Editing Double act (section)

==History==

===Early development===
[[File:Lyons and Yosco.jpg|thumb|150px|left|[[Lyons and Yosco]], vaudeville act and ragtime composers from the 1910s]]
The model for the modern double act began in the British music halls and the American vaudeville scene of the late 19th century. Here, the straight man was needed to repeat the lines of the comic because audiences were noisy. A dynamic soon developed in which the straight man was a more integral part of the act, setting up jokes for the comic to deliver a punch line. Popular draws included acts like [[George Burns]] and [[Gracie Allen]] (who initially operated with Burns as the comic but quickly switched roles when Gracie's greater appeal was recognized), Abbott and Costello, [[Flanagan and Allen]], [[Gallagher and Shean]], [[Smith and Dale]], and [[Lyons and Yosco]]. The dynamic evolved, with Abbott and Costello using a modern and recognizable formula in routines such as [[Who's on First?]] in the 1930s and Flanagan and Allen using "cross talking".
[[File:Gallagher-Shean.png|thumb|150px|right|[[Gallagher and Shean]], a popular vaudeville act of the 1920s]]
Though vaudeville lasted into the 1930s, its popularity waned because of the rise of [[motion pictures]]. Some failed to survive the transition to movies and disappeared. By the 1920s, double acts were beginning to attract worldwide fame more readily through the [[Silent films|silent era]]. The comedy was not derived from "cross-talk" or clever verbal exchanges, but through [[slapstick]] routines and the actions of the characters.

The first double act to gain worldwide fame through film was the Danish duo [[Ole & Axel]], who made their first film together in 1921. The latter half of the same decade introduced to the world the inimitable team of [[Laurel and Hardy]]. The pair had never worked together on stage (they did as of 1940), though both had worked in vaudeville—[[Stan Laurel]] with [[Charlie Chaplin]] as part of [[Fred Karno]]'s Army and [[Oliver Hardy]] as a singer. Laurel could loosely be described as the comic, though the pair were one of the first not to fit the mold in the way that many double acts do, with both taking a fairly equal share of the laughs. The pair first worked together as a double act in the 1927 film ''[[Duck Soup (1927 film)|Duck Soup]]''. The first Laurel and Hardy film was called ''Putting Pants on Philip'' though their familiar characters had not yet been established.  The first film they both appeared in was ''Lucky Dog'' in 1921. Laurel and Hardy adapted well to silent films, both being skilled at slapstick, and their nonverbal interplay with each other and the audience became famous—Laurel's cry and Hardy's downtrodden glances to the camera whenever something went wrong—and were carried over to their later [[talkies]]. They were one of the few silent acts who made a successful transition to spoken word pictures in the 1930s, showing themselves to be equally adept at verbal wordplay.

===1940s–1960s===
[[File:Lewis and Martin.jpg|thumb|left|[[Martin and Lewis]]]]

Laurel and Hardy released ''[[Saps at Sea]]'', in 1940; it was their final film for long-term producer and collaborator [[Hal Roach]]. Later their popularity declined. In 1940s America the double act remained a cinema draw, developing into the [[Buddy film|"buddy movie]]" genre, with Abbott and Costello making the transition from stage to screen and the first of [[Bob Hope]] and [[Bing Crosby]]'s ''[[Road to...]]'' series in 1940. Further acts followed. For example, the first pairing of [[Dean Martin]] and [[Jerry Lewis]] occurred in 1946. About the same time [[The Bickersons]] became popular on radio. [[Mel Brooks]] and [[Carl Reiner]] started their [[2000 Year Old Man]] recordings and subsequent television appearances in 1961. The genre has continued to exist in cinema while making a successful transition to radio and later TV via [[The Smothers Brothers]] and ''[[Rowan and Martin's Laugh In]]''.

