Sons of the Desert

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy want to go to their 87th annual "Sons of the Desert" convention in Chicago, which no member has ever missed. But, domineering wives Mae Busch (as Lottie) and Dorothy Christy (as Betty) have other ideas. The women want to vacation in the mountains. While Ms. Christy gives permission for Mr. Laurel to attend the convention, Ms. Busch isn't so accommodating. So, Mr. Hardy decides to play sick, which (somewhat inexplicably) earns he and Laurel a trip to Hawaii (Chicago), without the wives.

Laurel & Hardy perform the old story smoothly; this film surely earns them the plot's patent. Clever scripting (Frank Craven) and direction (William A. Seiter) keeps things moving, and bits are well chosen. The slapstick hits a little too hard, sometimes; with the coming of sound, some of the physical comedy would look better in moderation (with a silly sound effect). Busch is one of the best Laurel & Hardy "wives". The duo's convention appearance, with the riotous Charley Chase is fantastic -- it includes a great theme song, "Honolulu Baby", performed by Ty Parvis and his hilarious hula dancers. Oh, lei!