It was on the burlesque circuit in 1936 when William Alexander Abbot of Asbury Park and Louis Francis Cristillo of Paterson met and decided to team up. Signed to Universal in 1939, Abbott & Costello reigned as the new “Kings of Comedy,” producing a solid decade of box office hits. As the country eased into the 1950s, Abbott & Costello tackled a new medium: television as The Abbott & Costello Show debuted in 1952, running for two seasons. In 1956, Abbott & Costello and their Gold Record of “Who’s On First” were installed into the Baseball Hall of Fame, making the pair the first non-baseball-playing celebrities ever to be inducted into Cooperstown. Lou Costello passed away in 1959, and Bud Abbott in 1974 – but today, their comedy continues to generate new legions of fans around the world.