mono-lingual performers writing their lines down phonetically on cue cards. These cue cards were just out of camera range, and it was not uncommon to see an actor glance off to the side for their next cue in the days before dubbing and re-recording, but it proved to be too expensive and time-consuming. Laurel and Hardy were so popular that they proved to be irreplaceable. So Pardon Us, along with such shorts such as Blotto, Chickens Come Home, and Below Zero had a French and Spanish version. Laurel and Hardy spoke their lines phonetically, and many supporting roles were recast, including Boris Karloff playing "The Tiger" in the French version, before his fame in Frankenstein which premiered in November 1931. Availability Three prints of different length are in circulation today. In the mid-1980s, 3M issued a series of L&H films on laserdisc and used the preview print of Pardon Us. It ran nine minutes longer than all previous prints, and contained additional scenes with the warden, solitary confinement, and second performance of "Hand Me Down My Silver Trumpet Gabriel". This version has been shown several times on the cable network American Movie Classics. The 64-minute version also aired on TCM's April Fools' Day salute to Laurel and Hardy. In 2004, Universal Studios issued the complete 1930 preview version on DVD, which includes added scenes taken from preview copies. This version, running at 70 minutes, was also released in 2011 as part of Laurel and Hardy: The Essential Collection. Originally, a music score was not added to the lost segment. This was resolved by adding Shield's music cues recreated by The Beau Hunks, a Dutch revivalist music ensemble, on their 1994 CD The Beau Hunks Play the Original Little Rascals Music. References External links 1931 films 1931 comedy films 1930s prison films American black-and-white films American prison comedy films Films about prison escapes Films directed by James Parrott Films set in prison Laurel and Hardy (film series) Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films with screenplays by H. M. Walker 1930s English-language films 1930s American films