Liberty (1929)

Director:

Leo McCarey

Writers:

Leo McCarey (writer)
H.M. Walker (titles)

Release Date:

26 January 1929 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Short | Family

Plot:

Two escaped convicts (Laurel & Hardy) change clothes in the getaway car, but wind up wearing each other's pants...

Plot Keywords:

Construction Site | Escaped Convict | Los Angeles California | Shoe | Ladder

Cast

Stan Laurel	...	Stan
Oliver Hardy	...	Ollie
Tom Kennedy	...	Construction worker (scenes deleted)
Sam Lufkin	...	Getaway Driver
James Finlayson	...	Store keeper
Jack Hill	...	Officer
Harry Bernard	...	Worker at Sea Food dealer
Jean Harlow	...	Woman in cab (as Harlean Carpenter)
Ed Brandenburg	...	Cab driver

Directed by
Leo McCarey

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Leo McCarey		writer
H.M. Walker		titles

Produced by
Hal Roach	....	producer

Cinematography by
George Stevens		(photographed by)

Film Editing by
Richard C. Currier		(as Richard Currier)
William H. Terhune

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Lloyd French	....	assistant director

Art Department
Theodore Driscoll	....	set dresser
Morey Lightfoot	....	property master (as Morrie Lightfoot)

Special Effects by
Thomas Benton Roberts	....	special effects supervisor

Camera and Electrical Department
Jack Roach	....	camera operator
E.V. White	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Other crew
Lloyd French	....	director: re-takes
James W. Horne	....	director: re-takes

Production Companies

• Hal Roach Studios

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1929) (USA) (theatrical)
• A-1 Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Distribuidora Internacional de Filmes (DIF) (????) (Brazil) (VHS) (on "Festival O Gordo e o Magro")
• Image Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Kino Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

20 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Silent

Filming Locations:

Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Hal Roach Studios

Trivia:

In an attempt to assure Stan Laurel that the safety platforms erected around the girder set were safe, Oliver Hardy leapt down from the wooden girders onto one. Unfortunately, they weren't safe. Hardy crashed right through the safety platform, fortunately falling only 20 feet into a safety net erected as a backup.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Laurel und Hardy auf der Jagd nach dem Mammon (1973)

just fabulous

This is the film from Laurel and Hardy's silent days where they escape from prison, end up wearing each other's trousers, and finally are in danger stranded on steel girders high above ground. This sequence is a particular delight and unusual for the pair as it is more in Buster Keaton or Harold Lloyd territory; here we see Stan and Ollie trying to get back to safety in a variety of amusing ways.

A very funny film which needs no dialogue and a minimum of title cards, 'Liberty' is probably their best effort before they went into sound. Sight gags, a range of funny situations, and perfect playing from the leads put this into a high class of comedy. Hugely enjoyable.