Actor, Comedian. He is best remembered for his partnership with Lou Costello that formed the highly successful "Abbott and Costello" comedy team. Born William Alexander Abbott in Asbury Park, New Jersey, he worked in carnivals while still a child, and dropped out of school in 1909. He worked for awhile as a treasurer for the Casino Theater in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, and then for other theaters around the country, occasionally filling in as a straight man for Vaudeville performers such as Harry Evanson and Harry Steppe. In 1931, while cashiering at the Brooklyn Theater, he filled in for an ill straight man for comedian Lou Costello, and the chemistry between the two was instant. They soon formed their famous comedy team, working burlesque, minstrel shows, movie houses, and any place that they could get a billing. In 1938, they got national exposure on the "Kate Smith Hour" radio show, and soon signed with Universal Pictures. Their motion picture debut "One Night in the Tropics" (1940) soon brought audience demand for more, and their film "Buck Privates"(1941) grossed a then-record profit of $10 million. Many more movies continued throughout the 1940s and 1950s, when they began mixing comedy with classic horror films, in such movies as "Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein" (1948), "Abbott and Costello meet the Invisible Man" (1951), "Abbott and Costello meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"(1953) and "Abbott and Costello meet the Mummy"(1955). They had their own radio show from 1941 to 1949, and later a television show, "The Abbott and Costello Show" (1952). After some trouble with the Internal Revenue Service over their taxes, the team split up in 1957, with both actors nearly completely broke. Abbott tried to start over with a new partner, Candy Candido, but this pairing failed to excite the audience. A life-long epileptic, he suffered two strokes, but eventually died of cancer, penniless and living in a nursing home. His body was cremated and his ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean. He and Lou Costello are pictured on a 29 cent commemorative postage stamp honoring famous comedians, issued by the United States Postal Service in August 1991, and the duo are the only non-sports figures honored in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, enshrined there for their famous "Who's on First" routine.