Oliver Norvell Hardy (January 18, 1892 - August 7, 1957) was an American film actor. With Stan Laurel, he formed half of perhaps the most famous comedy partnership in film history, Laurel and Hardy.
Hardy was born Norvell Hardy in Harlem, Georgia. In his first film, Outwitting Dad (1914), Hardy chose to be billed as O. N. Hardy, taking his father's first name as his own. From that time, he referred to himself as "Oliver Norvell Hardy", and eventually became most commonly known as simply Oliver Hardy.
For details of Hardy's career see the Laurel and Hardy article.