SUMMARY: Running Time: 21:00 Min. (Black & White)
Directed by George McCahan, this obscure ABC TV pilot envisioned the Stooges as inept handymen bumbling their way through a new odd job each week. Columbia Pictures (as the Stooges’ big-screen employer) opposed this would-be venture as a breach of contract. Hence, the one-and-done “Jerks” remained unavailable to the public for approximately fifty years.
As crackpot interior decorators, the Stooges send uptight would-be client, Mr. Pennyfeather, literally out the door with their hard-nosed antics. Pennyfeather’s equally-snobby wife unknowingly hires the trio for the same gig. They’re supposed to repaint and roll out fresh wallpaper in the Pennyfeathers’ living room to impress her husband’s boss for a dinner party that evening. Moe, Larry, & Shemp turn the couple’s home improvement project into a full-blown disaster zone.
Moe: Moe Howard
Larry: Larry Fine
Shemp: Shemp Howard
Mr. Pennyfeather: Emil Sitka
Mrs. Pennyfeather: Symona Boniface
Mr. Phink: Dink Trout
Announcer: Uncredited
REVIEW:
Yikes! It’s a dreadful effort from Moe, Larry, & Shemp. Ironically, by blocking “Jerks” for a half-century, Columbia Pictures did the aging Stooges a back-handed favor. “Jerks,” had it been released, might well have inflicted permanent damage to the Stooges’ future TV prospects. Instead, less than ten years later, Screen Gems’ gradual release of the Stooges’ old Columbia shorts to TV syndication skyrocketed the trio’s popularity with a new generation of fans.
Still, this pilot’s undemanding premise for a weekly series makes sense, particularly in the Golden Age of Television. “Jerks,” however, is sabotaged by inexplicably poor execution. Case in point: the Stooges’ awkward mugging introducing themselves to the camera in the opening moments foretells how bad this show will be. From that point on, amateurish production gaffes: i.e. a weak script, poor cinematography, and the Stooges’ tired performances makes the cheapo-looking “Jerks” a total waste of twenty minutes. Sadly, watching “Jerks” in its entirety seems far longer.
Entertaining a live studio audience (or maybe it’s a rudimentary laugh track), the Stooges are forced to cram together far too many bland schtick routines. Capable of big laughs, veteran Stooge foils Emil Sitka and Symona Boniface are reduced to merely looking mortified and/or appalled. Dink Trout’s amusing pressure-cooker salesman (especially, his cartoony voice) should have helped, but his cameo role is stretched far past its welcome.
Given the right creative elements, “Jerks of All Trades” should have been a savvy career move for the Stooges. The opposite sadly occurs — in comparison to their better Columbia misadventures, “Jerks” comes off as a Stooge eyesore best forgotten.
Note: In the early 1970’s, the Stooges (Moe, Larry, & Joe DeRita) tried again with a scenic TV venture entitled Kook’s Tour. Once more, it never actually aired — as Larry Fine’s career-ending stroke, during the pilot’s filming, effectively retired the Stooges.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 3 Stars
IMAGE NOT AVAILABLE
