The Battle of the Century (1927)

Fight manager (Hardy) takes out an insurance policy on his puny pugilist (Laurel) and then proceeds to try to arrange for an accident so that he can collect. When a pie delivery man (Hall) ... See full summary »

Director:

Clyde Bruckman

Writer:

H.M. Walker (titles)

Stars:

Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Jack Adams

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Stan Laurel	...	Stanley
Oliver Hardy	...	Manager

Storyline

Fight manager (Hardy) takes out an insurance policy on his puny pugilist (Laurel) and then proceeds to try to arrange for an accident so that he can collect. When a pie delivery man (Hall) slips on a banana peel, meant for the fighter, a classic pie throwing scene results.

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Plot Keywords:

1920s | laurel and hardy | fight manager | hit with a pie | pie fight | 

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Taglines:

The comedy that you've read about, heard about, and waited for. (Print Ad- Eugene Register-Guard, ((Eugene, Ore.)) 30 January 1928)

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Genres:

Short | Comedy

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

The famed pie fight held the record for the biggest pie fight ever staged for a film. It reportedly used 3,000 pies, an entire days output from the Los Angeles Pie Company. Almost 40 years later, this record claimed to be broken by the pie fight staged for "The Great Race" (1965) for which some 4,000 pies were purchased. This has created a controversy in which it is claimed that all 3,000 pies were thrown in one day's shooting for the scene in "Battle of the Century" (1927) while not all of 4,000 pies were thrown in the 4-5 days of shooting the scene in "The Great Race" (1965). Reportedly some 200 of the leftover pies were targeted at director Blake Edwards after the scene wrapped. Edwards dedicated his movie to "Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy."

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Goofs

A hand of the prop man who throws a pie in the face of a man who is about to have his photo taken.

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Connections

Featured in Silent Clowns: Laurel and Hardy (2006)

User Reviews

Two Films Minus One Half

This Laurel & Hardy silent only exists in an incomplete version which naturally makes it impossible to judge as a whole. As it exists today, it's pretty much like two separate films joined by some explanatory intertitles (featuring a still of a young and rather slim-line Eugene Palette selling the boys some insurance). The first section of the film is a boxing match between a paunchy Stan and a typically ferocious opponent. The boxing ring seemed to be a favourite location for the boys – I'm sure there's at least three movies which feature Stan involved in a hopeless mismatch in the ring. The second section of the film is the famous pie fight, but unfortunately not enough of it exists to give anything other than an incomplete impression of what the boys intended. The film's interesting as a peep through the keyhole of what remains of what has been lost (if you know what I mean) but it's not particularly satisfying in its own right.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 December 1927 (USA)

Also Known As:

Alles in Schlagsahne

Filming Locations:

Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hal Roach Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

11 min (restored) 19 min (original)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1