Blotto on AllMovie

In this especially amusing Laurel and Hardy short, the boys are planning a night on the town. Standing in their way is Mrs. Laurel (Anita Garvin). Ollie telephones Stan with a scheme: Stan will send himself a bogus telegram, calling him away on "business." Unfortunately for the duo, Mrs. Laurel hears all on the extension and upon learning that they intend to take the bottle she's been saving, comes up with a scheme of her own. She takes the bottle, pours out the liquor and replaces it with every disgusting thing she can find in her kitchen -- spices, hot pepper sauce, etc. Stan and Ollie take this concoction to the Rainbow Club and proceed to have a grand time, impressed by the fire of their brew. They find out the truth -- and suffer instant sobriety -- when Mrs. Laurel shows up to tell them the bottle's actual contents...and brandishes a shotgun. While Blotto was originally three reels long, several scenes have been lost, shortening its length by a few minutes. It was shortened even further in the late 1990s, as well as colorized, for the cable TV "Laurel & Hardy Show". This is also one of Laurel and Hardy's films that was made when foreign versions of Hollywood pictures were commonly shot. In Blotto's foreign versions, the night club scene is extended, with several added acts, including a balloon dancer, and showing the boys singing a drunken rendition of "The Curse of an Aching Heart".