Editorial review of "The Abbott and Costello Show, volume 4" 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.
Contains 4 complete shows from the classic TV comedy series (1952-53), transferred from the original 35mm film masters.
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.
Episodes on The Abbott and Costello Show, volume 4
The Drugstore - the episode begins with Bud and Lou on stage doing the Jonah and the Whale routine and then has them taking a job at the drugstore drugstore owned by their landlord's (Mr. Fields) brother. Lou is driven crazy by kids and turns ill by Stinky (Joe Besser, playing an 8-year-old child, prior to his time with the Three Stooges) and then starts an ice cream food fight.
Square Meal - The boys travel to Mr Bacciagalupe's lunch counter where Lou's allergy to meatballs turns the owner completly into a basketcase and then find themselves in a cafeteria where there is a case of mistaken identity with two waitresses, similar to Martha Raye's role in "Keep 'Em Flying". Famous routines include "oyster stew"
$1,000 Prize - Bud and Lou go to Mr Field's apartment to fix his TV set and answer his phone while he's away and win the prize, but only if they can get rid of Mr Fields when the prize is delivered. They also have to contend with ducking Mike the cop!
Wife Wanted - Bud and Mr Fields take advantage of Lou in a poker game but Lou's luck changes for the better when he finds out that he will inherit $10,000 -- but only if he can find a wife to marry before his rich grandfather visits. Lou's old girlfriend Agnes may be the answer, but what about her jealous wrestler boyfriend?
A classic exchange from "The Drugstore":
Bud Abbott: Just mark down, "Dear druggist". Lou Costello: "Dear druggist"... Go ahead. Bud Abbott: Here's what you want. You want seven milligrams of sulfursilic monosetic acid diluted in seven micrograms of tincturized chlorophyll. Have you got that? Lou Costello: All but one part. Bud Abbott: What part? Lou Costello: The part that comes after "Dear druggist".
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Editorial review of "The Abbott and Costello Show, volume 4" courtesy of 
via a link from this site, and Amazon gives Tom a cut of the profits at no charge to you -- no matter what you end up buying! We all win!