Originally published June 5, 2011.
An announcement for this Laurel and Hardy cameo that was posted to the "Laurel and Hardy Discussion Group" on yahoo in advance:
[LHDG] Ollie Dee and Stannie Dum in PRINCE VALIANTThursday, April 21, 2011
Below is a message passed along from Thomas Scott Roberts to Paul Fitzpatrick
who passed it along to Carol Rugh.
"Spread the word. Ollie Dee & Stannie Dum will be making a special, cameo
appearance in Prince Valiant on Sunday, June 5th! Drawn by Gary Gianni and
colored by yours truly! Sorry we can't show a sneak peek of the actual strip--
we're not allowed. But watch for it, and tell tent members everywhere to look
for it in their local paper."
Now, some background: The "Prince Valiant" comic strip started in 1937 and
currently appears in over 300 Sunday newspapers in the USA. It has been a
continuous story-line since 1937. It's about the days of King Arthur and has
many interesting themes, such as Merlin, Excalibur, Camelot, Knights of the
Round Table, etc. Events depicted are taken from various time periods,
including the Roman Empire, Middle Ages, and some from modern times. It is not
always true to historical events. It's going to be interesting and fun to see
how they incorporate Ollie Dee and Stannie Dum into the comic strip. Thomas
Scott Roberts currently does the coloring for this comic strip and Gary Gianni
is the illustrator."
* * *
Most of the stories in Laurel and Hardy movies were set in the present day, but FRA DIAVOLO and THE BOHEMIAN GIRL were set in days of old. So perhaps it was not too unusual for them to have yet another period adventure that the late Mr. Roach didn't know of. - Benny Drinnon
A Prince Named Valient:
http://aprincenamedvaliant.blogspot.com/2011/02/welcome.html
Prince Valient Comic Online;
http://www.oregonlive.com/comics-kingdom/?feature_id=Prince_Valiant
