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Laurel & Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies Paperback – January 15, 2019

by Randy Skretvedt (Author), Steve Allen (Foreword)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 159 ratings
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Randy Skretvedt's seminal LAUREL & HARDY: THE MAGIC BEHIND THE MOVIES is generally acknowledged as the gold standard in writing about the work of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Since the book's original release in 1987, it has been updated several times through the early 1990s. But over the last 15 years, author Skretvedt has been compiling an Ultimate Edition of his master work, with nearly 50% more text and quadruple the number of photos of previous editions.Featuring exclusive interviews with the team’s co-workers and unfilmed scenes from rare scripts, it describes in the fullest possible detail how Laurel and Hardy created their classic films.In addition:Close to 800 of the images are new to this edition, and include many never-before-published, one-of-a-kind pictures from Babe Hardy s personal collection.Exclusive quotes and fascinating anecdotes from interviews with more than 60 of the team's co-workers, including producer Hal Roach, editors Richard Currier and Bert Jordan, musical director Marvin Hatley, actresses Anita Garvin and Dorothy Granger, and actor Henry Brandon.Detailed accounts of hilarious unused scenes, culled from the original scripts.Details about the locations where the team filmed many of their most famous scenes.Full cast and credit information for each film, providing the names of all the players and their roles as well as previously unknown members of the technical crews. And full information about the musical scores, including the titles of all cues and names of composers.Full information on the many films which are still missing, as well as a section about the new short subjects created for TV.
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  1. Print length
    630 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    January 15, 2019
  4. Dimensions
    8 x 1.42 x 10 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1937878082
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1937878085
  7. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bonaventure Press (January 15, 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 630 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1937878082
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1937878085
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.72 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8 x 1.42 x 10 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 159 ratings

