review of The Abbott and Costello Show, volume 1

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Editorial review of "The Abbott and Costello Show, volume 1" courtesy of Amazon.com

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello are one of the funniest comedy teams of all time. And this disc, featuring four episodes of The Abbot and Costello Show from the 1952-53 season is certainly proof of that. Most of the episodes begin with Bud and Lou onstage in front of an audience, providing an introduction to each story. The episodes themselves are stand-alone classics, but the plot lines frame famous Abbot and Costello sketches. The disc is formatted with menus so that you can play each episode or skip to the routines.

The four episodes featured in this volume, "Duck Dinner," "Hillary's Birthday," "Million Dollar Refund," and "Actor's Home," are heavy on physical comedy and rely on familiar supporting characters such as Mike the Cop, Bacciagalupe, and Mr. Fields to propel the stories. In the final episode, "Actor's Home," we are treated with a cameo appearance from comedian Joe Besser (previous to his joining the Three Stooges) as well as a brilliant performance of "Who's on First."

The fact that Abbot and Costello always appear to be in on the gags with their audience (breaking the "fourth wall" with humorous "see what I've gotten myself into now" looks and comments) only adds to the performances. It's also interesting to note that the low-grade special effects and highbrow comedy, which so encompassed the age when these shows were originally filmed, can still entertain audiences all these years later, proving that this pair of comedians, and their style of comedy, is timeless. --Zachary Lively

Epidsodes contained on The Abbott and Costello Show volume 1

• Duck Dinner - Lou sells cookware door to door, and later in the episode prepares a duck dinner for Bud - with bad results
• Hillary's Birthday - while shopping for a birthday present for their rooming house neighbor, Hillary, Lou wrecks a store. Later, at her birthday party, the landlord Mr. Fields becomes upset with all of the noise.
• Million Dollar Refund - Lou receives a tax refund check for 1 million dollars. He goes to the bank to cash the check, and walks home, followed by crooks.
• Actor's Home - Bud is taken to an old actor's home, where he and Lou present their classic "Who's on first?" routine

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