Eddie Laughton
Encyclopedia
Eddie Laughton was a British
-born American
film actor. Born in Sheffield
, West Riding of Yorkshire
, England
, Laughton appeared in over 200 films between 1935
and 1952
.
, and, according to a biography of Larry Fine
of the Three Stooges
, managed a vaudeville theatre where Fine once played.
The pencil-mustached Laughton was placed under contract by Columbia Pictures
in 1935. He appeared in many Columbia features, short subjects, and serials throughout the 1930s and 1940s.
Modern viewers will remember Laughton for his role as "Percy Pomeroy, convict 41144" in the Stooge comedies So Long Mr. Chumps
and Beer Barrel Polecats
, or as the happy drunk in Loco Boy Makes Good
. Laughton was an excellent utility player, useful in good-guy and bad-guy roles alike. (He and Columbia actor John Tyrrell
shared many scenes.) Laughton was also a convincing dialect comedian, playing a French nobleman in Buster Keaton
's She's Oil Mine
, and an English big-game hunter plastered with pies in the Stooges' In the Sweet Pie and Pie
.
In addition to his roles in the Stooge shorts, Laughton joined the team during their personal appearances between filming schedules, acting as their straight man.
on March 21, 1952, two months after Stooge co-star Curly Howard
succumbed to a stroke
. Both Laughton and Howard were 48 years of age. Laughton was married to actress Mary Eaton
until her death in 1948 from liver failure.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film actor. Born in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Laughton appeared in over 200 films between 1935
1935 in film
-Events:*Judy Garland signs a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer .*Seven year old Shirley Temple wins a special Academy Award.*The Bantu Educational Kinema Experiment started in order to educate the Bantu peoples.-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:...
and 1952
1952 in film
The year 1952 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 10 - Cecil B. DeMille's circus epic, The Greatest Show on Earth, premieres at Radio City Music Hall in New York City....
.
Career
Laughton left his native England to pursue a Hollywood film career. He started in vaudevilleVaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
, and, according to a biography of Larry Fine
Larry Fine
Louis Feinberg , known professionally as Larry Fine, was an American comedian and actor, who is best known as a member of the comedy act The Three Stooges.-Early life:...
of the Three Stooges
Three Stooges
The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...
, managed a vaudeville theatre where Fine once played.
The pencil-mustached Laughton was placed under contract by Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
in 1935. He appeared in many Columbia features, short subjects, and serials throughout the 1930s and 1940s.
Modern viewers will remember Laughton for his role as "Percy Pomeroy, convict 41144" in the Stooge comedies So Long Mr. Chumps
So Long Mr. Chumps
So Long Mr. Chumps is the 53rd short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
and Beer Barrel Polecats
Beer Barrel Polecats
Beer Barrel Polecats is the 88th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
, or as the happy drunk in Loco Boy Makes Good
Loco Boy Makes Good
Loco Boy Makes Good is the 60th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.- Plot :...
. Laughton was an excellent utility player, useful in good-guy and bad-guy roles alike. (He and Columbia actor John Tyrrell
John Tyrrell
John Tyrrell may refer to:* John Tyrell, 15th century English knight, Speaker of House of Commons* John Tyrrell , English second Admiral of the East Indies...
shared many scenes.) Laughton was also a convincing dialect comedian, playing a French nobleman in Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
's She's Oil Mine
She's Oil Mine
She's Oil Mine is the last short subject American comedian Buster Keaton made for Columbia Pictures. Keaton made a total of ten films for the studio between 1939 and 1941.-Plot:...
, and an English big-game hunter plastered with pies in the Stooges' In the Sweet Pie and Pie
In the Sweet Pie and Pie
In the Sweet Pie and Pie is the 58th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
.
In addition to his roles in the Stooge shorts, Laughton joined the team during their personal appearances between filming schedules, acting as their straight man.
Death
Laughton died of pneumoniaPneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
on March 21, 1952, two months after Stooge co-star Curly Howard
Curly Howard
Jerome Lester "Jerry" Horwitz , better known by his stage name Curly Howard, was an American comedian and vaudevillian. He is best known as a member of the American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges, along with his older brothers Moe Howard and Shemp Howard, and actor Larry Fine...
succumbed to a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
. Both Laughton and Howard were 48 years of age. Laughton was married to actress Mary Eaton
Mary Eaton
Mary Eaton was a leading stage actress, singer, and dancer in the 1910s and 1920s. A professional performer since childhood, she enjoyed success in stage productions such as the Ziegfeld Follies and early sound films such as Glorifying the American Girl and The Cocoanuts, but found her career in...
until her death in 1948 from liver failure.
