''Twice Two'' is a 1933 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

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 is the second of only three films where the pair each play a

dual role A dual role (also known as a double role) refers to one actor playing two roles in a single production. Dual roles (or a larger number of roles for an actor) may be deliberately written into a script, or may instead be a choice made during produc ...

: the first is '' Brats'' and the third and last is ''

Our Relations ''Our Relations'' is a 1936 feature film starring Laurel and Hardy, produced by Stan Laurel for Hal Roach Studios. This is the third of three films in which they play a dual role: the first was '' Brats'' and the second was ''Twice Two''. The sto ...

''.

Plot

A year prior to the first scene,

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 ...

married

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 ...

's sister (played by Oliver), and Oliver married Stan's sister (played by Stan) in a

double wedding A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vo ...

. They all live together and Stan and Ollie work in the same office. After some gags involving telephones, the wives are seen making preparations for a surprise party to celebrate their first anniversary during which a cake lands on Mrs. Laurel's head, causing her to bear an uncanny resemblance to a portrait of

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

on the dining room wall. Stan and Ollie then arrive but the couples cannot help but squabble throughout the party. In the final scenes, a delivery boy (played by Charlie Hall) arrives with another cake, which is thrown in Mrs. Laurel's face by an acrimonious Mrs. Hardy.

Cast

as Mr. Stan Laurel / Mrs. Sandy Hardy *

as Mr. Oliver Hardy / Mrs. Fanny Laurel *

Baldwin Cooke Baldwin Gardiner Cooke (March 10, 1888 – December 31, 1953), also known as Baldy Cooke, was a comedic American actor. Born in New York, Cooke and his wife, Alice, toured in vaudeville with Stan Laurel, remaining close friends over the years. ...

as Soda Jerk (uncredited) * Charlie Hall as Delivery Boy (uncredited) *

Ham Kinsey Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...

as Passerby (uncredited) *

Carol Tevis Carol may refer to: People with the name *Carol (given name) *Henri Carol (1910–1984), French composer and organist *Martine Carol (1920–1967), French film actress *Sue Carol (1906–1982), American actress and talent agent, wife of actor Ala ...

as Mrs. Sandy Hardy (voice) (uncredited) *

May Wallace May Wallace (August 23, 1877 – December 11, 1938) was an American film actress. Biography Wallace was born in 1877 in Russiaville, Indiana. As a film actress, she often played supporting roles for producer Hal Roach in his Laurel and ...

as Mrs. Fanny Laurel (voice) (uncredited)

Production

* The voice of Mrs. Hardy (Stan's sister) is dubbed by

, whose voice is dubbed on the

Munchkin A Munchkin is a native of the fictional Munchkin Country in the Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum. They first appear in the classic children's novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900) where they welcome Dorothy Gale to their city in O ...

singers in the 1939 version of ''The Wizard of Oz''. * The voice of Mrs. Laurel (Oliver's sister) is dubbed by

, who also appeared with the duo in '' County Hospital'' as a Nurse. * This is the second time Stan Laurel appears in drag as Oliver Hardy's wife; the first was '' That's My Wife''. Stan also dressed in drag three years earlier in ''

Another Fine Mess ''Another Fine Mess'' is a 1930 short comedy film directed by James Parrott and starring Laurel and Hardy. It is based on the 1908 play ''Home from the Honeymoon'' by Arthur J. Jefferson, Stan Laurel's father, and is a remake of their earl ...

'', being passed off to prospective house tenants as a maid. Subsequently, Stan would appear in drag twice more, in ''

A Chump at Oxford ''A Chump at Oxford'' is a Hal Roach comedy film produced in 1939 and released in 1940 by United Artists. It was directed by Alfred J. Goulding and was the penultimate Laurel and Hardy film made at the Roach studio. The title echoes the film '' ...

'' in 1940 and finally, in ''

Jitterbugs ''Jitterbugs'' is a 1943 Laurel and Hardy feature film produced by Sol M. Wurtzel and directed by Mal St.Clair. Plot Stan and Ollie are musicians travelling across the country as "The Original Zoot Suit Band". En route to their next gig, their ...

'', briefly, as a Boston matron, in 1943. * ''Twice Two'' was the last Laurel & Hardy film directed by

James Parrott James Parrott (August 2, 1897 – May 10, 1939) was an American actor and film director; and the younger brother of film comedian Charley Chase. Biography Early years James Gibbons Parrott was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Charles and Blanch ...

References

External links

* * * * {{James Parrott 1933 films 1933 comedy films American black-and-white films Films directed by James Parrott Laurel and Hardy (film series) 1933 short films American comedy short films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films