September Slapstick: Laurel before Hardy, Hardy before Laurel

Laurel and Hardy were the first double act to gain worldwide fame through film. Together, they made over 100 movies -- 32 were silent shorts, 23 were feature-length and contained sound. However, each was already well-established before joining as a duo:

Stanley Arthur "Stan" Jefferson [Laurel] was the older of the two. A music-hall understudy to Charlie Chaplin (pre-Keystone), he appeared in over 50 films. Buster Keaton commented on Laurel's talent, "Chaplin wasn't the funniest, I wasn't the funniest, this man was the funniest." Below is an early Larry Semon vehicle, Huns and Hyphens, which features a pre-L&H Laurel.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0009214/

Oliver "Babe" Hardy, affectionately known as Ollie, began his movie career before Laurel, resulting in over 250 films before their team-up. He was from Georgia, my home (and current) state, but I won't hold that against him. Below is The Servant Girl's Legacy (dir. Arthur Hotaling), a short from 1914 featuring a 22-year-old Hardy.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0248420/