Name of lou costellos biography
Lou Costello
If laughter is the best medicine, then Lou Costello should have won a Nobel Prize.
Costello’s legacy of laughter rests on a body of work encompassing burlesque, Broadway, radio, films and television. Its anchor is a baseball comedy sketch derived from a burlesque staple — straight man explaining to a friend that words known primarily for interrogatories are, in fact, names of people. The more frustrated the friend gets, the funnier the bit. Though the premise has several variations, the “Baseball Routine” — as it was known among performers — is the iconic version, thanks to Costello and his comedy partner Bud Abbott, who played the straight man: “Who’s on First?”
In Paterson, New Jersey, on March 6, 1906, Louis Francis Cristillo was born to Helen and Sebastian Cristillo, who married four years prior, on January 1, 1902. Nicknamed “Silk City,” Paterson employed thousands in the silk industry, including Sebastian, who also worked for the Prudential Insurance Company at one time.1
The Cristillos were examples of America’s melting pot, with Helen’s Irish-American heritage combined with Sebastian’s Italian immigrant status.2 Paterson provided the name “Pat” for Lou’s brother, Anthony, courtesy of a girlfriend. They also had a sister, Marie.
Lou’s childhood in the Cristillo house at 14 Madison Street — later moving to 106 East 33rd Street — was an active one. The future comedian went to Public School 15, became an expert at free-throws in basketball, and went 11-1 as a boxer under the name Lou King. His pugilism ended when Sebastian discovered it.3 Lou graduated from Central High School.4
Later changing his surname to Costello, Lou entered the performing arts through vaudeville, performing at the Orpheum Theater in his home town.5 He got inspiration from Charlie Chaplin’s movies and headed to Hollywood to see if he could break in to show business on a larger scale. Initially using his boxing surname King, Costello started as a carpenter and stunt Lou Costello was born Louis Francis Cristillo in Paterson, New Jersey, to Helen (Rege) and Sebastiano Cristillo. His father was from Calabria, Italy, and his mother was an American of Italian, French, and Irish ancestry. Raised in Paterson, Costello dropped out of high school and headed west to break into the movies. He got a job as a carpenter at MGM and Warners. He went from there to stuntman and then to vaudeville as a comic. In 1931, while working in Brooklyn, his straight man became ill and the theater cashier, Bud Abbott, filled in for him. The two formed their famous comedy team and, through the 1930s, they worked burlesque, minstrel shows, vaudeville and movie houses. In 1938 they got national exposure through the Kate Smith Hour radio show, and signed with Universal Pictures the next year. They debuted in One Night in the Tropics (1940). Their scene-stealing performances in that film landed them their own picture the next year, Buck Privates (1941), with The Andrews Sisters. It was a runaway hit, grossing what was then a company record $10 million on a $180,000 budget. In 1942 they topped a poll of Hollywood stars. They had their own radio show (ABC, 1941-46, NBC, 1946-49) and TV show (The Abbott and Costello Show (1952)). After the war their movies shifted formula to one in which they met various monsters or found themselves in exotic locations. The team split up in 1957, with both winding up completely out of money after troubles with the Internal Revenue Service. After that Lou appeared in a few television shows and the movie The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock (1959), released a few months after he died. BornMarch 6, 1906 DiedMarch 3, 1959(52)
Lou Costello
Louis Francis Cristillo (March 6, 1906 – March 3, 1959), better known as Lou Costello, was an American comedian, actor and producer. He was best known for his double act with straight manBud Abbott and their routine "Who's on First?".
References
[change | change source]- ↑"Star Dust". The Mirror. Vol. 32, no. 1758. Western Australia. February 5, 1955. p. 13. Retrieved August 12, 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑"Films: LAST OF THE GREAT COMEDY TEAMS". The World's News. No. 2571. New South Wales, Australia. March 31, 1951. p. 20. Retrieved August 12, 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑"Lou Costello, 52, Dies on Coast. Comic Had Teamed With Abbott. 'Little Guy Trying to Be a Big Shot' in Films and on TV-Partners Broke Up in '57". The New York Times. March 4, 1959.
Other websites
[change | change source]Lou Costello
American comedian and actor (1906–1959)
This article is about the American actor. For the English footballer, see Lou Costello (footballer).
Louis Francis Cristillo (March 6, 1906 – March 3, 1959), better known as Lou Costello, was an American comedian, actor and producer. He was best known for his double act with Bud Abbott and their routine "Who's on First?".
Abbott and Costello, who teamed in burlesque in 1936, were among the most popular and highest-paid entertainers in the world during World War II. During a national tour in 1942, they sold $85 million in war bonds in 35 days. By 1955, their popularity waned from overexposure, and their film and television contracts lapsed. Their partnership ended in 1957.
Early life
Louis Francis Cristillo was born on March 6, 1906, in Paterson, New Jersey, the son of Sebastiano Cristillo, an insurance sales agent, and Helen Rege, a silk weaver. His father was Italian, from Caserta, while his mother was an American of Italian, French and Irish ancestry, with her grandfather Francesco Rege being a native of Piedmont, Italy.
Costello attended Public School 15 in Paterson and was considered a gifted athlete. He excelled in basketball and reportedly was twice Paterson's free-throw champion. His basketball prowess can be seen in Here Come the Co-Eds (1945), in which he performs his own trick basketball shots. He also fought as a boxer under the name of Lou King.
Career
Costello was a great admirer of silent-film comedian Charlie Chaplin. In 1927, Costello hitchhiked to Hollywood to become an actor, but could only find work as a laborer or extra at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Hal Roach Studios. His athletic skill brought him occasional work as a stunt man, notably in The Trail of '98 (1928). He can also be spotted sitting ringside in the Laurel and Hardy film The Battle of the Century (192