: Stan and Ollie enlist in the U.S. Army to look after their young, wealthy, and supposedly sickly employer, Daniel Forrester, who has been drafted.
The phrase usually refers to one of several iconic films where the legendary comedy duo, Laurel and Hardy, find themselves in military service. While they wore uniforms in multiple movies, the most prominent titles associated with this theme are Great Guns (1941) and Pack Up Your Troubles (1932). Key Films Featuring the Duo in the Army Great Guns (1941) :
: Ollie finds him at an old soldiers' home, leading to a series of chaotic events as they try to reintegrate into civilian life. Thematic Elements of Their Military Comedy Description The Sergeant Archetype Stan si Bran in Armata
: The film opens with Stan guarding a trench for 20 years, unaware that World War I has long been over.
Despite being "hardly soldiers," they often end up as accidental heroes, such as rounding up a battalion of enemy soldiers by mistake. : Stan and Ollie enlist in the U
They are almost always paired with a gruff, short-tempered sergeant (like Sgt. Hippo) who serves as the perfect foil to their incompetence.
: One of their most famous misunderstandings occurs when they try to avoid the draft by claiming they are incapacitated, only to end up in the trenches of France. Block-Heads (1938) : While they wore uniforms in multiple movies, the
: The duo is drafted into World War I. After the war ends, they take it upon themselves to find the grandparents of a fallen comrade's young daughter.