“Tit for Tat” is a 1935 short comedy film starring Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy. It is their follow-up sequel film to “Them Thar Hills” which was released the previous year & includes the same two supporting characters, Mr. & Mrs. Hall, portrayed by Charlie Hall & Mae Busch.
Release Date: January 05, 1935 27" X 41" (rare) One Sheet theatrical Poster
There is a bit of “cockney rhyming slang” at work here. A “tit-fer”refers to“hat” as in “Tit-for-tat”. (This is why Stan tips his hat.)
Stan (in a later interview), had said that he’d put special jokes “in for England”…. I had often wondered what he meant by that & over the years; I have spotted a few things–In the films “Perfect Day” & “Way Out West” Stan & Oliver both say “Oh! me apple!” Also, the film title “Towed In A Hole” (1933)suggests a play on “toad in the hole” a name for a dish consisting of sausages baked in batter. There are possibly other examples!
The regal lady the boys are tipping their hats to has been identified by Richard Bann as their co-star of the silent days; Viola Richard. She was listed as an extra in the film, but isn’t seen in the finished cut of “Tit For Tat”.
THE 8TH ACADEMY AWARDS |Thursday, March 05, 1936
Stan Laurel attends the Awards banquet at the Biltmore Hotel.
“Tit For Tat” was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Live Action Short Film (Comedy) of 1935, although it did not win. (For the record, Robert Benchley’s “How To Sleep” won.)
Of all the Television fathers of the 1950′s & 60′s— (Ward Clever, Ozzie Nelson, Jim Anderson…etc) Who’da thunk the very best advice would have come from Herman Munster—? Well.. It’s just that simple…. This magical Munster moment was originally seen in Series 01; Episode 19: “Eddie’s Nickname” & was originally transmitted on January 28, 1965 over the CBS Network.
TheOur Gang kids line up for a publicity photo. Probably taken during production of “The First Seven Years”, which was in production October 28 through November 16, 1929. The finished film was released March 01, 1930.
(seen left to right are: Bobby ‘Wheezer’ Hutchins, Mary Ann Jackson, Jackie Cooper, Allen 'Farina’ Hoskins & Norman 'Chubby’ Chaney)
¡Classic TV Fun for Cinco de Mayo! (OR–They preempted Star Trek for this–!?) Originally Transmitted:12/01/1966 (Pre-recorded on 10/16/1966) A Jack Benny gem of cultural insignificance but a classic routine re-visited with Mel Blanc.
(they were doing this bit on radio as far back as the 1940’s)
Also:In addition to Mel Blanc, we have another long-time Jack Benny/Phil Harris foil here… Next to last— Fourth from the left….The infamous left-handed guitar player….. Yes, that’s the REAL Frank Remley in his last appearance… he would be gone the following month….(Jan. 28, 1967)
Eddie“Rochester”Andersonin one of a series of stills taken in conjunction with the Jack Bennyfilm; “Man About Town” (1939). It might have been a deleted dream sequence or musical number, as no such action takes place in the finished film…
Great moment from“Blockheads” (1938) – with Tommy “Butch” Bond, who was usually the bully in “Our Gang” but as it turns out; he was a very nice guy. I got to meet him along with his wife & son at the Las Vegas Sons of The Desert convention back in 1992. Well, he & Alfalfa went on to do a series of “B” movies called the “Gas House kids”. Those were done in 1946-47 & I had gotten a lobby card from “The Gas House Kids in Hollywood” that showed him & Alfalfa with the others in a jalopy… I was going to ask him to sign it, but when I showed it to him he was visibly moved by it… it was obviously a happy memory for him.. He asked if he could show it to his wife & son… I said; “You know– this belongs in your home; Please have it..” He was very moved & teary-eye’d .. He saw to it I got a signed still from this very scene he did with Laurel & Hardy.. There were probably a ton of those he signed that week, but still.. that was special one to me….
‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum’, 1966 was Buster Keaton’s final comedy, released posthumously which, despite progressive lung cancer during filming, he seemed to thoroughly enjoy making.
Buster was never told he had cancer but one wonders if somehow he had an inkling this was going to be his last big picture?
