1953 • Baseball Bonus • Abbott & Costello - Who's on First

The "Who's on First?" sketch is a classic comedic performance by Abbott and Costello, where a baseball team's player names become a source of hilarious confusion due to their similarity to common phrases. The routine was first introduced on the radio in 1938 and later featured in their film "One Night in the Tropics" in 1940. The sketch was performed numerous times in their careers, rarely in precisely the same way twice. We present the 1953 version, of television's The Abbott and Costello Show episode "The Actor's Home", widely considered the definitive version.This enduring sketch showcases the duo's impeccable timing and wordplay. The misunderstandings arise as Costello tries to clarify the positions and names of the players, while Abbott consistently responds with "Who's on first," "What's on second," and "I Don't Know is on third." The humor derives from the rapid-fire dialogue and the cyclic repetition of phrases that sound like questions. This iconic routine remains a cornerstone of comedy history and is celebrated for its ability to induce laughter through linguistic confusion.