In Britain, double acts were confined to theatres and radio until the late 1950s, when double acts such as [[Morecambe and Wise]] and [[Mike and Bernie Winters]] slowly began the transition to TV on variety shows such as ''[[Sunday Night at the London Palladium]]''. These acts came into their own in the mid- to late-1960s. When Morecambe and Wise teamed up with writer [[Eddie Braben]], they began to redefine what was meant by a double act, with Wise, the straight man, being developed into a comic character in his own right. They provided the link between music hall and modern comedy for double acts.<ref name=BBC2>''The Story of Light Entertainment: Double Acts'', BBC 2, 9pm, 22 July 2006</ref> As the two leading double acts of the day, Morecambe and Wise and the Winters brothers enjoyed a playful rivalry—the Winters mocked the slight edge Morecambe and Wise had over them in popularity, while Morecambe, when asked what he and Wise would have been if not comedians, replied "''Mike and Bernie Winters''".

A series of black-and-white films based on [[Don Camillo and Peppone]] characters created by the Italian writer and journalist [[Giovannino Guareschi]] were made between 1952 and 1965. These were French-Italian coproductions, and starred [[Fernandel]] as the Italian priest Don Camillo and [[Gino Cervi]] as Giuseppe 'Peppone' Bottazzi, the Communist Mayor of their rural town. The titles are: ''[[The Little World of Don Camillo]]'' (1952), ''[[The Return of Don Camillo]]'' (1953), ''[[Don Camillo's Last Round]]'' (1955), ''[[Don Camillo: Monsignor]]'' (1961), and ''[[Don Camillo in Moscow]]'' (1965). The movies were a huge commercial success in their native countries. In 1952, ''Little World of Don Camillo'' became the highest-grossing film in both Italy and France,<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=9 September 1953|page=7|title=Europe Choosey on Films, Sez Reiner; Sluffs Flops|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/variety191-1953-09#page/n70/mode/1up|access-date=29 September 2019|via=[[Archive.org]]}}</ref> while ''The Return of Don Camillo'' was the second most popular film of 1953 at the Italian and French box office.<ref>{{cite web|website=Box Office Story|title=1953 at the box office|url=https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.boxofficestory.com/france-1948-c22733213&prev=search}}</ref>
[[File:Franco Franchi & Ciccio Ingrassia.jpg|thumb|[[Franco and Ciccio]]]]

[[Franco and Ciccio]] were a comedy duo formed by Italian actors [[Franco Franchi]] (1928–1992) and [[Ciccio Ingrassia]] (1922–2003), particularly popular in the 1960s and 1970s. Their collaboration began in 1954 in the theater field, and ended with Franchi's death in 1992. The two made their cinema debuts in 1960 with the film ''[[Appuntamento a Ischia]]''. They remained active until 1984 when their last film together, ''[[Kaos (film)|Kaos]]'', was shot, although there were some interruptions in 1973 and from 1975 to 1980.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://palermo.repubblica.it/cronaca/2012/12/11/news/una_piazza_per_franco_e_ciccio-48510063/|title=Una piazza per Franco e Ciccio amarcord tra vicoli e teatrini – Palermo – Repubblica.it|date=11 December 2012|access-date=14 September 2018|language=it}}</ref> Together, they appeared in 112 films.<ref>{{cite book|first=Paolo|last=Mereghetti|title=Dizionario dei film 2006|publisher=Baldini Castoldi Dalai|year=2006|language=it|isbn=978-8884907783}}</ref> They acted in films certainly made in a short time and with few means, such as those shot with director [[Marcello Ciorciolini]], sometimes even making a dozen films in a year, often without a real script and where they often improvised on the set. Also are the 13 films directed by [[Lucio Fulci]], who was the architect of the reversal of their typical roles by making Ciccio the serious one, the sidekick, and Franco the comic one.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://iltirreno.gelocal.it/regione/toscana/2015/01/09/news/franco-e-ciccio-amatissimi-dal-pubblico-detestati-dalla-critica-1.10634866|title=Franco e Ciccio: amatissimi dal pubblico, detestati dalla critica - Toscana - il Tirreno|access-date=14 September 2018|language=it}}</ref> They also worked with important directors such as [[Pier Paolo Pasolini]] and the [[Taviani brothers]]. Considered at the time as protagonists of [[B movie]], they were subsequently reevaluated by critics for their comedy and creative abilities, becoming the subject of study.<ref name="sentieriselvaggi">{{Cite web|url=http://www.sentieriselvaggi.it/libri-di-cinema-due-cialtroni-alla-rovescia-studio-sulla-comicit-di-franco-franchi-e-ciccio-ingrassia-di-fabio-piccione/|title=Libri di cinema - "Due Cialtroni alla rovescia. Studio sulla comicità di Franco Franchi e Ciccio Ingrassia" di Fabio Piccione. - SentieriSelvaggi|date=6 June 2005 |access-date=14 September 2018}}</ref><ref name="mondadoristore">{{Cite web|url=https://www.mondadoristore.it/Soprassediamo-Franco-Gordiano-Lupi/eai978887606548/|title=Soprassediamo! Franco & Ciccio story. Il cinema comico-parodistico di Franco Franchi e Ciccio Ingrassia. Ediz. illustrata - Gordiano Lupi|publisher=Mondadori Store Team|access-date=14 September 2018}}</ref> The huge success with the public is evidenced by the box office earnings, which in the 1960s, represented 10% of the annual earnings in Italy.<ref name="Lezioni">DVD N.9 ''Lezioni di cinema'', Repubblica-L'espresso</ref>

