Category: Movies & Television (Videos)

SUMMARY:        RUNNING TIME: 15:37 Min. (Black & White)

Produced and directed by Jules White off Felix Adler’s script, this 1952 Stooges misadventure spoofs both Harvey and evidently, to some degree, A Streetcar Named Desire.  Living as fugitives aboard a stolen train car, sisters Roberta & Lenore implore Larry to budge blissfully boozing Shemp into semi-sobriety, so the two couples can be married.  Meanwhile, railway detective Moe stumbles upon the foursome’s hideout, especially as he is Roberta’s ex-boyfriend. 

Broken into three segments, the hijinks include an extended lunchtime encounter with a skunk and Shemp’s imaginary romance with a human-shaped canary.  No longer chasing thieves Larry & Shemp (which isn’t explained), Moe is incredulous (as is Larry) that the sisters romantically opt for an inebriated Shemp.  Of course, Shemp prefers a bizarre fantasy world with his own would-be lovebird.    

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Shemp: Shemp Howard

Roberta: Victoria Horne

Lenore: Patricia Wright

‘Carrie the Canary:’ Reggie Dvorak

REVIEW:

This dreck-fest is a mighty strange Stooges caper where neither logic nor laughs are to be found.  A few snippets of this eyesore might be watchable, but even the lengthy skunk sequence fails to generate an ounce of hilarity.  If anything, Shemp’s oblivious romance with the ‘canary woman’ is a misguided show-stopper in all the wrong ways. 

Unless one applauds unfunny absurdism (i.e. a tank-topped Larry’s impression of Streetcar’s Marlon Brando), “Cuckoo on a Choo-Choo” deserves to remain caged in obscurity.     

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                 1½ Stars

SUMMARY:       RUNNING TIME: 16:00 Min. (Black & White)

Directed and produced by Jules White off his brother Jack White’s script, this mid-1958 Stooges comedy co-starring Joe Besser is literally a scene-for-scene remake of an earlier remake. 

Here’s the quick backstory: reworking their 1935 Pygmalion-inspired “Hoi Polloi,” Curly Howard’s last Stooges caper was 1946’s “Half-Wit’s Holiday” (also directed by White).  Hence, White’s Besser footage filmed for “Pies and Guys” is tacked on the front end, as new actors replace ‘Quackenbush,’ ‘Lulu,’ & ‘Sedlitz.’  It isn’t clear if Emil Sitka’s “Half-Wits” footage was recycled, or if he simply re-filmed his role as the butler.    

Snooty rival professors Quackenbush and Sedlitz make a financial wager whether or not Quackenbush can reform dim-witted plumbers Larry, Moe, & Joe into refined gentlemen.  With support from his glamorous blonde assistant, Lulu, Quackenbush tutors the less-than-astute Stooges on mathematics, reading, and dignified table manners, etc. 

A big society party is the climax where the Stooges must prove their newfound sophistication to their fellow guests.  Yet, a melee ensues once kleptomaniac Joe and his fellow Stooges revert to their old and gooey pie-throwing ways. 

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Joe: Joe Besser

Professor Quackenbush: Milton Frome

Miss Lulu: Greta Thyssen

Sappington: Emil Sitka

Professor Sedlitz: Gene Roth

Mrs. Smythe-Smythe: Symona Boniface

Mrs. Gotrocks: Helen Dickson

Countess Shpritzvasser: Harriette Tarler

Party Guests: Judy Malcolm, Victor Travers, Wanda Perry, Barbara Slater, Al Thompson, Johnny Kascier, & Mary Forbes

Additional Party Guests: Uncredited

Notes: Besser takes a pie to the face early in the finale and then inexplicably doesn’t appear again.  It’s clear that this episode’s vintage ‘Larry & Moe’ pie-throwing party has been lifted from elsewhere –  in this instance, “Half-Wit’s Holiday.”  In an odd visual early on, Frome & Roth tower over the Stooges, as if Moe, Larry, & Joe, by comparison, are practically dwarves.  Lastly, here’s a bit of Stooges trivia: Moe’s wife, Helen, had first suggested (or even written a draft of) a Stooges adaptation of Pygmalion, which ended up as “Hoi Polloi.”  

