The Stan Laurel Correspondence Archive Project
Collects and catalogs letters from Stan Laurel to better understand his life and celebrate his comedic genius.
Stan Laurel: Pen Pal

It’s estimated that Stan personally wrote several thousand letters in his lifetime.

Navigating the Archive

Click a year to browse Stan’s letters, then select a month or era from the side menu.

Stan’s Words, Untouched

Stan’s letters appear as he wrote them, with only minor fixes for improved readability.

 
 
 
 
 
 
If you have a letter from Stan not included in these Archives Let Us Know!
Now available from Schiffer Publishing:

Collecting
Laurel and Hardy

Collecting Laurel and Hardy by Danny Bacher and Bernie Hogya combines more than 1,000 full-color photos of artifacts with film history, fun stories, and painstaking research to create a veritable encyclopedia of Laurel and Hardy memorabilia—from Stan’s perpetual desk calendar and Ollie’s Way Out West pants, to rare lobby cards and original scripts, to figurines and games. Take a journey into the whimsical, wonderful, and often hilarious world of collectibles that celebrate the popular comedic duo.

Order U.S.    Order U.K.
The Stan Laurel Correspondence Archive Project
1913-1929
1913-1929

Stan Laurel honed his comedy in vaudeville and silent films, teaming up with Oliver Hardy by the late 1920s.

1930-1939
1930-1939

Laurel and Hardy became international stars with a string of hit talkies that defined their comic legacy.

1940-1949
1940-1949

Amid wartime and studio struggles, the duo continued making films and toured extensively on stage.

1950-1959
1950-1959

After their final film Atoll K, Laurel stayed active behind the scenes while caring for Hardy, who died in 1957.

1960-1965
1960-1965

Following Hardy’s death, Laurel retired but remained beloved through letters and fan correspondence.

What People Say

The site is beautifully designed and makes you feel like you’re standing over the comedian’s shoulder as he types out his elegant letters to friends and fans.

KPCC Southern California Public Radio

Probably the single most attractive site dedicated to the work of Laurel and/or Hardy in existence!

Another Fine Gazette Northern Ireland

When you read through the letters you will get a real sense of what kind of man Stan was.

Robby Cress Dear Old Hollywood

The absolutely wonderful LettersFromStan.com allows us to discover what Stan really thought.

Northumberlandia Musings from the North Country

An amazing website. They are collecting every letter written by Stan Laurel throughout his life.

Brian Sheridan The Fedora Lounge

A good read. Very generous of the site to make the correspondence available.

Corey Mitchell The Mitchell Blog

The thoughts he put in creates an image of the man and the time he lived in.

De Morgen Belgium