Every month I browse the crowdfunding website Kickstarter to see what goodies are in the making by creative individuals and this month I was pleased to see a series of Laurel & Hardy photobooks compiled by two Englishmen, Patrick and Russ. They appear to be avid fans of the silent comedy duo and these books "Laurel & Hardy Silents" mark the first two volumes in a series of six... along with a neat-looking Laurel and Hardy Magazine series as well.
If you are not familiar with crowdfunding, it's a very easy process. You browse prospective projects ("campaigns") written by the project creators that explain what they are hoping to accomplish - in this case, getting these books into print - and then you buy the end product before it is made. A project needs to reach its funding goal before it is successful and goes into production. This project has already reached it, so the books are set to ship in December 2026. It's really just pre-ordering items...but if enough crowdfunders don't get together to pre-order, then the final product is never made. My sister and I have a number of Kickstarter campaigns under our belts, so we love the whole crowdfunding process and especially the community - a really swell bunch of people!
As the creators' state, "Our long-term aim is to create a complete six-book series covering the entire film career of Laurel and Hardy, published in three two-volume releases. This first set, covering the silent era, is the foundation on which that entire project will be built."
It looks like an impressive set of photobooks - they are packaged in a slipcase as well - and quite a collector's item. Only 1000 of each set will be made (although they mention that all orders will be fulfilled regardless). Unfortunately, shipping is quite expensive for U.S. backers, but it is what it is.
Check it out! The campaign ends in 30 days. You can read all about it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/laurelandhardybooks/laurel-and-hardy-silents
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