Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 17, 2021

When considering at least some (and probably arguably many) of the most successful comedy duos of the twentieth century (if not of all time), there's an interesting through line that can connect them, despite whatever manifest differences between the various acts there might otherwise be. Take for example these pairs, all of whom contributed mightily to American (and global) comedy: Laurel and Hardy, Martin and Lewis, and Abbott and Costello. In each of these aggregations, there was the "straight" man, one who might ostensibly be a bit "smarter" than the other partner (e.g., Hardy, Martin, and/or Abbott), and a kind of sad sack schlub who was frequently either already in or about to be in some kind of trouble due to being apparently dimwitted (e.g., Laurel, Lewis and/or Costello). Appearances, especially those crafted for a paying audience, can be deceiving, however, and in that regard it's rather interesting to note that The Abbott and Costello Show was evidently owned by the ostensibly "dumb" Lou Costello, who then put Bud Abbott on salary for the series. Both Abbott and Costello and Lewis and Martin had the good sense (and business savvy) to take part in what was then the nascent and perhaps still slightly "low rent" feeling technology of television, and in fact both pairs had been featured as revolving hosts on The Colgate Comedy Hour (there is evidently a Martin and Lewis Colgate Comedy Hour: 16 Classic Episodes DVD available, if our typically reliable database is to be believed).

The Abbott and Costello Show defies at least some conventions of the standard sitcom, at least as the term is understood nowadays, by having its titular stars appear literally before a curtain in introductory and interstitial segments, though fans of vintage television will know that this technique was used by others, including Burns and Allen. But there is a "sitcom" aspect to The Abbott and Costello Show, with the boys renting (or at least staying in) a room in an apartment house run by Sidney Fields (all of the featured actors in the show portray characters with the same names as the actual actors). Rather incredibly, given the kind of "iffy" quality Fields projects as a prospective landlord, the boys are fortunate to have a neighbor in Hillary Brooke, an uncommonly elegant woman (at least for that neighborhood) who often gets involved with the boys' shenanigans. In a series that often borders on the surreal due to both the writing and perhaps especially some of the vagaries of its production (some of which are covered in the very enjoyable commentary tracks adorning several episodes), it is perhaps not that surprising that there's also a pet chimp named Bingo who is a semi-regular and who is frequently seen in apparel matching Costello's.

Any given episode in this season threatens pretty regularly to go completely off the rails at any given moment, and there are several examples of narrative peculiarities and probably even lapses that show up frequently, but The Abbott and Costello Show is rightly remembered and lionized to this day for simply having preserved some of the classic Abbott and Costello routines, some dating back to the relatively early days of Burlesque. The routines are generally woven at least somewhat sensibly into whatever madhouse proceedings a particular episode may offer, and probably because the duo had been doing some of them for so long, have a spit and polish to them that some of the more seemingly loosey-goosey sidebars in the show may not quite achieve.

I am an inveterate and unabashed fan of Abbott and Costello, and in fact I'd probably place them above either Laurel and Hardy or Martin and Lewis in my personal pantheon, but that said, it may not be advisable to binge watch The Abbott and Costello Show. There are outright guffaws in virtually each and every episode, but the energy level is often so relentlessly manic that large doses of the pair can actually be a little exhausting after a while. That said, there are also a huge gamut of supporting players that waft in and out of episodes, some of them memorably bizarre, like Joe Besser as "man child" Stinky. Trivia fans may want to keep their eyes peeled for a number of interesting other bit players, and there's one extremely memorable walk on in the Alaska episode by a certain venerable icon who may be showing up shortly on Academy Award nomination lists, making history in a number of ways if that indeed turns out to be the case.