REVIEW:

If the dull new footage is proof, “Pies and Guys” is merely a cheap contractual obligation. For instance, virtually all of this Besser version’s finale is directly lifted as archived footage from “Half-Wit’s Holiday.” Symona Boniface’s presence is particularly awkward, considering she had passed away in 1950.

More so, aside from Larry & Moe’s amusing under-the-table hand-holding gag, the Besser-era footage indicates a cast merely going through the motions.  As for Besser, given his lack of chemistry with Moe & Larry, the less said of his contributions the better.       

The sole incentive for enduring “Pies and Guys” is fast-forwarding to the hilarious Larry-and-Moe pie-tossing festival – Larry: “You forgot to duck (hah, hah)  — (seconds later) Moe: “So did you!”.  Considering the tragic reason for this two-Stooge finish was Curly’s career-ending stroke, their vintage teamwork recycled twelve years later still packs some comedy dynamite.

To bleakly summarize how lazy and budget-stingy Columbia Pictures had become, this short abruptly ends as the pie fight starts winding down.  White doesn’t even bother tacking on a new finish, even just to convey Besser was still in the ‘room.’  Watching the politically incorrect “Hoi Polloi” and/or “Half-Wit’s Holiday” obviously makes far more sense. 

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:             2 Stars

SUMMARY:          RUNNING TIME: 16:45 Min. (Black & White)

Produced and directed by Jules White off Felix Adler’s script, this episode represents the final Shemp-era caper (as it’s also the last of the four ‘Fake Shemp’ episodes).  At a newspaper office, staff janitors Shemp, Larry, and Moe stumble into an international espionage racket having taken a hot tip meant for their absent boss. 

Seeking future careers as investigative journalists, the trio pursue a nebulous foreign spy stealing U.S. atomic secrets.  Stowed away aboard a cruise ship, the Stooges soon match wits at sea with their dangerous quarry, who is far closer at hand than they realize. 

The plot cuts and pastes 1949’s “Dunked in the Deep” together with 1948’s “Crime on Their Hands.”  The only new footage is mostly a sequence where a scrounging Larry & Moe attempt to swipe a passenger’s fish dinner.    

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Shemp: Shemp Howard (archived footage)

Emma Blake: Harriette Tarler

Bortch: Gene Roth (archived footage)

J.L. Cameron: Charles Wilson (archived footage)

Smitty: Emil Sitka (cameo)

Fake Shemp: Joe Palma (cameo)  

REVIEW:

Given how Columbia Pictures assembled this episode on the cheap, “Commotion on the Ocean” plays better than expected.  Even the notorious presence of Joe Palma’s ‘Fake Shemp’ (covering for Shemp, who had passed away in late 1955) is near-undetectable.  The only strain comes from inserting Larry & Moe’s new footage, as they appear obviously older some seven years later.  

As for a predictable assortment of gags, they generally fall between dull and okay.  However, there’s an unfunny sequence where a smoking Shemp inadvertently ignites his hammock on fire (how such a dangerous fire in the ship’s combustible hold is extinguished isn’t revealed).  That poorly-conceived joke really ought to have been deleted and/or replaced with other appropriate Shemp footage. 

“Commotion on the Ocean,” overall, isn’t among the worst Stooge cut-and-paste jobs from that era.  It just isn’t close to necessary viewing, either.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                    3½ Stars

SUMMARY:     RUNNING TIME: 16:00 Min. (Black & White)

Produced and directed by Jules White, this 1956 Stooges comedy presents the last episode Shemp had filmed new footage for (i.e. the detective agency’s office) prior to his passing in late 1955.  Lifting this film’s bulk from 1949’s Who Done It?, the Stooges comprise the Miracle Detective Agency.  As the trio ineptly conducts forensic/ballistic tests, a former client calls desperately needing their help. 

