4/5 An interesting selection
  by Anyechka (Rensselaer, NY United States)
These eight shorts showcase a sampling of what Oliver Hardy was like as a solo performer, before he was teamed up with Stan Laurel. However, since he wasn't really a star when they were made, he's generally acting in support of a more popular comedian, such as Larry Semon or Glenn Tryon. He also generally played heavies in his solo days, so he's not going to be the lovable familiar sympathetic Ollie character fans know and love.

In 'The Show' (1922), he doesn't really have much of anything to do until the film is about halfway through, and even then he's not the principle character. Ollie plays the scummy stage manager in some sort of theatrical or vaudeville house, and Larry Semon, whom he often worked with, is a stage hand who becomes smitten with one of the performers, and also plays a man in the audience. The film is really a showcase for Larry, who was often voted second only to Chaplin when it came to comedians back in his heyday.

'Stick Around' (1925) teams him with Bobby Ray, and is perhaps his most sympathetic role on this disc. They're a couple of paperhangers who are called in to paper a sanitarium, but nothing goes right on their way to the job, and even after they arrive, things continue to go comedically wrong. One can easily see this as a L&H short, though Ollie doesn't have nearly that much chemistry with Bobby.

'Along Came Auntie' (1925) was previously released on Vol. 3 of 'The Lost Films of L&H.' Ollie plays a comical musician who has to pretend to still be married to Vivien Oakland so that her old-fashioned aunt will still give her $100,000. Meanwhile her current husband, Glenn Tryon, has to pretend to be just a roomer. The premise is somewhat similar to that used in the L&H short 'That's My WIfe!' It's baffling as to why Hal Roach thought Glenn Tryon had what it took to become another Harold Lloyd or Charley Chase, the star of his own comedy series; his character just wasn't that memorable or distinct.

'45 Minutes from Hollywood' (1926) was previously released on Vol. 6 of 'The Lost FIlms of L&H.' It again is a showcase for Glenn Tryon, who once again is less than impressive and hilarious. This film is most notable for being the first Hal Roach film to pair Ollie with Stan (their first time being in a film together since 1919!), even though they never share a scene together. Other than that it's extremely unmemorable and probably the weakest short on here.

'Crazy to Act' (1927) stars Ollie as a scheming con artist who wants to marry an aspiring actress for her money. She agrees to marry him on the condition that he make her a star first, and he happily agrees to make a movie with her. However, he gets more and more angry and uncomfortable when it becomes clear that she's doing more than just acting in her romantic scenes with her leading man. There are also a number of topical jokes in this that a modern viewer unfamiliar with the stars of the silent era isn't liable to understand, such as when Ollie promises the young lady that he'll make her as famous as "Pola Pickford."

'The Sawmill' (1922) once again has him playing opposite Larry Semon, who is the star of the film while Ollie plays the heavy. Larry raises havoc at the sawmill Ollie is the scheming foreman of, and also will go to any lengths to win the owner's daughter for himself. Supposedly this was the most expensive silent comedy short ever produced. While the film is entertaining enough, it doesn't showcase Larry at his prime. It's too bad that most people only get to see him in films like these, made after his peak, and that most of his known surviving films from the Teens, his most representative period, aren't commercially available. He'd probably have a stronger reputation today if people could judge him on his best and not his weaker work.

'Should Sailors Marry?' (1925) was previously released on Vol. 4 of 'The Lost Films of L&H.' Ollie plays a shady doctor called in to ascertain that Clyde Cook, the sailor, will be able to work at the dangerous job he's being pushed into by his scheming new wife and her boxer ex-husband Noah Young. Clyde Cook, the star of this short, was a big star back in his native Australia, but his career never really took off when he immigrated. Like Glenn Tryon, it's hard to see exactly why Hal Roach thought he had what it took to become one of his next big comedy stars. His character just wasn't that distinct or memorable.

'Hop to It!' (1925) once again pairs Ollie with Bobby Ray, and this comedy also seems very much like a L&H short, only Ollie and Bobby don't share a huge amount of scenes together and are acting more in competition than as friends or a true team. Ollie's character also turns rather mean and sinister in this one, despite starting out as a seemingly good guy. The two play bellhops in a hotel and continually cause trouble, particularly Bobby.