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the traditional formula was shunned by [[The Two Ronnies]], who completely dispensed with the need for a straight man, and [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore]], two [[Oxbridge]]-educated comedians who used the double act to deliver satire and edgy comedy.

===1970s===
[[File:Lo chiamavano Trinità.png|thumb|300px|[[Terence Hill and Bud Spencer]]]]
Internationally the most popular double act of the 1970s was the Italian duo [[Terence Hill and Bud Spencer]]. The team had already made three straight westerns together during the 1960s but turned their act towards slapstick in their fourth (''[[They Call Me Trinity]]'', 1970), with massive success.

Light entertainment in Britain in the 1970s was dominated by Morecambe and Wise, who enjoyed impressive ratings, especially on their Christmas specials. Although Mike and Bernie Winters's popularity declined, The Two Ronnies' success grew while Peter Cook and Dudley Moore sporadically produced acclaimed work, in particular, their controversial recordings as [[Derek and Clive]] from 1976 to 1978.

The mid-to-late 1970s saw a resurgence in American double acts. ''[[Blazing Saddles]]'' (1974) featured a memorable performance by [[Mel Brooks]] and [[Harvey Korman]] (who later teamed up again in Brooks's 1981 follow-up ''[[History of the World, Part I]]''). ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'', first broadcast in 1975, provided an outlet for comedians to appear in sketches as double acts and continues to do so. It was here that [[Dan Aykroyd]] and [[John Belushi]] honed their characters [[The Blues Brothers]], who were soon pulled to fame in the 1980 buddy movie of the same name. [[Gene Wilder]] and [[Richard Pryor]] also embarked on a string of successful buddy films in the 1970s. [[Cheech & Chong]] also gained massive popularity during this time.

Occasionally, the straight-man/funny-man dynamic appeared in unexpected contexts between characters not normally thought of as comics. This often appeared in the [[James T. Kirk]] ([[William Shatner]])/[[Spock|Mr. Spock]] ([[Leonard Nimoy]]) relationship in several episodes of the original ''[[Star Trek]]'' series.

===1980s===
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Morecambe and Wise had dominated British light entertainment throughout the 1970s, but their presence waned in the early 1980s. When Morecambe died moments after finishing a solo show in 1984 (his last words were 'I'm glad that's over'), the best-loved double act in British comedy came to an end, and several new acts emerged. The two distinct groups could not have been more different.