Suspecting that Councilman Goodrich has been deep-sixed by nefarious relatives, the Stooges descend upon the spooky family manor to investigate.  Waiting for them is Goodrich’s sinister heirs (along with a monstrous henchman), who have no intention of letting his would-be rescuers escape alive.     

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Shemp: Shemp Howard

Newsgirl: Barbara Bartay

Councilman Goodrich: Emil Sitka (archived footage)

Delores – Goodrich’s Niece: Christine McIntyre (archived footage)

Delores’ Husband: Ralph Dunn (archived footage)

Nikko the Henchman: Duke York (archived footage)

Butler: Charles Knight (archived)

Note: McIntyre’s last official film credit of her career occurs with this episode.

REVIEW:

Aside from its historic significance as Shemp Howard’s last Stooges caper, “From Crimin’ Out Loud” is merely another lazy retread riding the back end of Stooges’ Columbia Pictures contract.  The trio’s dubious new footage has them trading off sadistic slapstick gags that are neither provoked or even remotely funny.  Considering it was Shemp’s last filmed segment, the quality of the Stooges’ acting in this office scene is disappointingly sub-par.    

Reusing “Who Done It?,” most of this murder-mystery parody depicts standard-issue Stooges hijinks being chased in a haunted house by a ghoulish henchman (evidently, it’s actor Duke York’s go-to role in Stooge films).  Suffice to say, it’s a barely watchable cliché-fest. 

Still, two re-runs are near-gems. One is Shemp’s cartoony routine with McIntyre’s sultry femme fatale trading off on the old poisoned-drink switcheroo game.  The other applies to the amusing lights-out battle royale at the finish. Yet, if one has already seen (or has access to) “Who Done It?”, then there’s no practical reason to watch this inferior rehash.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                    3 Stars

SUMMARY:      RUNNING TIME: 16:00 Min. (Black & White)

Director/Producer Jules White collaborated with his brother, screenwriter Jack White, on one of Shemp Howard’s last capers with the Stooges.  Purely by accident, the Stooges (employees of The Elite Café) are eyewitnesses to a brazen armored car heist.  As bad luck would further have it, both the two guards and the police deem Larry, Moe, & Shemp the prime suspects. 

Forced to clear their names, the Stooges and their boss, Gladys, chase after the crooks to find the necessary proof.  With a virtually identical plot, much of this Stooges episode is actually recycled footage from 1948’s “Shivering Sherlocks.”      

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Shemp: Shemp Howard

Gladys Harmon: Christine McIntyre (both new and archived footage)

Police Capt. Mullins: Vernon Dent (archived footage)

Jackson: Cy Schindell (archived footage)

Cop – Lie Detector Technician: Joe Palma (archived footage)

Lefty Loomis: Kenneth MacDonald (archived footage)

Red Watkins: Frank Lackteen (archived footage)

Angel: Duke York (archived footage)

Armored Car Guards:  Joe Palma & Tom Kingston

Café Customer: Stanley Blystone (archived footage)

Various Cops: Uncredited

Note: This film was McIntyre’s last new appearance in a Stooges comedy.  Specifically, she briefly reprises her same role from “Shivering Sherlocks.”

REVIEW:

Like so many Stooge cut-and-paste retreads of the mid-1950’s, “Of Cash and Hash” is new solely in name only.  For such a lazy rip-off, the two sequences worth viewing are the rudimentary polygraph gags and a bright finish for Shemp & retiring co-star Christine McIntyre.  It’s decent compensation against yet another Stooges caper where Duke York plays a monstrous thug chasing the trio through a ‘haunted house.’ 

Otherwise, “Of Cash and Hash” is unnecessary déjà vu, especially if “Shivering Sherlocks” is readily available.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                      3 Stars

SUMMARY:         RUNNING TIME: 15:48 Min. (Black & White)

Produced and directed by Jules White off Felix Adler’s script, this Three Stooges comedy is a series rarity — specifically, Moe, Larry, & Shemp are enemies.  Lecherous pet shop owner Larry schemes to pit a married Moe against Shemp, so he can make romantic advances upon both Moe’s less-than-adoring wife, Belle, and Shemp’s patient fiancée, Millie. 