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Randy Skretvedt

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4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
159 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Anthony Accordino
5.0 out of 5 stars Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy. A Splendid Look Back At Two Comedy Icons.
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2019
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This review is for the recently published [Jan 2019] soft-cover edition of Randy Skretvedt's "Laurel & Hardy The Magic Behind The Movies". First I must say this is the most thoroughly researched text ever written on the iconic comedy team. The behind the scenes narrative of every movie and short the duo ever made is painstakingly documented through cast interviews and the rarest of photo's. Many photo's provided by Mr. Hardy's late wife Lucille. No stone is left unturned. The friction between Hal Roach and Stan Laurel for creative autonomy is well documented. The not always so good post Hal Roach years with 20th Century Fox, and of course the European England and Ireland live tours in the late 40's and early 50's is also well documented in the new must see movie "Stan & Ollie". I have many books on the duo, and this stands out as the ultimate Laurel and Hardy book tour deforce. The book also goes into great detail in the reference section listing books, DVD sets that are available, and the best ones to purchase. Also a section featuring most co-actor's in their features is a nice touch and what became of them until their passings. A word about noted Laurel & Hardy author and historian John McCabe. If you want an thorough look at them as individuals, his titles "Babe The Life Of Oliver Hardy" and "The Comedy World Of Stan Laurel" are essential reading, and recommended by the author of this book. Having said that, the only slight blemish I see here is that many photo's in this paper back edition have a clarity issue and seem a little lite. I know the hard cover version is on heavy glossy textbook like paper and from what I have read, the photos in that edition are impeccable. The only thing I wish this book had was a more structured contents listing all the movies and the pages they could be found on for quick reference as opposed to going to the index to find the pages. Still a minor inconvenience. If you are a Laurel and Hardy fan, I can't recommend a better book on these two comedy legends and I for one will treasure this book as the ultimate tribute to Laurel & Hardy.
15 people found this helpful
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NorbertWorldwide
5.0 out of 5 stars Meticulous research.
Reviewed in the United States on January 27, 2020
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I had two previous versions of Laurel & Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies and this one is about four times the size of the last edition I had. If you are new to Laurel and Hardy, this book may be too much for you! But, if you are like me and have loved them and their movies since childhood, this book is an exciting addition to everyone's Laurel and Hardy collection. Every movie they made together and more is included in this book with a wealth of information on each film even many of the foreign language films are included. When the book first arrived I brought it everywhere with me reading it. I'd wait in the car before meetings reding it and before church because I was so excited with it. They were both dead by the time I was born and the one LA Cinecon I went to Hal Roach was sick and couldn't make it, so the next best thing to having seen them in person is to watch their films and read, read, read! There are many books on Laurel and Hardy, many good books on Laurel and Hardy. But, Laurel & Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies is like a whole collection of Laurel and Hardy books, articles and information all rolled into one. Every collector will want this wonderful book. I commend Randy Skretvedt for his fine detailed and meticulous researched book and making it available to us!
9 people found this helpful
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GordonD
5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute gem!
Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2016
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This is possibly the best book on Laurel and Hardy I have ever seen, and as a fan of The Boys for many years I've read a lot of them in my time. The author has managed to track down the shooting scripts for most of the films and points out where they differ from the finished product, making it clear how many gags were thought up on the spot. It's also crammed with photos, many never seen before, which are reproduced to their best advantage on the book's glossy paper. It isn't cheap, but it's well worth every penny. If you're a Laurel and Hardy fan, then this is a must buy, even if you have one of the previous editions. If you aren't, then I'm not sure why you're reading this review, but if you leaf through this book then there's hope for you yet!
11 people found this helpful
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mike murphy
5.0 out of 5 stars Very, very nostalgic about 'old' LA
Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2019
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Was interested, initially, in their personal lives, which is in there. Also liked the thumbnails on their co-workers. Really enjoyed the stories about 'old' Los Angeles, growing up in San Fernando. Our house was built on the old Tom Mix ranch. Went to school very nearby (Loyola LA), the lot and even lived across the street from the lot that became Fox Hills Mall when teaching high school. They also tore out the old lot (MGM?) that had HMS Bounty while we lived there, and buried Jack Benny in the cemetery on the other side of our apartment.
2 people found this helpful
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wisdomstar
5.0 out of 5 stars teeny, teeny, teeny print
Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2019
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I bought this as a gift for my husband, whose favorite comedy team has been Laurel and Hardy for the last 70 years. He loves the book. It is filled with pictures and information. The only drawback is the teeny/tiny print which means using a magnifying glass to read it. But it's more the kind of book that you use to look up stuff anyway, so he's happy enough with it. But don't expect to read a lot in one sitting without getting a headache, unless you have great near sight capacity.
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Jojo Chanway
5.0 out of 5 stars Laurel and Hardy Nerd Alert!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 6, 2024
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I only skimmed through about 450 pages' worth of the book for the past couple of months (primarily concentrating on their first sound film Unaccustomed as We Are up to Way Out West - for me, L&H's golden era). It's really good as film production books go. Incredibly well-sourced, tons of archival pictures, and tons of good anecdotes. Highly recommended for the most affectionate L&H fans.
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Frank Holmkvist
5.0 out of 5 stars Great L&H book
Reviewed in Germany on October 7, 2023
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Great L&H book
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Movie Crazy
5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible book on the Boys
Reviewed in Canada on September 23, 2018
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How is it possible to find more information about Laurel and Hardy and their movies, well Randy Skredvedt did it in his updated: The Magic Behind The Movies. The book is so full of new information and a very thick book that the brain can only take it in so much info at one time. It will take me a leisurely long time to digest this book. Thank you Randy for this gift of knowledge about the Boys. Would highly recommend this book.
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Catherine L.
5.0 out of 5 stars The book we must have
Reviewed in France on May 3, 2019
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Very very good book. Lot of information about what L&H, lot of anecdotes and rare photos. And a description for each film they did !!!
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Richard C
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 9, 2023
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Love this definitive guide to the boys
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