When I was a kid growing up in NYC, as far as television was concerned, comedy was king. Fifty years later, you can barely find these long ago acts anywhere except on You Tube.
For us back in the day, the Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy, the Bowery Boys, the Little Rascals, and the Marx Brothers were every day staples.
But as funny as those acts were, I doubt that any of them made us laugh as much as Abbott and Costello. Their convoluted comedy routines, heavy on slapstick, wordplay, double entendres, and misunderstanding, were the best.
Bud Abbott was the fast talking con artist and straight man. Chubby and dim witted Lou Costello was the rube, and usually the victim of some con, ripoff, or rapidly escalating argument.
Lou was born here in Paterson in 1906, and his home town honored him with this iconic memorial. It was dedicated on June 26, 1992 in what is now known as Lou Costello Memorial Park. Lou's statue shows him holding a baseball bat - a nod to Abbott and Costello most famous comedy routine "Who's on First?".
Here are some links to their better routines
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzA8ZyX3lgU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_V0b2usj-4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sShMA85pv8M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la2BVTLFQ94
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuRdR-0gqrY read more