Oliver "Babe" Hardy
was born Norvell (his mother's maiden name) Hardy on January
18, 1892 in Harlem,
Georgia. The portly half of the Laurel
and Hardy comedy team. Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel
made more than 110 films in their some twenty years together.
Before
pairing up with Laurel in
1927, Hardy had a film career that dated back to 1913.
Recognized for their trademark slapstick humor, they turned out dozens of short
films, including the Oscar-winning "The Music Box" (1932),
before turning to
feature-length
works such as the spoof on the Shriners, "Sons of the
Desert" (1934), "Way
Out
West" (1937), and "The Flying Deuces" (1939).
Hardy appeared in two films without
Laurel,
"The Fighting Kentuckian" (1949) and
"Riding High" (1950).
