Their First Mistake is a 1932

1932 in film

-Events:*Cary Grant's film career begins*Katharine Hepburn's film career begins*Shirley Temple's film career begins*Disney released Flowers and Trees, the first cartoon in three-strip Technicolor film.*Santa, first sound film made in Mexico released....

 short film starring Laurel and Hardy

Laurel and Hardy

Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...

, directed by George Marshall

George Marshall (director)

George E. Marshall was an American actor, screenwriter, producer, film and television director, active through the first six decades of movie history....

 and produced by Hal Roach

Hal Roach

Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach, Sr. was an American film and television producer and director, and from the 1910s to the 1990s.- Early life and career :Hal Roach was born in Elmira, New York...

.

Plot

Mrs Hardy is annoyed that her husband Oliver seems to spend more time with his friend Stanley than with her. After a furious argument, Mrs Hardy says that she is through if Ollie goes out with Stan again. Stan suggests that Ollie adopts a baby, which he does. Unfortunately, his wife has left their apartment on returning, and a process server delivers a paper informing Ollie that she is suing him for divorce, naming Stan as co-respondent

Co-respondent

In English law, a co-respondent is, in general, a respondent to a petition, or other legal proceeding, along with another or others, or a person called upon to answer in some other way.- Divorce :...

. The boys are now left to look after the infant on their own.

This is rare in a Laurel and Hardy film, as there is no resolution at the end. In the original script, Mrs. Hardy came back to Oliver with another adopted baby, but so much time and money had been spent on adding Stan Laurel's improvisation

Improvisation

Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...

s that there was no budget left to film it.

Note

The neighbor in the hall to whom Laurel and Hardy give the cigar is director George Marshall.

Cast

• Stan Laurel
  Stan Laurel
  Arthur Stanley "Stan" Jefferson , better known as Stan Laurel, was an English comic actor, writer and film director, famous as the first half of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy. His film acting career stretched between 1917 and 1951 and included a starring role in the Academy Award winning film...
  
  
• Oliver Hardy
  Oliver Hardy
  Oliver Hardy was an American comic actor famous as one half of Laurel and Hardy, the classic double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted nearly 30 years, from 1927 to 1955.-Early life:...
  
  
• Mae Busch
  Mae Busch
  Mae Busch was an Australian film actress who worked in both silent and sound films in early Hollywood. In the latter part of her career, she appeared in many Laurel and Hardy comedies, where she frequently played Hardy's shrewish wife.-Early life and career:Born in Melbourne, Australia, Busch was...
  
  
• Billy Gilbert
  Billy Gilbert
  Billy Gilbert was an American comedian and actor known for his comic sneeze routines. He appeared in over 200 feature films, short subjects and television shows starting in 1929. He is not to be confused with silent film actor Billy Gilbert Billy Gilbert (September 12, 1894 – September 23,...
  
  
• George Marshall
  George Marshall
  George Catlett Marshall was an American military leader, Chief of Staff of the Army, Secretary of State, and the third Secretary of Defense...
  
  

External links

• Clown Ministry's review of Laurel and Hardy's Their First Mistake