Selected filmography
- The Perils of PaulineThe Perils of Pauline (1947 film)The Perils of Pauline is a 1947 American film directed by George Marshall and released by Paramount Pictures. The movie is a fictionalized Hollywood account of silent film star Pearl White's rise to fame, starring Betty Hutton as White....
(19471947 in filmThe year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.*November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten".*November 25...
) - Beer Barrel PolecatsBeer Barrel PolecatsBeer Barrel Polecats is the 88th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(19461946 in filmThe year 1946 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*November 21 - William Wyler's The Best Years of Our Lives premieres in New York featuring an ensemble cast including Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, and Harold Russell.*December 20 - Frank Capra's It's a...
)
- Busy BuddiesBusy Buddies (film)Busy Buddies is the 78th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges.-Plot:The Stooges run the Jive Cafe, and are in heavy debt. They reluctantly take a second job hanging posters , earning a penny for each poster hung...
(1944) - Idle RoomersIdle Roomers (1944 film)Idle Roomers is the 80th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Synopsis:...
(19441944 in filmThe year 1944 in film involved some significant events, including the wholesome, award-winning Going My Way plus popular murder mysteries such as Double Indemnity, Gaslight and Laura.-Events:*July 20 - Since You Went Away is released....
) - Three Smart SapsThree Smart SapsThree Smart Saps is the 64th short film starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.- Plot :...
(1942) - Alias Boston Blackie (1942)
- Loco Boy Makes GoodLoco Boy Makes GoodLoco Boy Makes Good is the 60th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.- Plot :...
(19421942 in filmThe year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...
) - The Boogie Man Will Get YouThe Boogie Man Will Get YouThe Boogie Man Will Get You is a 1942 comedy horror film, directed by Lew Landers and starring Boris Karloff and Peter Lorre. One of six pictures Karloff made with Columbia...
(1942) - In the Sweet Pie and PieIn the Sweet Pie and PieIn the Sweet Pie and Pie is the 58th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1941) - Meet Boston BlackieMeet Boston BlackieMeet Boston Blackie is a 1941 crime film starring Chester Morris as Boston Blackie, a notorious, but honorable jewel thief. Although the character had been the hero of a number of silent films, this was the first talking picture...
(1941) - So Long Mr. ChumpsSo Long Mr. ChumpsSo Long Mr. Chumps is the 53rd short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(19411941 in filmThe year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:...
) - You Nazty Spy! (19401940 in filmThe year 1940 in film involved some significant events, including the premieres of the Walt Disney classics Pinocchio and Fantasia.-Events:*February 7 - Walt Disney's animated film Pinocchio is released....
) - Oily to Bed, Oily to RiseOily to Bed, Oily to RiseOily to Bed, Oily to Rise is the 42nd short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:Once again, the Stooges are three hapless tramps...
(1939) - Pest from the WestPest from the WestPest from the West is the first short subject starring American comedian Buster Keaton made for Columbia Pictures. Keaton made a total of ten films for the studio between 1939 and 1941.-Synopsis:...
(1939) - We Want Our MummyWe Want Our MummyWe Want Our Mummy is the 37th short subject starring American slapstick team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:Two museum curators We Want Our Mummy is the 37th short subject starring American slapstick team the Three Stooges....
(19391939 in filmThe year 1939 in motion pictures can be justified as being called the most outstanding one ever, when it comes to the high quality and high attendance at the large set of the best films that premiered in the year .- Events :Motion picture historians and film often rate...
) - No Time to Marry (19381938 in filmThe year 1938 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*January — MGM announces that Judy Garland would be cast in the role of "Dorothy" in the upcoming Wizard of Oz motion picture. Ray Bolger is cast as the "Tinman" and Buddy Ebsen is cast as the "Scarecrow". At Bolger's insistence,...
) - 3 Dumb Clucks3 Dumb Clucks3 Dumb Clucks is the 22nd short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:The Stooges are in jail when their mother sends them a letter...
(19371937 in filmThe year 1937 in film involved some significant events, including the Walt Disney production of the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.- Events :*April 16 - Way Out West premieres in the US....
) - Slippery SilksSlippery SilksSlippery Silks is the 19th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1936) - A Pain in the PullmanA Pain in the PullmanA Pain in the Pullman is the 16th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(19361936 in filmThe year 1936 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 29 - Fritz Lang's first Hollywood film Fury, starring Spencer Tracy and Bruce Cabot, is released.*November 6 - first Porky Pig animated cartoon...
) - Three Little BeersThree Little BeersThree Little Beers is the 11th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(19351935 in film-Events:*Judy Garland signs a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer .*Seven year old Shirley Temple wins a special Academy Award.*The Bantu Educational Kinema Experiment started in order to educate the Bantu peoples.-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:...
)