To advance his philandering, Larry concocts a ruse where Shemp is hired to sell (and even model) undergarments to Belle, and then tips off a jealous, gun-packing Moe.  The same applies to Millie, who shows up to confront Belle for stealing Shemp from her.  The question becomes: does Larry’s sleazy conniving succeed?     

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Shemp: Shemp Howard

Belle: Mary Ainslee

Millie: Angela Stevens

Miss Lapdale (Larry’s Secretary): Theila Darin

Waiter: Johnny Kascier

Stooge Stand-Ins/Stunt Doubles: Harold Breen, Charlie Cross, & Johnny Kascier

Note: The Joe Besser-era Stooges remade this storyline as 1959’s “Triple Crossed.”

REVIEW:

Aside from the intriguing notion of Larry playing a villain, “He Cooked His Goose” deserves credit for trying something more sophisticated with the Stooges.  Somewhat reminiscent of their ‘Niagara Falls’ routine (with Curly), the Stooges come off well, as Larry gleefully manipulates his romantic competition.  Seeing Larry finally get the spotlight role while Moe plays a pathetically naïve husband is indeed a treat. 

The only detriment is this farce’s shortened running time, as more gags could have been added to screenwriter Felix Adler’s terrific premise.     

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                5½ Stars

SUMMARY:      RUNNING TIME: 17:00 Min. (Black & White)

Directed by Edward Bernds off Jack White’s script, this Three Stooges comedy gleefully spoofs Grade-B Westerns.  Arriving in sparse Dead Man’s Gulch, prospectors Larry, Moe, and Curly discover that the town is sore need of another new sheriff.  That year alone, local outlaw Badlands Blackie and his baddies have offed several town sheriffs (they’re not even counting deputies, anymore). 

Blackie is now demanding that local blacksmith Nell marry him by sundown, or she’ll never see her abducted father again. Stepping in, Curly becomes the town’s new lawman and even Nell’s fiancé, provided he can save her father.  With Moe and Larry & Moe as his deputies, Curly first practices his sharpshooting skills. 

Meanwhile, Blackie & Co. proceed with his insistence that Nell marry him immediately.  The Stooges manage to thwart the shotgun wedding the first time.  Yet, it’s up to the Stooges to intervene at Blackie’s saloon hideout by sundown to save Nell from forced nuptials and the town itself from his reign of terror.

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Curly: Jerry “Curly” Howard

Nell: Christine McIntyre

Badlands Blackie: Dick Curtis

Trigger: Ethan Laidlaw

Quirt: Blackie Whiteford

Judge Blake: Victor Travers

Young Boy (Judge Blake’s Son): Uncredited

Justice of the Peace: Si Jenks

Town Elder: Hank Bell

Nell’s Father: Elmo Lincoln (cameo)

Bartender: Joe Garcio

Townsmen: Steve Clark, Slim Gaut, Budd Fine, & George Morrell

Saloon Patrons: Uncredited

Saloon Maids: Uncredited

Note: Lincoln was the first cinematic Tarzan, having appearing as the character in 1918’s Tarzan of the Apes.

REVIEW:

Practically a live-action cartoon, “The Three Troubledoers” does relatively well blending B-Western gunplay with Looney Tunes and Dudley Do-Right-style antics.  Though there are some slow spots in the script, Curly’s bungled training and the shootout gags prove solid fun (including a makeshift bazooka).  Curly gets the bulk of the laughs, but Moe & Larry still make a few worthwhile contributions, i.e. the sped-up bicycle-for-three sequence prior to the big rescue. 

Even if this episode isn’t the best of the Stooges’ Westerns, there’s sufficient laughs to make it worth sitting through.     

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                 6 Stars

SUMMARY:         RUNNING TIME: 17:30 Min. (Black & White)

Produced and directed by Jules White off Elwood Ullman’s script, this Stooges comedy is told in flashback by defendant Moe, who is on the witness stand facing assault charges.  Already a nervous wreck, a convalescing Moe is convinced by his musician roommates, Larry & Curly, to go on a camping trip for fresh air and relaxation. 

