Series: All Stars w/Laurel and Hardy Director: Fred Guiol Producer: Hal Roach Titles: H.M. Walker Photography: Floyd Jackman Editor: Richard C. Currier Stars: Mae Busch, James Finlayson, Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy Company: Pathé Exchange Released: 12 June 1927 Length: 2 reels Production No.: S-19 Filming dates: November 26 - December 7, 1926; retakes January 12-13, 1927 Rating: 6/10

Love 'Em And Weep

Available on BLU-RAY & DVD:

Romaine Ricketts (STAN LAUREL) is an employee of Titus Tillsbury (JAMES FINLAYSON). The two men are in Titus's private office with the boss dictating a memo when a woman from his 'hazy past' walks in unannounced. She is Peaches (MAE BUSCH), and she has come to cause trouble. When Titus sees her he does a double-take and realises things are about to turn very bad for him. Romaine is told to leave and no sooner is the door closed does the old flame waste no time getting reacquainted with Titus. Making herself very comfortable on his lap and recalling a vacation they took together where he called her his "baby bird". Titus claims he is now married and no longer in the "bird business", but the woman isn't going to go quietly and produces an intimate photograph of them together to remind him of their happier times. He tells her that the photo was years ago and he is now a changed man. She doesn't care and hints of blackmail by telling him the newspapers would be keen to get their hands on this evidence. Knowing he is beaten, Titus submits to her threats and offers to meet her later to make a final settlement. She lights a filtered cigarette and is just starting to relax when Romaine comes tearing back into the office claiming that Titus's wife has just turned up.

Peaches is unceremoniously dumped to the floor as Titus jumps up and in a state of panic shoves her into his private wash room. The wife (CHARLOTTE MINEAU) walks in to find her husband smoking the cigarette which has been abandoned by Peaches. She makes light of it before telling him the Judge and his wife have been invited over for dinner later that evening. Of course, this will clash with Titus's previously laid plans of meeting Peaches. Mrs. Tillsbury goes into the next room to wash her hands but fails to spot the ex-flame, who has hidden behind the pull-down towel. Titus cannot stand the tension of the possibility of the two women meeting in his office and so faints (after some over-exaggerated facial expressions)! Mrs. Tillsbury comforts Titus back to his feet before spotting a fur hanging from his rear. He has no option but to give it to her as she reminds him to be home for seven o'clock. After both of the women have made their separate exits Titus summons Romaine back into his office and tells him to go to the Pink Pup cafe later to entertain his ex or else he will be fired. Although Romaine expresses his fears about his own wife finding out, he has no choice but to obey his boss. That evening Romaine turns up at Peaches' (huge) apartment and is invited inside to wait for her. As he waits he spots a signed photo (the same one we saw earlier, but with a signature on it) of his boss with the woman. He quickly hides the picture inside his jacket just before the ex-girlfriend appears. Romaine gives her the news that Tillsbury will join them later but she isn't having any of it. She gets straight on the phone to Tillsbury and demands that he be at her apartment in ten minutes or else. Romaine, having further received an indignant remark from his hostess, leaves the building and gets into his conveniently-parked car outside. He is seen by the local gossip (VILLIE LATIMER) who sees fit to interrogate him over his whereabouts. He tells her he is waiting on his boss, who should be along shortly. Out comes the ex-girlfriend and shoves the elderly woman aside before Stan reverses into her car and it crumbles into a heap. Peaches and Romaine arrive at the trendy Pink Pup nightclub. The waiter (CHET BRANDENBURG) takes their orders; Peaches orders a "horse's neck" and an astonished Romaine thinks for a moment before ordering the horse's tail - so that only one horse has to be killed.

