Making his first film appearance in Nuts in May (1917), Laurel continued to make more than 50 other silent films for various producers. He shortened it to 'Stan' and added 'Laurel' at the suggestion of his vaudeville partner, Mae Dahlberg. He emigrated to America in 1912 where he decided to change his name he worried that 'Stanley Jefferson' was too long to fit onto posters. He gradually worked his way up the ladder of supporting roles until he became the featured comedian, as well as an understudy to Charlie Chaplin in Fred Karno's comedy company. Laurel began his career in Glasgow Britannia Theatre of Varieties and Panopticon music hall at the age of 16, where he crafted a comedy act largely derivative of famous music hall comedians of the day, including George Robey and Dan Leno. 'A.J.' Jefferson, was a showman who served as actor, director, playwright, and theatrical entrepreneur in many northern English cities.

Stan Laurel (J– February 23, 1965) was born Arthur Stanley Jefferson in Ulverston, Lancashire (now Ulverston, Cumbria), England. They starred in 40 short sound films, 32 short silent films and 23 full length feature films, and in the remaining 11 films made guest or cameo appearances. In total they appeared together in 106 films. They made their last film, Atoll K, in France in 19 before retiring from the screen. From 1945 to 1950 they did not appear on film and concentrated on their stage show.

The pair left the Roach studio in 1940, then appeared in eight 'B' comedies for 20th Century Fox and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer from 1941 to 1944. Among their most popular and successful films were the features Sons of the Desert (1933), Way Out West (1937), and Block-Heads (1938) Highest rated features at IMDb and the shorts Big Business (1929), Liberty (1929), and their Academy Award-winning short, The Music Box (1932). Laurel and Hardy officially became a team the following year, and soon became Hal Roach's most famous and lucrative stars. After a period appearing separately in several short films for the Hal Roach studio during the 1920s, they began appearing in movie shorts together in 1926. The two comedians first worked together on The Lucky Dog. They became famous during the early half of the 20th century for their work in motion pictures and also appeared on stage throughout America and Europe. Laurel and Hardy are a popular comedy team composed of thin, English-born Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and heavy, American-born Oliver Hardy (1892–1957). Laurel and Hardy in a promotional still from their 1937 film, Way Out West.

Hal roach laurel and hardy collection