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Laurel and Hardy in Fra Diavolo Art Print
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Fra Diavolo, aka. The Devil’s Brother, reissued as Bogus Bandits, starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

In The Devil’s Brother (also known as Fra Diavolo, and reissued in 1951 as Bogus Bandits), the setting is the north of Italy in the 1700’s, where a famous bandit, Fra Diavolo (aka. the Devil’s Brother of the title) is the most famous bandit in the land, known for stealing money from the men and the hearts of the women of the nobility. In this setting, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy play two bumbling peasants, Stanlio and Ollio, who decide to try the “easy life” of bandits, and pick for their first victim Fra Diavolo himself (in his disguise as the Marquis de San Marco. To punish them for their impudence, the bandit and his band force Stanlio to hang Ollio! After watching them bungle this task, Fra Diavolo changes his mind, and forces them to join his band as his retainers. He takes them along as he travels, in his disguise as the Marquis, to the Tavern de Cucu to rob the rich, aged Lord Rocburg (perennial Laurel and Hardy foil James Finlayson) and woo beauteous Lady Pamela (Thelma Todd). Stanlio drives Ollio and the innkeeper to distraction by playing earsie kneesie nosie and “finger wiggle,” and gets drunk helping Ollio fill tankards of wine, sending him into an uncontrollable laughing fit (one of the highlights of the movie). The boys plot to capture Diavolo (there is a subplot about the honest Captain Lorenzo who can’t marry his true love until he captures the notorious Fra Diavolo), but instead the boys wind up with him in front of a firing squad. Thankfully, Stanlio causes a distraction that allows them all to escape. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that this is the film where Stan Laurel does his ‘kneesy, earsy, nosy’ routine which not only is funny, but actually became a popular children’s game worldwide.

The Devil’s Brother is available on DVD as part of The Laurel and Hardy Collection.

Editorial review of Laurel and Hardy’s The Devil’s Brother, courtesy of Amazon.com

Unlike many silent screen comedians, Laurel & Hardy made a seamless transition to talkies, and this TCM Archives double-feature showcases some of their funniest work from the early 1930s. As always, TCM/Warner has packaged this must-have set for true film buffs: The prints are pristine, image quality is crisp and clean, sound quality is the best available (allowing for some hiss and minor drop-offs due to the age of the soundtracks), and bonus features have been chosen with care and authority, including several highlight excerpts from Laurel & Hardy short subjects. While continuing to enjoy their priceless partnership with producer Hal Roach, Stan & Ollie were at their sound-era peak in The Devil’s Brother (1933), a hilarious adaptation of the Auber operetta Fra Diavolo (also the film’s alternate European title), in which “Stanlio” and “Ollio” find themselves entangled in the exploits of the Marquis de San Marco, a notorious singing bandit named “Fra Diavolo” (played with adequate panache by Dennis King) who’s set his sights on the lovely Lady Pamela (played by ‘30s screen queen Thelma Todd). Plots in Laurel & Hardy films are almost always perfunctory, but this is one of the better ones, lending Stan & Ollie ample opportunity to cut loose with Roach-invented gags and trademark slapstick. The highlight has to be Stan’s drunken laughing fit, a miraculously sustained bit of hilarity (with Ollie eventually joining in) that’s absolutely infectious and irresistible--it’s impossible to watch without laughing right along with Stan.

Funny movie quotes from The Devil’s Brother, starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

Stanlio (Stan Laurel): Why don’t we start at the top?
Ollio (Oliver Hardy): Whatya mean?
Stanlio (Stan Laurel): Well, why don’t we become bandits? Then we wouldn’t have to work hard anymore. Let’s get it the easy way. We could rob the rich and give them to the poor, and we could have all…
Ollio (Oliver Hardy): [Interrupting him] That’s the first time you’ve shown any intelligence.
Stanlio (Stan Laurel): Well, it’s the first time you’ve listened to me. You know if you listened to me, in a while you’d be a lot better off.
Ollio (Oliver Hardy): I guess you’re right. Tell me that plan again.
Stanlio (Stan Laurel): [Bewildered] All of it?
Ollio (Oliver Hardy): Certainly, certainly!
Stanlio (Stan Laurel): Well, if we became rich and we robbed the poor and gave them to the bandits and… we could start at the top, and we’d get to the bottom without working hard anymore. We can’t go wrong. It’s the law of conversation.
Ollio (Oliver Hardy): What do you mean?
Stanlio (Stan Laurel): Well, as ye cast your bread on the waters, so shall ye reap.
Ollio (Oliver Hardy): That’s very well thought out!

Ollio (Oliver Hardy): I’m not afraid of poverty.
Stanlio (Stan Laurel): But I am.

Stanlio (Stan Laurel): [after being robbed of all his savings] Oh, well, come easy, go easy - that’s my motto.

Ollio (Oliver Hardy): [seeing Stanlio drunk] You’re spiffed!

Trivia about The Devil’s Brother, starring Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy

In this movie, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are named respectively ”Stanlio” and ”Ollio”. These are the names by which they are still known in Italy.
Actor John Qualen is often erroneously credited with the bit role of the owner of the bull. However it is clearly not Qualen in the role nor is it his voice.
In a 1957 radio interview, Stan Laurel said he considered this to be one of the best of the comedy team’s movies.
Contrary to popular belief and what has been reported in filmographies for years, Wilfred Lucas’ scenes as Alessandro have, in fact, not been deleted from the film. In the DVD commentary by Leonard Maltin and Richard W. Bann, they point out Lucas’ role briefly in the opening scene as one of Diavolo’s conspirators, hidden behind a false set of whiskers that has kept him from being identified by viewers for years, including in Bann’s earlier filmography published in the book “Laurel and Hardy”.
Anita Louise was originally slated for the role played by Lucile Brown.
Stan Laurel always referred to this film as “Fra Diavolo.”
“Fra Diavolo” represented a dream project for Hal Roach, who had seen the play as a boy. The fact that the play’s rights were in public domain was an added incentive to the producer.
The film originally previewed at 117 minutes.
In the wine cellar scene, it is so cold that Ollio’s breath can be seen.
One of the first movies to have exit music.
This was Laurel & Hardy’s first comic-opera film. The movie’s success led to another Laurel & Hardy operetta film, The Bohemian Girl.

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About the Author

Tom Raymond, aka. Raynbow the Clown, is a professional clown working out of Madison, Wisconsin, and is available for ministry events, conventions and conferences.

Posted by Tom Raymond, aka Raynbow on 01/11 at 06:50 PM
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