Abbott and Costello were one of the rare comedy teams (or any entertainers for that matter) that performed in all of the mediums of their day. They got their start on stage performing in burlesque shows and then moved on to radio. After that, they moved on to Broadway, film, and finally television.
During
World War II they were instrumental in raising monies for the
War Bond Drive and building
morale for the troops. Traveling across the country at their own expense, they raised an estimated eighty nine million dollars and were honored in New York by then Mayor
Fiorello H. LaGuardia. They also have the distinction of being the first non- baseball playing celebrities inducted into the
Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in recognition for their famous
Who’s on First? skit.
Maybe you're not a fan of their slapstick brand of humor but say what you will, they were indeed prolific. Between the years of 1940 and 1956 they made 36 films together. During that time they also managed to squeeze in The Abbott and Costello Show on CBS for a couple of years and guest hosted a show called the Colgate comedy hour on NBC.
The following is a list of the films, some more well known than others, that the boys played in together and the year of its release.
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)
Rio Rita (
1942)
Pardon My
Sarong (1942)
Who Done It? (1942)
It Aint Hay (1943)
Hit The Ice (
1943)
In Society (1944)
Lost In A
Harem (
1944)
Here Come The Co-eds (1945)
The Naughty Nineties (
1945)
Abbott and Costello In
Hollywood (1945)
Little Giant (
1946)
The Time Of Their Lives (1946)
Buck Privates Come Home (
1947)
The Wistful Widow Of Wagon Gap (1947)
The Noose Hangs High (1948)
Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
Mexican Hayride (
1948)
Abbott and Costello Meet The Killer:
Boris Karloff (
1949)
Africa Screems (1949)
Abbott and Costello In The
Foreign Legion (1950)
Abbott and Costello Meet
The Invisible Man (
1951)
Comin' Round The Mountain (1951)
Jack And The Beanstalk (
1952)
Abbott and Costello Meet
Captain Kidd (1952)
Lost In
Alaska (1952)
Abbott and Costello Go To
Mars (1953)
Abbott and Costello Meet
Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (
1954)
Abbott and Costello Meet
The Keystone Cops (1955)
Abbott and Costello Meet
The Mummy (1955)
Dance With Me Henry (1956)
For what its worth, The United States Postal Service issued commemorative stamps of the comedy duo in 1991 and, in 1994, NBC aired a special called Abbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld in which Seinfeld sang their praises and acknowledged their influence on his comedic style.