It may come as no surprise that Jerry Seinfeld is one of the admirers of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. The comedy team's syndicated 1952-53 half-hour TV show (it was very much Lou's brainchild, with Costello's brother Pat listed as executive producer) is a patchwork of repurposed burlesque bits, recreations of their movie appearances, visualizations of sketches from radio's "Colgate Comedy Hour," and improvisation. Rarely did one single idea carries through the whole episode. Thus does this B&W retro-comedy warhorse anticipate Jerry's revered, post-modern "show about nothing."
History records that critics hated the program, but audiences loved it. Abbott and Costello go by their own names, as two guys (Lou is constantly referred to as "the boy," usually with condescending disdain) living in an apartment run by Mr. Fields (Sid Fields, such a long-established writer/partner for Bud and Lou that he is often considered the third member of the duo). Hillary (cool, elegant actress Hillary Brook), another apartment neighbor, develops as Lou's platonic love interest, though her character disappeared after this first season.
Storylines include a chain of mishaps triggered by Lou trying to pull out an aching tooth (Costello's miming ability always is a marvel and so is Bud Abbott's, when the material gave the straight man the opportunity), the guys going on a TV game show that results in a courtroom case, and Costello's attempted birthday celebration degenerating into such a disaster that it ends with Costello permanently exiled from the neighborhood. But no harm done, there being no real continuity in the 52-episode run. At least one show, "Hunger," was clip-jobbed together from rejected and/or extra footage from other episodes.
True fans should know that the "Who's on first?" routine is recreated in its entirety at one point, and its audio greets the viewer during the menu portion of each disk. Collections should be aware, however, of politically incorrect racial humor (mainly degrading portrayals of American Indians, in an old-west-themed episode, and some smoke-accidentally-creates-blackface gags).
The Classic Flix compilation/restoration of the first season—digital scans so clear you can see shadows of boom microphones from time to time—accessories include several episodes with commentary tracks by showbiz historians, Abbott-and-Costello insiders, authors (like Ron Polumbo), and fans such as the late Gilbert Gottfried. They convey a wealth of behind-the-scenes comedy lore and trivia. The bracelet Costello always wears was the comic's memorial to the small son he lost in a tragic swimming-pool drowning. No matter what critics said, Jackie Gleason never missed an opportunity to watch the program. Another disc extra, "Saving the Negatives," discusses how most of the show's endangered original 35mm negatives were miraculously salvaged by Bob Furmanek (a cohort of Jerry Lewis).
A recommended set for general film collections in public libraries and those concerned especially with golden-age TV/Hollywood.