Lou Costello
Louis Francis Cristillo , known as Lou Costello (born March 6, 1906 in Paterson , New Jersey , USA , † March 3, 1959 in Los Angeles , California , USA), was an American actor , producer and comedian . Together with Bud Abbott he was the popular comedian duo Abbott and Costello , in which Abbott acted as a keyword for Costello. Ultimately, he succeeds Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy the two were arguably the most successful American comedian duo of the 1940s and maintained their popularity well into the 1950s.
Life
Costello was married and had four children, three daughters and a son with his wife - Lou Jr. He drowned in a swimming pool in 1943 at the age of one. After that, the couple lived in separate rooms and only talked to each other via third parties or by telephone, as Costello blamed them for this misfortune. The strict Catholic Costello never thought of a divorce.
After high school he worked as a carpenter in set construction at MGM and Warner Brothers . He then worked temporarily as a stuntman and finally became a variety comedian. In 1931, while performing in Brooklyn , he met Bud Abbott and made him his partner as the duo's cue. Together they presented the famous baseball sketch Who's on First? . From August 1940, the two made their first joint film One Night in the Tropics , in which they initially played supporting roles. With their appearance they convinced the responsible studio Universal , which they kept under contract, and the premiere followed until 1956, in which they now acted as the main actor, of which only 8 were made at studios other than Universal, as well as a cameo in another film, her own TV series and several appearances on the live show The Colgate Comedy Hour , where they were also one of the presenters. In addition, they were also active on the radio and continued to tour the country with their programs. The duo separated in late 1956 / early 1957. Costello no longer considered Abott reliable enough. Appearances of the two had failed because of his partner's alcohol problem . Abott suffered from epilepsy and pretended to be able to control it with his alcohol consumption. Their financial situation had also worsened massively due to high-loss investments and capital investments. The two parted in a dispute. Shortly before the breakup, Abbott tried to surprise Costello with an episode of the television program This Is Your Life dedicated to him , but this did not lead to the desired success. Among other things, the death of Costello's child was discussed, which he was confronted with in front of the camera to show the blows of fate he had to endure.
Costello died of a heart attack in 1959 at the age of 52, shortly after he had succeeded in a guest appearance on the series Wagon Train , where he played an alcoholic, and had also tried for the first time as a leading actor in a comedy without Bud Abbott. He was buried in the Calvary Cemetery in east Los Angeles, California. Bud Abbott is said to have only found out about his death from a newspaper. A corresponding picture of how he read the article went through the media at the time.
On June 26, 1992, a statue (the Lou Costello Memorial) was erected by the Lou Costello Memorial Association in the city of Paterson .
On May 9, 2001, the asteroid (17024) Costello was named after him.
Web links
- Lou Costello in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Costello, Lou |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Cristillo, Louis Francis |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American actor, producer, and comedian |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 6, 1906 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Paterson , New Jersey , USA |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 3, 1959 |
| Place of death | Los Angeles , California , USA |