90 Lines of Comedy Writing Happiness and Hi-Jinks

I've been rewatching a lot of the timeless Laurel and Hardy comedies. My favorite of the team's features may very well be "Block-Heads" (1938), although "Sons of the Desert" (1933) and "Way Out West" (1937) are strong contenders.

Looking through some of Stanley and Oliver's movie posters, I was dumbstruck to find this "Block-Heads" image with the headline, "90 Minutes of Happiness and Hi-Jinks."

We all know motion picture advertising is steeped in hyperbole, of course, but the official running time of this film is only 57 minutes, less than two-thirds of the published promise!

And, by all industry definitions I've ever encountered, that is three minutes short of the minimum recognized length to term a production as a feature. So, two big lies right there.

I could easily argue the project has more happiness and hi-jinks than most 90-minute alleged comedies, but the stated truth in advertising is grossly dishonest. Thanks, block-heads!



(Poster art via Laurel Hardy Archive on Facebook)