Matinee Classics - Bud Abbott Biography & Filmography

Bud Abbott ACTOR

PHOTOS

BUD ABBOTT BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

William Alexander 'Bud' Abbott, born October 2, 1895, was an American actor, producer, and comedian best known for his work with Lou Costello in the comedy team Abbott and Costello. He was born into a show business family, and dropped out of school as a child to work on Coney Island. At the age of sixteen, Abbott’s father put him in the box office at the Casino Theater in Brooklyn. He continued working in theaters around the country before becoming the manager of the Nation Theater in Detroit. He eventually also put together burlesque shows. In the 1930's, Abbott crossed paths with Lou Costello. While selling tickets at a burlesque theater, Abbott was pulled in to fill in for Costello’s ill straight man. They continued performing in shows, formally becoming a pair in 1936.

In 1938, they gained national exposure for a radio segment on the “Kate Smith Hour”, in which they performed their most famous sketch titled “Who’s on First?”. That led to an appearance in a Broadway play called “The Streets of Paris” in 1939, and soon after, a contract with Universal Pictures for the film “One Night in the Tropics” (1940). They were so successful that Universal kept them and had them star in additional features like “Buck Privates” (1941), “Hold That Ghost” (1941), “Pardon My Sarong” (1942), “It Ain’t Hay” (1943), and “Lost in a Harem” (1944). Their most notable skit, “Who’s on First”, was included in its entirety in “The Naughty Nineties” (1945).

During World War II, the pair was one of the most popular and most paid entertainers in the world. From 1940 until 1956 they had made over thirty films, starred on radio specials, and made themselves known on TV as well. The team’s final movie, “Dance with Me, Henry” (1956), was released right before their split in 1957. Abbott tried to start a new routine with comedian Candy Codido in the 1960's, but was not successful. He had a television stint on the show “General Electric Theater” in an episode called “The Joke’s on Me” in 1961, but was finished performing after that. His final contribution was as the voice of Abbott in an animated series called “Abbott and Costello” (1967).

For the duration of his life, Abbott had suffered from epilepsy. In the 1960's, he had a series of strokes. On top of that, in 1972 he suffered from a broken hip and was shortly after diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was the cancer that did it for him, and on April 24, 1972, Abbott died at the Motion Picture and Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. In 2006, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Acting from the Garden Stated Film Festival, and currently has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: one for his involvement in the motion picture industry, and another for his contributions to television.

Filmography

Year Title

1967 Abbott and Costello

1961 G.E. True Theater

1956 Dance with Me, Henry

1955 Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops

1954 Fireman Save My Child

1953 Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

1953 Abbott and Costello Go to Mars

1952 The Abbott and Costello Show

1952 Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd

1952 Lost in Alaska