In the wake of ''[[Not the Nine O'Clock News]]'', ''[[The Young Ones (TV series)|The Young Ones]]'' and the breakthrough onto television of "[[alternative comedy]]" came [[French and Saunders]]; [[Fry and Laurie]]; [[Rik Mayall]] and [[Ade Edmondson]]; [[Hale and Pace]]; and [[Alas Smith and Jones|Smith and Jones]]. These edgier comics were brasher and crude—comedy's answer to [[punk rock]].<ref name=BBC2/> They developed the satire and vulgarity of Peter Cook and Dudley Moore rather than the more gentle humour of Morecambe and Wise and The Two Ronnies. In fact, Smith and Jones showed blatant disregard for their predecessors, openly mocking the Two Ronnies (this may have been a factor in [[Ronnie Barker]]'s decision to retire from comedy in the late 1980s<ref name=BBC2/>).

===1990s–present day===
The early 1990s saw comedy become "the new rock and roll"<ref name=BBC2/> in Britain; this was inherent in the work of [[Newman and Baddiel]] and [[Punt and Dennis]] on ''[[The Mary Whitehouse Experience]]''. Newman and Baddiel, in particular, symbolized this rock and roll attitude by playing the biggest ever British comedy gig at [[Wembley Arena]]. With this came tension. Newman and Baddiel fell out with Punt and Dennis, not wishing to share screen time with them, and then with each other. [[David Baddiel]] went on to form another successful double act with [[Frank Skinner]].
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The 1990s also saw the introduction of one of comedy's strangest yet most successful double acts in [[Reeves and Mortimer]]. They at the same time deconstructed light entertainment<ref name=BBC2/> and paid homage to many of the classic double acts (Vic Reeves would even do an Eric Morecambe impression on ''[[Vic Reeves Big Night Out]]''). They simultaneously used very bizarre, idiosyncratic humour and traditional double act staples (in later years they became increasingly reliant on violent slapstick).

Another double act that emerged in the mid to late 1990s was [[Lee & Herring]], who combined a classic [[clash of personalities]] (downbeat and rational Lee contrasting with energetic, childish Herring) with very ironic, often satirical humour.

Also appearing in the latter half of the decade were [[Adam and Joe]], whose low-budget, self-produced [[Channel 4]] series ''[[The Adam and Joe Show]]'' was a very sharp combination of TV and movie parodies and satirical looks at various elements of youth culture.

Indian cinema also had its share of the double act, with [[Tamil cinema]] comedians [[Goundamani]] and [[Senthil]] teaming up for several films throughout the decade, similarly [[Kota Srinivasa Rao]] and [[Babu Mohan]] in [[Telugu cinema]].
[[File:Jordan Peele - Keegan-Michael Key (14471841627).jpg|left|thumb|[[Key & Peele]]]]
The British duo [[Mitchell and Webb]] are another successful double act from the 2000s onwards, having multiple [[Sketch comedy|sketch shows]] on both radio and TV as well as starring in the award-winning sitcom [[Peep Show (British TV series)|''Peep Show'']].

For over 20 years, Australians [[Hamish Blake]] and [[Andy Lee (comedian)|Andy Lee]] have worked together as [[Hamish & Andy]], having multiple successful TV shows and a very popular [[Hamish & Andy (radio show)|radio show]] and [[Hamish & Andy (podcast)|podcast]].

Most of the most successful double acts in the early 2000s take their inspiration from the odder strain of double-act comedy spearheaded by Reeves and Mortimer. [[Matt Lucas (comedian)|Matt Lucas]] and [[David Walliams]], who had previously worked with Reeves and Mortimer, also took inspiration from the Two Ronnies. [[The Mighty Boosh]] also played with the formula but essentially remained traditional at their roots. Another popular current [[light entertainment]]/[[Television presenter|presenting]] comedy act is [[Ant & Dec]], who are a very basic yet effective example of a double act.

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In early 2012, comedians [[Keegan-Michael Key]] and [[Jordan Peele]] appeared in a sketch comedy TV show titled ''[[Key & Peele]]'' airing on [[Comedy Central]].

Many modern-day [[YouTube]] channels follow this format. Some examples include [[Smosh]], [[Dan and Phil]], the [[Game Grumps]], and [[Rhett & Link|Rhett and Link]] of the YouTube channel [[Good Mythical Morning]].