"The Abbott and Costello TV Show" is timeless American humor, as fresh today as it was 40 years ago. All the classic routines which "the boys" performed on film, radio and stage, were captured in 1952-1953 for the new medium of television and delivered at the peak of their powers. The regular cast of characters, including Mr. Fields, Mike the Cop, Stinky, Bacciagalupe and Hillary, had worked with Bud and Lou on film and stage and each contributed memorably. These shows stand today as perhaps the finest surviving representation of the art of burlesque comedy.
The Army Story (1953) The army must be in really bad shape if it has to draft Bud and Lou, but that's exactly what happens in this mirth-filled military episode. After proving to landlord Fields that their 13 weeks of back room rent at $7 a week total $28, the boys head to boot camp. During training, it's Corporal (!) Abbott and Sergeant Mike the Cop against poor Lou, who outwits his bunkmates in a zany dice game. The team finishes it's army career with a classic slap-stick routine that lands Lou face first in the dirt.
Peace and Quiet (1953) Classic burlesque reigns as sleepless Lou visits Dr. Mildew for rest. After run-ins with assorted nuts in the waiting room, Lou's told to listen to Dr. Drowsy's Slumberland record at bedtime. When this crazy treatment only puts Bud to sleep. Lou's off to the sanitarium where the staff is nuttier than the boys. In a wild recreation of the "Crazy House" sketch, Lou's attempts to sleep are constantly interrupted by a parade of zanies armed with punchlines, bullets and seltzer.
Efficiency Experts (1954) Bud and Lou have miraculously landed a job with the Globe Efficiency Company. J. J. Wentworth hires the boys to stop his spendthrift daughters from spending all his money. Within minutes of meeting the girls, they have Bud and Lou wrapped around their fingers. Lou's feeble attempts to get them to economize are disastrous, as he gives one of the girls a facial with plastic cement! To make amends, the boys are forced to take the girls to a gambling joint where they start a riot and fire - and lose a fortune.
Honeymoon House (1954) The love bug has bitten Lou, and Bud must show him how to propose. To convince Sally to say 'yes', Lou buys a "Bride's Delight Prefabricated House". But her ex-beau has other ideas, and changes the numbers on all the crates. The finished house is a nightmare. After Lou's hopeless attempt to stop his future mother-in-law's hiccups, a piano crashes through a wall, and lights go haywire. When he gives Sally's parents the grand tour, they're lucky to escape alive.
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