James Finlayson (1887 - 1953)

Where would Homer Simpson be if there were no Jimmy Finlayson before him?  It was Fin who would look into the camera and exclaim, "D'OH!" usually with great emphasis and one eye closed.  Homer was inspired by Fin.

Finlayson was born in Scotland and came to America in 1912.  He appeared in the theater until he landed in Hollywood in 1916 and took a stab at movies.  His first film was released in 1918 and by the next year, he was with Mack Sennett, where he worked until 1922.

Hal Roach was next, and it is here that Fin found a home and some great friends.  About half of his 240 or so movies were made there.  Fin made some silent films with San Laurel and some with Oliver Hardy before they were a team.  He then went on to make over 30 films with them as a team.

In the Sons of the Desert, we toast the memory of Fin at every banquet.  He was the perfect foil for L&H.  His role in Way Out West as the saloon owner trying to put one over on L&H and Rosina Lawrence is a comedy classic. 

Finlayson did make some dramas as well.  He appeared in The Dawn Patrol with Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., and For the Defense with William Powell both in 1930, and I am sure in others.

Later he was in The Great Victor Herbert in 1939 with Mary Martin, and To Be or Not to Be with Carole Lombard and Jack Benny in 1942.  In 1951 his health was starting to decline, but he made Royal Wedding with Fred Astaire and Here Comes the Groom with Bing Crosby. 

The moustache he wore while at Hal Roach was fake, so you have to look for him in the other films.  It will always be the Laurel and Hardy films that he is remembered for.  Watch him in Big Business, a 1929 silent film with Stan and Ollie as Christmas tree salesmen trying to sell Fin a tree.  It is easily one of the best silent comedy shorts ever made, and Fin is easily one of the best Bit Actors to ever live.

Way Out West

The 1937 film Way Out West was a story about riches being bestowed on a poor girl who worked in a saloon, and the attempt to steal it by her boss and his lady friend.  Sounds serious, doesn't it?  It could have been an early drama.  1937 was also the year for A Star is Born, The Good Earth, and Lost Horizon so Hollywood was making some wonderful dramas by then.

Of course, the stars of Way Out West were Laurel and Hardy, so there is not much drama here!  As the tag line reads, "A Rumble Of Roars That Ends In A Laff Riot."

The boss is played by James Finlayson, the actor who first started making the frustrated "Doh" sound, usually directly into the camera.  The young girl who really inherited the money was played by the wonderful Rosina Lawrence, and the lady friend who tried to help Fin steal the money was Sharon Lynn.

I have mentioned Rosina Lawrence before, as it was my considerable pleasure to know her.  She became a countess when she married Juvenal P. Marchisio in 1939, a NY judge and a leader in the postwar relief efforts in Italy.  After his death, she eventually married John McCabe, Stan Laurel's biographer.  Her obituary in the New York Times can be seen here.

Rosina only made 30 films, preferring to be a housewife after she married.  But she was a dancer and had a good career working with Rita Hayworth, Jean Harlow, Charley Chase, Warner Oland and others.  She was one of the teachers in several Our Gang comedies, including Bored of Education in 1936 which won an Oscar.

Sharon Lynn (or sometimes Lynne) had 32 movie roles, none were big hits, but some may be worth looking for.  In 1935 she was in Go Into Your Dance with Al Jolson and Ruby Keeler.

Most of the cast of Way Out West were regulars at Hal Roach, so you see them in Our Gang comedies, Charley Chase and L&H films.  The Avalon Boys supplied some good music, and Chill Wills provided the low voice for Stan Laurel in his big hit, In the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

The mule was played by Dinah.  This was her only film.