Summary
Big Business is a 1929 silent Laurel and Hardy comedy short subject directed by James W. Horne and supervised by Leo McCarey from a McCarey (uncredited) and H. M. Walker script. The film, largely about tit-for-tat vandalism between Laurel and Hardy as Christmas tree salesmen and the man who rejects them, was deemed culturally significant and entered into the National Film Registry in 1992.[1]
| Big Business | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | James W. Horne Leo McCarey |
| Written by | H.M. Walker (titles) |
| Produced by | Hal Roach |
| Starring | Stan Laurel Oliver Hardy Jimmy Finlayson Tiny Sandford Charlie Hall Lyle Tayo |
| Edited by | Richard C. Currier (as Richard Currier) |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date |
|
Running time | 19 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Languages | Silent film English (Original intertitles) |
Plot edit
Stan and Ollie play door-to-door Christmas tree salesmen in California. They end up getting into an escalating feud with a grumpy would-be customer. Goaded by their repeated attempts to sell him a Christmas tree, he destroys it with hedge-clippers. Laurel and Hardy retaliate by damaging the man's doorframe with a knife.
Finlayson then goes to work on their clothes, and this escalates, with his home and their car being destroyed in the melee (after Finlayson has run out of Christmas trees to mangle). A police officer steps in to stop the fight (after vases are thrown out and smashed, and one hits him on the foot) and negotiates a peaceful resolution. Stan and Ollie give the homeowner a cigar as a peace offering. However, as the pair make their escape and the homeowner happily lights the gratis smoking-device, it is revealed to be a "trick" cigar rigged with a hidden powder-charge, which promptly explodes in his face.
Cast edit
- Stan Laurel as Stan
- Oliver Hardy as Ollie
- James Finlayson as the furious Home owner
- Tiny Sandford as the Policeman
- Lyle Tayo as the first Customer
- Charlie Hall as Neighbor
Production edit
Producer Hal Roach bought a vacant house at 10281 Dunleer Drive, Cheviot Hills, Los Angeles from a studio worker so he could destroy it in the film.[2] According to Roach, a mistake was made regarding the address, and the cast and crew demolished the wrong house. The owners of that home happened to be away on vacation and returned just as filming was being completed. Stan Laurel later said that Roach's story was a fabrication.[3] However, Roach, at age 100, repeated the story as factual in a 1992 televised interview conducted by guest host Jay Leno on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.[4]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
- ^ Fleming, E. J. (2010). The Movieland Directory: Nearly 30,000 Addresses of Celebrity Homes, Film Locations and Historical Sites in the Los Angeles Area, 1900-Present. McFarland. p. 131. ISBN 9780786443376. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
- ^ Skretvedt, Randy (1987). Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies. Moonstone Press. p. 146. ISBN 0-940410-78-8.
- ^ "Jay Leno chats to 100 year old Laurel & Hardy Producer Hal Roach—1992", video, full interview of Hal Roach by guest host Jay Leno on The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson, originally aired January 28, 1992; uploaded by Laurel and Hardy Forum, June 24, 1914 on YouTube, San Bruno, California. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
External links edit
- Big Business essay by Randy Skretvedt at National Film Registry [1]
- Big Business essay by Daniel Eagan in America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 ISBN 0826429777, pages 158-159 [2]
- Big Business at IMDb
- Big Business at the TCM Movie Database
- Big Business at AllMovie
- Big Business at Rotten Tomatoes