Yet, a nosy bear cub keeps poking around their cabin, so the trio decides to go bear hunting.  More specifically, Moe sends his pals after the bear while he stresses over stressing out.  As it’s revealed, Curly & Larry are the ones pressing charges against an ax-wielding Moe. 

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Curly: Jerry “Curly” Howard

Judge: Vernon Dent

Bailiff: Paul Kruger

Courtroom Spectators: Al Thompson, Johnny Kascier, & Eddie Laughton

Additional Courtroom Spectators: Uncredited

Bear: Uncredited

REVIEW:

While Larry and Curly share scenes tag-teaming gags, a low-key Moe holds up his end, too.  Still, the bear swipes the best “Idiots Deluxe” material away from the Stooges.  Aside from the dubious visual of Moe chasing after his friends with an axe, “Idiots Deluxe” supplies watchable Stooge entertainment. 

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                  5 Stars

SUMMARY:       RUNNING TIME: 16:00 Min. (Black & White)

Directed by Del Lord, Columbia Pictures staff writer Felix Adler scripted this 1942 horseracing comedy.  Third-rate horseracing form scalpers Moe, Larry, & Curly are chased off by a cop into a vacant lot where a homeless Mrs. Blake and her young daughter now live among their displaced household possessions. Evidently, the Stooges invite themselves to move in with them. 

Sympathetic to their new friends, Curly swipes the little girl’s piggy bank and convinces the Stooges they can help by making a big score at the racetrack.  Naively conned into believing a ‘talking horse,’ Curly’s unlikely bet draws some big money at an upcoming race. 

Yet, upon being conned yet again, the Stooges now possess another ‘talking’ horse and evidently move into the horse’s stable.  Attempting to feed their new pet through a makeshift blowgun (don’t ask), Curly suffers a bizarre medical mishap.  A surprise twist occurs at a veterinarian’s office just before this episode ends.   

Moe: Moe Howard

Larry: Larry Fine

Curly: Jerry “Curly” Howard

Mrs. Blake: Ruth Skinner

Mrs. Blake’s Daughter: Sharyn Moffett

Joe the Crooked Ventriloquist: Stanley Blystone

Joe’s Confederate: Jack Gardner

Street Cop: Bud Jamison

Irate Motorist: Vernon Dent

Racetrack Gate Attendant: Heinie Conklin

Racetrack Announcer: Lew Davis

Racetrack Pay Window Clerk: Bert Young

Racetrack Customer: Suzanne Ridgeway

Veterinarian Wheaton Chambers

Veterinarian’s Aide: Joe Garcio

Seabasket (Voice): Billy Bletcher

2^nd Horse (Voice): Uncredited

Motorists: Uncredited

Racetrack Attendees: Uncredited

Note: Again impersonating journalists, the Stooges re-use a gag previously used in 1935’s “Three Little Beers.”

REVIEW:

“Even as I.O.U.,” ironically, isn’t, as one fragmented sub-plot is left bookended and unresolved by another.  With reliable help from Bud Jamison and Vernon Dent, the Stooges initially deliver the goods making their escape from the police.  Yet, once the awkward makeshift family subplot kicks in (i.e. a meal together), only some vintage Curly-isms keeps this episode afloat. 

Moe & Larry are curiously given so little to do, as Felix Adler’s script makes it ‘The Curly Show,’ mostly fending for himself.   Conveniently enough, the mother and daughter are forgotten (and not even referenced again) once the Stooges have stolen the little girl’s piggy bank.

Reverting back to a racetrack caper, “Even As I.O.U.” predictably resorts to somehow watchable Mr. Ed-style humor (predating that TV show by nearly twenty years).  The unfixable problem, however, comes with an utterly surreal finale.  Nutty, off-the-wall humor can be terrific when it’s smartly played, but Adler’s twist finish is so ridiculous that viewers will likely feel their time has just been squandered. 

As far as terrific Curly gags go, “Even as I.O.U.” enjoys its moments, but there’s not nearly enough of them to justify the ultra-stupid ending.     

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:               5 Stars