''Night Owls'' is a 1930 American Pre-Code

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American Double act, comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–19 ...

short film. It was filmed in October and November 1929, and released January 4, 1930.

Plot

Police officer Edgar Kennedy is warned by his police chief to make arrests to stop a burglary epidemic on his patch or face the sack. Kennedy comes across vagrants Laurel and Hardy that night and persuades them to rob the chief's house to get in his boss's good books. The boys, believing it to be too dangerous, at first refuse. After Kennedy threatens them with ninety days on "

the rockpile The Rockpile (also known as Elliot Combat Base) and known in Vietnamese as Thon Khe Tri, is a solitary karst rock outcropping north of Route 9 and south of the former Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Its relatively inaccessible location, rea ...

," and assures them he will get them released after they're caught, they agree to the ruse. Stan and Ollie encounter various problems but after various complications, the chief catches Kennedy with various valuables in his house, while the boys manage somehow to escape.

International versions

The film was also released in an alternate Spanish version, ''Ladrones'', expanded to nearly four reels in length instead of the English two reels. The film was also released in an Italian version, ''Ladroni'', and in an Esperanto version ''Ŝtelistoj'', which are both now

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

. The foreign versions retained not only the headliners, but Edgar Kennedy and James Finlayson as well. The English and Spanish versions are available on DVD.

Cast

Stan Laurel Stan Laurel (born Arthur Stanley Jefferson; 16 June 1890 – 23 February 1965) was an English comic actor, writer, and film director who was one half of the comedy double act, duo Laurel and Hardy. He appeared with his comedy partner Oliver Ha ...

as Stan Laurel *

Oliver Hardy Oliver Norvell Hardy (born Norvell Hardy; January 18, 1892 – August 7, 1957) was an American comic actor and one half of Laurel and Hardy, the double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted from 1926 to 1957. He appeared with his c ...

as Oliver "Ollie" Hardy * Edgar Kennedy as Officer Kennedy * James Finlayson as Butler Meadows * Anders Randolf as the Police Captain

Production

This was the first film to use their celebrated theme tune, "The 'Ku-Ku' Song", written by Marvin Hatley. The Film Classics reissue print features the instrumental version of Marvin Hatley's "

Honolulu Baby "Honolulu Baby" is a song written by Marvin Hatley for the 1933 Laurel and Hardy film ''Sons of the Desert''. Ty Parvis performed the song in the film, which is later performed by Oliver Hardy. Other versions The song has been covered by the W ...

" from the ''

Sons of the Desert A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative. Social issues In pre-industrial societies and some current c ...

'' soundtrack in place of "The 'Ku-Ku' Song."

References

External links

* * * * {{James Parrott 1930 films 1930 comedy films American black-and-white films Films directed by James Parrott Laurel and Hardy (film series) Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer short films Films with screenplays by H. M. Walker 1930 short films American comedy short films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films