Appalachian Figure From Appalachian boyhood to Denver rings and Hollywood lots If you know Richard “Fighting Dick” Gilbert at all, you probably know him as the burly cop or henchman in Laurel and Hardy and Our Gang shorts, forever being tripped, drenched, or humiliated for a laugh. For decades he was part of the Hal Roach stock company, the dependable heavy in the background of other people’s jokes.



