Lou Costello

Louis Francis Cristillo was born on March 6, 1906, in Paterson, New Jersey, to Sebastiano Cristillo, an insurance sales agent of Italian descent from Caserta, Campania, and Helen Rege, a silk weaver of Italian, French, and Irish ancestry. Known professionally as Lou Costello, he became one of the most recognized American comedians, actors, and producers of the twentieth century, best remembered for his partnership with Bud Abbott and their celebrated routine "Who's on First?"

As a young man in Paterson, Costello attended Public School 15 and distinguished himself as an athlete, excelling in basketball and reportedly winning the city's free-throw championship twice. He also competed as a boxer in his teens under the name Lou King. An admirer of silent-film comedian Charlie Chaplin, Costello hitchhiked to Hollywood in 1927 seeking an acting career, but found work primarily as a laborer and extra at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Hal Roach Studios. His athletic background earned him occasional employment as a stunt man, including work on The Trail of '98 in 1928. He adopted the surname Costello, reportedly taking it from actress Helene Costello, though his brother Anthony had already used the name professionally as a musician.

With the arrival of talking pictures in 1928, Costello returned east to gain theatrical experience. Stranded in St. Joseph, Missouri, he persuaded a local burlesque producer to hire him as a "Dutch" comic — a term derived from Deutsch, meaning German. By the close of 1928 he was back in New Jersey, and in 1929 he began working in burlesque on the Mutual Burlesque wheel. After that circuit collapsed during the Great Depression, he worked for several burlesque impresarios, including the Minskys. It was through this circuit that he crossed paths with Bud Abbott, though the two did not formally work together until 1935, when Costello's regular straight man fell ill during a run at the Eltinge Theatre on 42nd Street in New York City. They officially teamed in 1936.

The William Morris talent agency signed Abbott and Costello and secured them featured roles on The Kate Smith Hour in 1938, a nationally broadcast radio variety program on which "Who's on First?" made its radio debut. Their visibility on the Smith show led directly to their Broadway appearance in 1939, when they performed in Streets of Paris. That same momentum carried them into film: while hosting a summer replacement series for The Fred Allen Show in 1940, they were signed by Universal Pictures for supporting roles in One Night in the Tropics. Their breakthrough came with Buck Privates in early 1941, after which three additional films followed that year and they were ranked the third-highest box-office draw in Hollywood.

In October 1942, Abbott and Costello launched their own NBC radio series, The Abbott and Costello Show, which ran on that network through the spring of 1947 before moving to ABC through the spring of 1949. During the summer of 1942, the pair embarked on a 35-day cross-country war bond tour; the Treasury Department credited them with selling $85 million in bonds during that period. Their popularity during the World War II years placed them among the highest-paid entertainers in the world.

The partnership was not without personal and professional strain. Their first reported disagreement came in 1936 over a booking at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City. By the end of 1941, Costello had negotiated a 60/40 income split in his favor. In March 1943, Costello suffered an attack of rheumatic fever that kept him off work for six months. Upon returning to the radio program in November of that year, he received word during rehearsals that his infant son, Lou Jr., had drowned in the family pool. Despite the tragedy, Costello proceeded with the live broadcast. Abbott later informed the audience of what had occurred. The Lou Costello Jr. Youth Foundation, established for rheumatic fever sufferers and still operating in Los Angeles, was named in the child's memory at Abbott's suggestion.

Abbott and Costello appeared together in 36 films between 1940 and 1956, among them Hold That Ghost, The Time of Their Lives, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, and Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man. In 1951 they joined the rotating hosts of The Colgate Comedy Hour on television, and in 1952 their filmed situation comedy The Abbott and Costello Show began running in syndication for two seasons. Costello owned the series outright, with Abbott working on salary. A relapse of rheumatic fever in 1954 forced both men to withdraw from Fireman Save My Child. By 1955, overexposure had diminished their popularity, and their film and television contracts lapsed. The partnership formally ended in 1957, after which Costello made solo television appearances and starred in one film. He died on March 3, 1959, three days before what would have been his fifty-third birthday.