Overall, while Ollie's character hadn't yet become the one we know and love, thus not doing a lot to raise these shorts beyond merely entertaining and historically interesting to truly memorable classics, these shorts are well worth a look for not only fans of his but also those who are interested in some of the lesser-known comedies of the silent era.

5/5 Oliver's preLaurel & Hardy days
  by John Profetto (Hamilton, Ontario Canada)
Unlike Stan,Oliver Hardy didn't have a series of his own starring films prior to the Laurel & Hardy series.These are films that he costarred in with comedians like James Finlayson,Larry Semon and Bobby Ray.The latter is seen in a role not unlike that of Stan Laurel in the short Stick Around,where he and Oliver are wallpaper hangers,with Ollie's overbearing boss persona he'd later sustain once permenantly teaming up with Stan.This now famous characterization continues between Oliver and Bobby Ray in Hop To It,in the role of hotel bellhops.
Should Sailors Marry is another memorable short I recall seeing on TV years ago.Another classic I've seen on TV before is Along Came Auntie.

45 Minutes From Hollywood is Oliver's first collaboration with Stan under Hal Roach.The Little Rascals even have a brief cameo appearance in this film.
In some of these films Oliver is almost unrecognizable with so much more hair.

Highly enjoyable!

5/5 An answer for J. Black "Hull K.R. forever"
  by Bigwood90 (Jersey City, NJ USA)
The title "45 Minutes From Hollywood" doesn't refer to the running time of the film. It is actually a reference to the 1905 George M. Cohan show (and song) "45 Minutes From Broadway" which, in turn, refers to a small town's distance (in minutes) from Broadway.

5/5 U.K. buyers - this Oliver Hardy DVD plays on region 2 machines!
  by J. Black (U.K.)
The good news for Oliver Hardy fans living in the United Kingdom is that this Slapstick Symposium DVD plays in region 2 coded machines without any problems whatsoever!

Lobster / Kino Video have clearly put a lot of time and effort into making this product worthy of Oliver Hardy and the other silent comedy stars who appear in this 8 movie collection. The DVD has a very impressive menu from which the movies and scenes are selected and, considering that the age of the source material is 80+ years old, the picture quality is absolutely fantastic.

The only curio is "45 minutes from Hollywood", which, like the Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy series DVD vol. 6, runs to 21 minutes - I'm sure that movie scholars will be able to state the reason why this is; perhaps part of the film is lost or the cranking speed has changed (which doesn't appear to be the case).

I have always found Amazon prices to be competitive and their international shipping extremely efficient indeed.

Finally, favorable £/$ exchange rates make this a worthwhile time to purchase what is a great DVD collection.


2/5 Frenetic, not funny
  by Robert Morris (San Francisco)
This collection of eight films features Oliver Hardy in a supporting role for different studios, directors, and silent film comedians between 1921 and 1926, before teaming up with Stan Laurel. None of the comic stars in this set, Larry Semon, Clyde Cook, Glenn Tryon, or Bobby Ray, approach the talents of Keaton, Lloyd, Chaplin, Langdon, or Arbuckle. Furthermore, most of the films approach humor by non-stop pure, mindless slapstick: chases, falls, and spectacular bits of comic violence. Don't expect refined visual humor here or you will be disappointed. Also disappointing is the fact that Hardy's considerable comic potential is not, on the whole, mined in these films. You will recognize his grace and agility despite his size, but not yet exploited are his subtle glances into the camera and coy smile of embarrassment at being so apparently clueless. Mainly in the movies in this set he is an unsympathetic heavy to an uninspiring comic hero. Don't expect much more.

One "historically" important film, and maybe the least funny in the set, is 45 Minutes from Hollywood, the first film containing both Laurel and Hardy, although they never share a scene. The most interesting and probably most entertaining film in the set is "Hop To It" from 1923. Hardy and Bobby Ray team up as bellhops in a hotel, and proceed to create turmoil by damaging luggage and abusing guests and the hotel manager. The formula played out in this movie could easily have been one in a Laurel and Hardy film (in fact, Double Whoopie could be mentioned in comparison). Hardy and Ray lack the chemistry of the more famous duo, and it's not surprising that this team has faded into near oblivion. Unlike the "coordinated cluelessness" of Stan and Ollie, Hardy and Ray are more often in competition with one another and the humor here is usually generated individually by each actor. However, the resemblance to the future team is fascinating, and one wonders the extent to which these early efforts laid the foundation for the inspiration to team Stan and Ollie.

Pass on this one.