, Keep 'Em Flying, Ride 'Em Cowboy, Pardon My Sarong, In Society, The Naughty Nineties, Abbott and Costello in Hollywood, The Time of Their Lives, Buck Privates Come Home, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, Africa Screams, Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, In the Foreign Legion, Comin' Round the Mountain, Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd, Abbott and Costello Go to Mars, Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy. Laurel and Hardy: The Lucky Dog, Duck Soup, Two Tars, We Faw Down, Bacon Grabbers, Big Business, Liberty, Another Fine Mess, Brats, The Music Box, Helpmates, Sons of the Desert, Babes in Toyland, Our Relations, Block-Heads, Flying Deuces, A Chump at Oxford, Jitterbugs, The Bullfighters, Utopia. Martin and Lewis: My Friend Irma, My Friend Irma Goes West, At War With the Army, That's My Boy, Sailor's Beware, Jumping Jacks, The Stooge, Scared Stiff, The Caddy, Money From Home, Living It Up, 3 Ring Circus, You're Never Too Young, Artists and Models, Pardners, Hollywood or Bust. The Marx Brothers: The Cocoanuts, Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horse Feathers, Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, Room Service, At the Circus, Go West, The Big Store, A Night in Casablanca, Love Happy, The Story of Mankind. The Three Stooges: The Big Idea, Uncivil Warriors, Three Little Beers, Playing the Ponies, So Long, Mr. Chumps, I Can Hardly Wait, Gents Without Cents, Booby Dupes, Out West, Pardon My Clutch, Dunked in the Deep, Self Made Maids, Pardon My Backfire, Booty and the Beast, Musty Musketeers, Husbands Beware, A Merry Mix-Up, The Three Stooges in Orbit, The Three Stooges Meet Hercules, The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze.

*Includes pictures *Includes the men's quotes own quotes about their lives and careers *Includes a transcript of Abbott & Costello's "Who's on First?" *Includes a bibliography for further reading By the 1920s, English comic Stan Laurel had been in dozens of films and American Oliver Hardy had appeared in hundreds, but it was not until they formed a duo together in 1926 that they began to truly be noticed. Once they did, however, Laurel & Hardy became one of the most famous comedy teams in American history, with a career that spanned 4 decades and included over 100 combined shorts and feature films. Even today, nearly 60 years after their last performances together, Laurel & Hardy are still popular, alongside legends like The Three Stooges and Abbott & Costello, and their routines are still watched across the globe. Perhaps most importantly, Laurel & Hardy were forerunners of slapstick comedy and thus influenced those that followed. Their complementary styles of slapstick humor, with the thin, childish Laurel acting as a foil for the overweight and overly pompous Hardy, offered a template for others to follow, and the duo established several famous gags that other acts like the Stooges subsequently mimicked. For example, when Laurel occasionally came up with a smart idea, something completely out of character, the surprised Hardy would ask him to repeat what he just said, and Laurel would be unable to replicate it. That theme would recur with Curly and the Stooges, and Laurel & Hardy's use of "D'oh!" has been made even more famous by Homer Simpson in The Simpsons. Of course, the physical aspects of their slapstick, which often included destruction and mayhem, proved popular for them and several groups as well. Ironically, one of America's most famous comedy duos, and the performers of the country's most famous skit, came together in part because Lou Costello had already failed to cut it in the film industry. In fact, Costello had appeared in a Laurel & Hardy film in 1927 before meeting his partner, Bud Abbott, on the burlesque circuit in New York City. In fact, the two first performed together in 1935 only because Abbott filled in for Costello's usual partner, who happened to be ill one fateful day. Over time, Abbott & Costello perfected their routine, which typically consisted of Abbott playing the straight man while his dimwit partner acted foolishly and interrupted his plans. It was a shtick that also did well on radio, albeit one that required Costello to modify his voice with a higher pitch that not only differentiated his from Abbott but also made him sound appropriately dumber. By 1940, they were not only successful on the radio but also among America's most popular movie stars, a status they held almost consistently throughout the decade and into the early 1950s. The legendary comedy duo performed together for decades, and like similar acts, their popularity began to wane over time, but Abbott & Costello are still household names today. While all of their material is still in syndication and watched by many, they are best known today for "Who's on First," the famous routine in which Abbott's answers about the names of baseball players at various positions on the field sound like questions and completely confuse Costello. Although the skit was pieced together from various others, it was immortalized by Abbott & Costello and helped popularize not only the duo but some of their subsequent material. Laurel & Hardy and Abbott & Costello: America's Most Popular Comedy Duos examines the lives, careers, and comedy of the famous performers. Along with pictures and bibliographies, you'll learn about them like never before.

Nothing is needed more in troubled times than a friend to laugh with - or two friends to laugh at. The great American comedy teams were there for us during the rough years of the twentieth century and, as we head into a turbulent new era, they've made a surprising resurgence. Here, for the first time, Lawrence Epstein presents the complete story of America's comedy teams from vaudeville to Seinfeld and beyond.Available only in Americana 5.