John McCabe (writer)

John McCabe (November 14, 1920 – September 27, 2005), born John Charles McCabe III, was an American Shakespearean scholar and author, whose first book was the authorized biography of the comedy team known as Laurel and Hardy. This joint biography, as well as his separate books on each man, has been reprinted.

John Charles McCabe III (always called Jack) was born in Detroit, Michigan. His father was an engineer; the son loved acting from an early age, and at seven started to perform professionally with the Jessie Bonstelle Stock Company in the city.

During World War II, he served with the United States Army Air Forces in Europe, from 1943-1945. After returning to Detroit, he completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Detroit. In the 1940s, he was active in the Catholic Theater of Detroit. He earned a master's in fine art from Fordham University in New York, and a doctorate from the Shakespeare Institute of the University of Birmingham in England.

McCabe first taught at Wayne State University. He was appointed as a professor and scholar of Shakespeare at Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. There he headed the Department of Drama and Theatre Arts for many years. He also kept his interest in popular culture: movies, Broadway plays and musicals, and comedies.

His Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy, first published in 1961, is credited with helping establish the critical reputation of the 20th-century comedy duo. He also wrote separate books about each man: The Comedy World of Stan Laurel (1974) and Babe: The Life of Oliver Hardy (1989). As a professor, McCabe pushed his students in writing and speech. He and two other professors established the Unicorn Hunters, and annually published a word to be banned from use on campus - one year it was "awesome."

In 1964, Dr. McCabe, along with actor Chuck McCann was founder of the international Laurel and Hardy society, The Sons of the Desert, named after one of the team's films. He took the title "Exhausted Ruler". The organization expanded in the US and overseas, having 200 chapters at one time. He told a reporter that he modeled the group on the Baker Street Irregulars, a fan organization for Sherlock Holmes, of which he had been a member.

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