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of ClassicFlix, 3-D Archive and (just for good measure) the Library of Congress with AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.37:1. Bob Furmanek's work with the 3-D Archive has approached the near mythic for some classic film fans, and his long association with Abbott and Costello no doubt made this a particular labor of love, and it shows in virtually every frame of this really beautiful looking restoration. It of course helped that so many original negatives were either available or ultimately discovered (the brief featurette on Disc Three is unbelievably interesting in that regard), with a 4K workflow that has returned these filmed episodes to considerable luster. Detail levels are typically excellent throughout the series, to the point that, as one of the commentaries points out, you can actually clearly make out the embroidered insignia on Lou's shirt, and with other fineries, like the sharp outfits Hillary Brooke is typically in, looking precise and even palpable. Contrast is generally consistent, and damage in the form of nicks and scratches is minimal at worst, and non-existent quite a bit of the time. There are some variances, some I'm sure due to the fact that some negatives were beyond the point of restoration and fine grains needed to be utilized, but also perhaps even within the negative elements, where clarity can occasionally falter for a moment, or brightness and contrast can look slightly blanched. There are occasional uses of stock footage (as in Western), where quality obviously is unavoidably compromised. The entire series has a commendably organic appearance that argues against any overly aggressive digital filtering.

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 features DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono tracks (as noted in the Supplements section below, the "alternate" audio tracks with either partial or no laugh tracks are presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono). As some of the commentaries and the brief featurette with Bob Furmanek get into, this series enjoyed a rather "high tech" recording regimen for its soundtrack, and as a result the source elements utilized here probably were able to offer relatively more bang for the buck than for other television series from the same era. As a result, there's some surprising dynamic range at play, and while, yes, there's a certain boxiness to things, perhaps most evident in moments like the kind of wonderfully bombastic theme music, there's also really nicely full sounding midrange and low end. It's a rather interesting experience to watch the episodes with either partial or no audience laugh tracks (the filmed show was screened for an invited studio audience, whose responses were then recorded and added to the final broadcast versions, evidently with "sweetening" sometimes provided). What's notable is how adroit Abbott and Costello and perhaps especially the editors were in guessing how much time they needed for jokes to land and audiences to react before moving on to the next gag.

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One

• Vacation Audio Commentary by Gerry Orlando


• Lou's Birthday Party Audio Commentary by Lou Sabini


• Alaska Audio Commentary by Ray Faiola

Disc Two

• The Western Audio Commentary by Toby Roan


• Haunted House Audio Commentary by Paul Castiglia


• Hungry Audio Commentary by Ron Palumbo


• Music Lover Audio Commentary by Stu Fink


• Politician with full and partial audience laugh track (partial laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Wrestling with full and partial audience laugh track (partial laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Getting a Job Audio Commentary by Gilbert Gottfried and Frank Santopadre


• Getting a Job with and without audience laugh track (no laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).

Disc Three

• Chimpanzee with full and partial audience laugh track (partial laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Hillary's Birthday with full and partial audience laugh track (partial laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Television Show Audio Commentary by Jim Mulholland


• Television Show with and without audience laugh track (no laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Las Vegas with full and partial audience laugh track (partial laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Actor's Home Audio Commentary by Lou Antonicello, Shane Fleming, bob Greenberg, Jack Theakston and Michael Townsend Wright


• Safari with full and partial audience laugh track (partial laugh track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono).


• Saving the Negatives (HD; 4:55) is a fascinating if brief conversation with Bob Furmanek, who spearheaded the restoration of the series and who has a long history with the Costello family. This is one of the more unbelievable tales of luck in terms of tracking down supposedly missing original elements that I've personally heard.

Notes: All three discs also feature Credits (HD; 1:58), which rather commendably lists the crew for the first season of the series, along with some of the staff behind this Blu-ray release. Disc Three also boots to a trailer for The Noose Hangs High (also available on Blu-ray from ClassicFlix), and it also features trailers for several other releases from ClassicFlix. The keepcase insert features an inside print with episode summaries, and listings (in the very fine print) of which episodes have commentaries and either partial or no laugh tracks.

The Abbott and Costello Show: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Almost a decade ago now (kind of incredibly), in our Buck Privates Blu-ray review I began things by recounting an anecdote about my childhood which probably played in rather substantially to how much I have always loved Abbott and Costello. Their television series, however, was never a part of my childhood viewing experiences since, to my knowledge, anyway, it was never broadcast in any of the markets I lived growing up. The series itself is often almost maddeningly intense, with one shtick filled sequence after another, and so may be best enjoyed in smaller portions, but it is such a treasure trove of classic material that even occasional overkill may not be that objectionable. The teams at 3-D Film Archive, ClassicFlix and The Library of Congress have provided fans with a real treat that boasts solid technical merits and some really appealing commentary tracks. Highly recommended.