Abbott and Costello - Private Lives

Private Lives

Both Abbott and Costello met and married women they knew in burlesque. Abbott married Betty Smith in 1918, and Costello married Anne Battler in 1934. The Costellos had four children; the Abbotts adopted two.

Abbott and Costello faced personal demons at times. Both were inveterate gamblers and had serious health problems. Abbott suffered from epilepsy and turned to alcohol for pain management. Costello had occasional, near-fatal bouts with rheumatic fever. On November 4, 1943, the same day that Costello returned to radio after a one year layoff due to his illness with rheumatic fever, his infant son, Lou Jr. (nicknamed "Butch" and born November 6, 1942), died in an accidental drowning in the family's swimming pool. Maxene Andrews remembers visiting Costello with sisters Patty and LaVerne during his illness, and she also remembered how Costello's demeanor changed after the tragic loss of his son, saying, "He didn't seem as fun-loving and as warm...He seemed to anger easily...there was a difference in his attitude.

During 1945, a rift developed when Abbott hired a domestic servant who had been fired by Costello. Angered by Abbott's decision, Costello refused to speak to his partner except when performing. The following year, they made two films in which they appeared as separate characters rather than as a team ("Little Giant" and "The Time of Their Lives"). This may have been a result of the tensions between them, plus the fact that their most recent films had not done well at the box office and Lou wanted to change the formula. Abbott allegedly resolved the rift when he volunteered to help with Costello's pet charity, a foundation for underprivileged children, and suggested naming it the Lou Costello Jr. Youth Foundation. The facility opened in 1947 and still serves the Boyle Heights district of Los Angeles.