Hey Abbott! The Complete Universal Pictures Collection

Release Date:
November 5, 2019
Available in US & Canada

The Abbott & Costello fan in me wants to buy the upgrade Shout! factory is offering come the end of the year. The Complete Universal Pictures Collection is getting the high definition treatment and I hope further information will be released to say if they are true remasters or transfers from the previous edition.

The only difference is with including It Ain’t Hay. Two editions exist of the prior DVD release. One was packaged in a keepsake box and the later version were in amaray cases. Due to legal issues with the estate of Damon Runyon (one of the characters), there was a delay in getting a home release out.

Although I love to see a definitive collection which includes their work with MGM and United Artists, I’ll take what I can get! 28 films are included in this set. At the time of this announcement, it’s implied new bonus features will be made; the details are still forthcoming. As a budding collector of this comedic duo’s works, I hope the book is a new one instead of reprinting the previous edition. I can say lots more about their legacy and their influence today.

Not only are they famous for “Who’s on First?” but also that routine has been mimicked time and time again. Last year marked the anniversary of this act–the first known performance was dated March 24, 1938. Sadly, no known recordings exist. As for a radio broadcast, audio recordings exist and collectors may well want copies of the Oct 6 performance when Abbott and Costello appeared on The Kate Smith Hour.

Whether we fondly recall them in cartoons like The Simpsons or seeing a facsimile of Lou crying out for Abbott in another animated product (or some live action parody), their routine is timeless. Their film when they got to meet Frankenstein’s Monster not only reignited the horror film genre but also redefined what horror comedy films must entail. Plus, I have a fondness for their film, Time of Their Lives, where the duo are at odds with each other more than partners (mostly due to the script). Plus, it’s a ghost story!

Films Include:

• One Night In The Tropics (1940)
• Buck Privates (1941)
• In The Navy (1941)
• Hold That Ghost (1941)
• Keep ‘Em Flying (1941)
• Ride ‘Em Cowboy (1942)
• Pardon My Sarong (1942)
• Who Done It? (1942)
• It Ain’t Hay (1943)
• Hit The Ice (1943)
• In Society (1944)
• Here Come The Co-Eds (1945)
• The Naughty Nineties (1944)
• Little Giant (1946)
• The Time of Their Lives (1946)
• Buck Privates Come Home (1947)
• The Wistful Widow Of Wagon Gap (1947)
• Abbott And Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
• Mexican Hayride (1948)
• Abbott And Costello Meet The Killer, Boris Karloff (1949)
• Abbott And Costello In The Foreign Legion (1950)
• Abbott And Costello Meet The Invisible Man (1951)
• Comin’ Round The Mountain (1951)
• Lost In Alaska (1952)
• Abbott And Costello Go To Mars (1953)
• Abbott And Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (1953)
• Abbott And Costello Meet The Keystone Kops (1955)
• Abbott And Costello Meet The Mummy (1955)

Product Information:
DISCS: 15
RUN-TIME: 41 hrs

Author: Ed Sum

I'm a freelance videographer and entertainment journalist (Absolute Underground Magazine, Two Hungry Blokes, and Otaku no Culture) with a wide range of interests. From archaeology to popular culture to paranormal studies, there's no stone unturned. Digging for the past and embracing "The Future" is my mantra. View all posts by Ed Sum