II. Anmerkungen zum Buchtext, Teil II - Einsnull

At any rate, obviously the history of Laurel and Hardy in Germany begins with the local release of their
solo films. This is an especially difficult area to explore. After all, Hardy, in particular, appeared supporting
numerous slapstick comedians – and worse, their names do not always necessarily appear in the German
film titles. urther, alternate or incorrect spellings of the leading character’s names are abundant – ‹Billy
West› might be billed as Billy, Billi or Billie, and Charley Chase’s first name could vary between Charlie,
Charley or Charly, for example. Yet, for this study, is has been possible to find documentation for German
releases of at least 36 Laurel or Hardy solo comedies during the 20s.
Until 1923, comedians like Jimmy Aubrey or Larry Semon were unknown in Germany. As far as slapstick
goes, Chaplin’s early comedies, in their belated post-WWI releases, dominated the theatres in the early
Weimar years, soon to be followed by the tremendously popular Harold Lloyd and Roscoe «atty» Arbuckle
films. rom the old world, rench pioneer MaxLinder was still fondly remembered; and soon Denmark, a decade
earlier boasting one of the world’s dominant film industries, contributed a string of features starring
Pat & Patachon, the lovable double act often erroneously hailed as «the world’s first comedy team».
Berlin film distributor Otto Schmidt made it his goal to break through the dominance of Chaplin, Lloyd
and Arbuckle. In June 1923, he announced the release of the films of «America’s most popular comedians»,
Aubrey and Semon, on the German market. Critics reviewing his programs were «greatly astonished» by the
quality of the product, having thought Chaplin was «the peak of comedy,» yet conceded that Aubrey wasn’t
really an actor, rather «a first rate performer.» Seven of the Jimmy Aubrey comedies featuring Oliver Hardy
in supporting parts were thus shown in Germany. In one instance, HIS JONAH DAY, contemporary records
even disclose the German character name for Hardy’s part. Here, the later Dick in Dick und Doof was «Dickerl,
the lifeguard», in which context ‹Dickerl› can best be described as a Bavarian equivalent of ‹atty›!
But while the reviewers liked these comedies, censors often took exception to the wild antics depicted,
such as the endangering of juveniles or kidnapping. Thus, with only two exceptions, the films – which were
to become staples of German children’s TV half a century later – were banned from exhibition to anyone of
adolescent age or below.
Much more frequently than in the Aubrey series, Hardy was seen on German screens supporting Larry Semon.
Censorship records provide details about the releases of numerous Semon films. Two examples featuring
Hardy also serve as testimony that early German editions employed Semon’s rench name, Zigotto.
Hardy, though, was not the only actor ‹discovered› by Semon for his films. It is well-known that on
three different occasions (more missed chances for early Laurel and Hardy encounters!), Semon was also
supported by Stan Laurel. And in spite of its Teutonic stereotypes, at least one of these films, HUNS AND HY-
PHENS was indeed among the films released in Germany as well, though with a much more conventional title,
DAS GEHEIMNISVOLLE DOKUMENT («The Mysterious Document»).
In spite of numerous filmograpies claiming otherwise, BEN AKIBA HAT GELOGEN («Ben Akiba has lied»),
which is Buster Keaton’s THREE AGES, is not to be counted among early Laurel and Hardy films. ilmographies
listing Hardy as the stone age bully – actually played by Kewpie Morgan – have been proven wrong,
yet the myth of the Hardy/Keaton encounter stubbornly persists.
It was the distribution branch of famous German company UA that first also brought Stan Laurel’s solo
comedies to the German screen. In October 1926, the release of 64 shorts was announced, including 31
two-reelers such as the Roach Star, Stan Laurel and Pathé Comedies. Stan’s solo classics that graced the German
screens included THE SOILERS, ROZEN HEARTS, POSTAGE DUE, MOTHER’S JOY and SHORT KILTS. Most notable
is the German name employed for the Laurel character in POSTAGE DUE, «Willy Doof» («Willy Dumb»), thus
essentially anticipating the famous Dick und Doof trademark which was soon to come.
inally, the Glenn Tryon comedy 45 MINUTES ROM HOLLYWOOD marked the first Roach film to include both
Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy in the cast. Not so in Germany though, where local audiences would need to
wait until 1966 to see material from this film (as part of one of Robert Youngson’s compilation features),
because the complete film was never released to German cinemas. And the same is true of the pioneering
first «real» teaming of the stars in DUCK SOUP, which was to reach Germany only as late as 1995.
SUGAR DADDIES, however, was in fact released, very likely making it the first Laurel and Hardy film ever
shown on German screens, in 1927/28. The immediate follow-up Laurel and Hardy film was THE SECOND
HUNDRED YEARS. Instead of «Little Goofy» (Laurel) and «Big Goofy» (Hardy), the names used in domestic
prints of the film, Germans followed the antics of «acade-Willy» and «Good Bully.» Apparently no-one had
yet thought about simply translating ‹goofy› as ‹doof›.