This concise history of team comedy begins with vaudeville's Smith & Dale (used by Neil Simon as a jumping off place for his Broadway comedy "The Sunshine Boys") in 1898 through the ostensible demise of team comedy with the break up of the weakest team - Cheech and Chong - in 1985. The PAPERBACK version updates to 2000. There are portions of routines ("Who's On First", Abbott and Costello), histories of the lives and careers, appendices of their vaudeville, radio, film, television, records+tapes+cds of all the teams and the differences in style. It is great for reminiscince, nostalgia and is very funny and readable. The author most recently published a memoir - CONFESSIONS OF AN ACCIDENTAL MOUSEKETEER - for he was Mouseketeer Lonnie on the original "Mickey Mouse Club" (1955-59 - reruns every decade, last: 1995-2002, 18+ countires & 5 languages) and began his performing career professionally in 1948 at 5 and continues writing, acting, singing and dancing, choreographing and directing in 2010.

Lonnie Burr

Simon & Schuster, Incorporated

New York: J. Messner

Summit Books

United States, United States of America

First Edition, PS, 1979

New York, 1982, ©1979

New York, 1978

1st, 1979

[curator]associate-michael-wankoff@archive.org[/curator][date]20180820184757[/date]

Bibliography: p. 248.
Includes index.

143,319
Bibliography: p. 248.

255 pages : 22 cm
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
Includes bibliographical references (page 248) and index
Through thick and thin (Laurel and Hardy). -- The man behind the woman (Burns and Allen). -- Three madmen and two guys who were a little peeved (The Marx Brothers). -- Who's on second? (Abbott and Costello). -- Anything goes, everything goes (Martin and Lewis). -- Tweedledum and Tweedledee vs. the Ogre, or satire and punishment (The Smothers Brothers). -- Would you buy a used car from this bartender? (Rowan and Martin). -- The hidden comedians (Teams of the 60s and 70s -- Bob and Ray, Nichols and May, Stiller and Meara, Reiner and Brooks, Burns and Schreiber, Clair and McMahon, Cheech and Chong). -- Just for the record (Smith and Dale, Amos 'n' Andy, Fibber McGee and Molly, the Three Stooges)

All media are covered in this anthology that presents the jokes of and stories behind Laurel and Hardy, the Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello, Burns and Allen, and other comedy teams

2023-06-28