Back at the Tillsbury house, Titus is entertaining his guests, which include the judge (OLIVER HARDY) and his wife (MAY WALLACE), by which time a frustrated Peaches has taken it upon herself to call the house. Mrs. Tillsbury answers and after a brief conversation, Romaine grabs the phone from Peaches to tell Titus (who has come to the phone) that he is losing control of the situation. The suspicious Mrs. Tillsbury slows her husband down by making him perform a song for their guests, whilst at the Pink Pup Peaches and Romaine have a brief display of affection. When Romaine realises he has been spotted by the gossip lady, he rushes to telephone his boss to warn him that the girlfriend is on her way over. Mrs. Tillsbury's suspicions deepen as Titus passes the call off as a wrong number. Peaches leaves the Pink Pup and gets into Romaine's conveniently-parked car outside. When she cannot find the keys to start the engine she harasses Romaine into handing them over and the two end up in a struggling match on the sidewalk. This is overseen by the gossip who has followed them both outside. Peaches speeds off, with Romaine jumping into the car at the last second. The gossip hails a cab, which again conveniently shows up the very moment she needs it, and pursues the couple. A short time later both cars turn up at the Tillsbury house. Peaches storms inside with Romaine close behind, as the gossip makes her way to Romaine's wife to inform her of the developments. A quick-thinking Titus introduces the couple as Mr. & Mrs. Ricketts to the judge and his wife. When Romaine removes his coat the framed photo with the discriminating evidence falls out and ends up over the other side of the room. The helpful judge picks it up and places it on full display on a table before making excuses to leave. Titus's attempts to conceal the picture are thwarted by his wife who is making small talk with the parting guests. Finally they leave and Titus hides the photo. A desperate Titus threatens to shoot himself if the woman doesn't leave. She faints, and he drops the loaded gun he is holding to his head and it fires off a shot. Panic sets in. Mrs. Tillsbury rushes in to assist, and exposes the photo briefly before Titus sits on it, cracking the glass. The gossip has arrived at Romaine's house and spilled the beans about seeing her husband with a wild woman. Mrs. Tillsbury tells Romaine that he and his 'wife' can spend the night at their house, which of course is not good news for Romaine, whose real wife is on her way over to the house to confront him. The two men have dragged, pulled, yanked and fallen over the ex-girlfriend as they take her into the hallway.  Between them they sit her on top of Titus's shoulders and throw a coat over her.  Romaine goes to exit the house with 'her'. Mrs. Tillsbury has spotted her husband under the coat and follows them outside - where Mrs. Ricketts is just arriving in her taxi. The wives begin to systematically throttle their respective husbands where the film ends in a free-for-all out on the lawn.

Favourite bit The funniest part of this film in my opinion is the absurd situation James Finlayson finds himself in at the end. Trying to leave his house with his ex-girlfriend on his back and disguised under her fur coat. His wife catches him, he smiles and says, "I'll bet you suspect something"!

Trivia • Copyrighted April 11, 1927. • Released as part of Hal Roach's All Stars series. • Re-made in 1931 as Chickens Come Home. Mae Busch plays the jilted ex-girlfriend in both films. • There are 58 intertitle cards in the film. They are all listed below. • The word "Private" is etched on Titus's office door. • Mae Busch refers to James Finlayson as an "old handsome Spaniard". • The candid photograph which Mae pulls from her handbag of her sitting on Fin's shoulders was re-used later in Chickens Come Home with Oliver Hardy in place of James Finlayson. It's almost identical. • A lot of the intertitle cards used were translated into dialogue in Chickens Come Home. For example; the time of the scheduled meeting between the blackmailer and the husband is set at 7pm, the reference to "Gabriel blow your horn" is also used in both films. • The signature on the framed photograph reads "To my Peaches from her Prince Charming - Tillsbury." • The plaque of "Cunningham 610" is on the wall outside Mae Busch's apartment building. • When Stan accidentally honks his car horn, a total of ten women come to the windows in the building behind him. • The name of the nightclub is The Pink Pup. • Oliver Hardy does not show up until the 11th minute into the film. His total screen time during the entire film is approximately 30 seconds. • There is a florists next door to the Pink Pup. • When Mae Busch gets into Stan's car outside the Pink Pup, the shops across the street have signs in their windows advertising "Fish And Chips" and "Ginger Beer". • You have got to give credit to Mae Busch - at the end of the film when supposedly unconscious, Stan Laurel stands her up against the wall, but she allows her body to fall limply towards the floor. It must have taken some courage for her to perform the stunt because she would have had to have some faith that Laurel would catch her to prevent serious injury. • Right at the end of the film When Stan Laurel opens the front door to leave, the house/scenery in the background is identical to that of the house in Duck Soup. • Mrs. Ricketts arrives at the Tillsbury house in a Red & White Taxi, number 229.

	Mae Busch Peaches, the old flame
	James Finlayson Titus Tillsbury
	Stan Laurel Romaine Ricketts
	Oliver Hardy Judge Chigger
	Charlotte Mineau Mrs. Aggie Tillsbury
	Vivien Oakland Mrs. Ricketts
	Villie Latimer Old Lady Scandal
	Chet Brandenburg Waiter
	Charlie Hall Tillsbury's butler
	May Wallace Mrs. Chigger
	Leo Sulky Nightclub manager
	Clara Guiol Peaches' maid
	Ed Brandenburg Mrs. Rickett's cab driver
	UNIDENTIFIED Hat check girl

CREDITS (click image to enlarge)	INTERTITLES (click image to enlarge)

POSTERS (click any image to enlarge)

LOBBY CARDS (click any image to enlarge)

STILLS (click any image to enlarge)

Acknowledgements: Laurel And Hardy: The Magic Behind The Movies by Randy Skretvedt (book) Peter Mikkelsen (help) Lilly Lysdal (2 stills) This page was last updated on: 13 June 2023