Category: Humor
“Playing the Ponies” (1937) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
Playing the Ponies (1937)
Director: Charles Lamont
Screenplay: Al Giebler, Elwood Ullman, Charlie Melson from a story by Irv Frisch, Will Harr
Stars: Curly Howard, Larry Fine, Moe Howard, Charles Dorety, William Irving and Sam Lufkin
Tagline: THEY’RE OFF…THEIR NUTS!
The Plot…
The boys think they’re taking advantage of a couple of chumps when they trade their diner for a racehorse named Thunderbolt. Sadly, Thunderbolt isn’t the winner they were hoping for. When Curly accidentally feeds Thunderbolt some chili pepperinos, the horse runs like the wind! What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Curly working in the kitchen is my favorite part of this one.
Playing the Ponies earns 3 of 5 stars.
“Hold That Lion” (1947) starring The Three Stooges with a Cameo by Curly! / Z-View
Hold That Lion (1947)
Director: Jules White
Screenplay: Felix Adler
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Shemp Howard, Curly Howard, Kenneth MacDonald, Emil Sitka, Dudley Dickerson, Heinie Conklin and Blackie Whiteford
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
The boys are after a crooked lawyer who is on the run with their inheritance. Add in a loose lion and what could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Hold That Lion marks the only time that four Stooges appeared together on screen. It was also the only time that the three Howard brothers appeared on screen together. The scene takes place when the boys come upon a sleeping man in the train. The sleeping man is Curly!
Curly had since retired due to the problems caused by his multiple strokes. Curly came to visit the set. Director, Jules White had no idea Curly was coming. White spotted a man on set reading a newspaper. The man slowly lowered the paper and waved. The man was Curly! White was inspired and asked Curly if he’d like a cameo. The rest is history.
For me, the funniest scenes are when Larry, Moe and Shemp individually enter Icabod Slipp’s office to confront him. Slipp (MacDonald) acts as if he just entered the office and accuses each Stooge of being Slipp! He then attacks them for stealing his money.
Hold That Lion earns 4 of 5 stars.
“The Tooth Will Out” (1951) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
The Tooth Will Out (1951)
Director: Edward Bernds
Screenplay: Edward Bernds
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Shemp Howard, Vernon Dent, Dick Curtis and Emil Sitka
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
The boys are on the run from an irate chef swinging a cleaver, when they end up in a dental school. A few dollars and a few weeks later and the boys get (not earn) a diploma. They head west to open a dental practice. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
The scenes where Shemp pulls a tooth from a poor cowhand were actually filmed for Merry Mavericks, a prior Stooges short. Merry Mavericks ran too long and Shemp’s scenes had to be cut. Edward Bernds and producer Hugh McCollum felt the scenes were too funny to be discarded. Since Merry Mavericks came in under budget they argued that with a little more money they could create a story around Shemp as a dentist. Columbia agreed and The Tooth Will Out was born!
Shemp with Coke-bottle glasses, using a carpentry “how to” book as a dental guide is great. What really sells the bit is the legs of the patient! They twist and squirm with each tug and pull on his molars.
The Tooth Will Out earns 4 of 5 stars.
“Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man” (1951) / Z-View
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951)
Director: Charles Lamont
Screenplay: Robert Lees, Frederic I. Rinaldo, John Grant from a story by Hugh Wedlock Jr., Howard Snyder based on 1897 novel The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells
Stars: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Arthur Franz, Sheldon Leonard, William Frawley, Sam Balter, John Daheim and Milt Bronson
Tagline: You’ll shiver… You’ll shudder… You’ll shout with laughter!
The Plot…
Bud (Abbott) and Lou (Costello) are setting up shop after graduating from Private Detective school. In comes middleweight prize fighter Tommy Nelson (Franz). He’s on the lam. Nelson escaped jail after being accused of killing his manager. Nelson wants Bud and Lou to convince his fiancée’s scientist uncle to inject him with a formula to make him invisible. Nelson thinks this will get him into places where he can find the true killers!
Bud and Lou reluctantly agree. Soon they’re in over their heads. The cops and the crooks are after them. If they don’t find the real killer, they may end up next to Nelson’s manager in the morgue!
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Laughs come from Bud not knowing when the Invisible Man is in the room and Lou being mistaken for a prizefighter with a punch so fast you can’t see it! Of course you can’t see the punch when it’s thrown by the invisible man. The funniest scenes involve Lou in a boxing match with the invisible man doing the heavy lifting, er, punching. This isn’t Bud and Lou’s best, but is still fun.
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951) earns 3 of 5 stars.
“Yes, We Have No Bonanza” (1939) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
Yes, We Have No Bonanza (1939)
Director: Del Lord
Screenplay: Searle Kramer, Elwood Ullman
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Dick Curtis and Vernon Dent
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
The boys are singing waiters in a saloon run by a crook in the wild west. In order to get out of debt and married, the boys decide to try prospecting. Surprisingly they decide to dig in the exact same spot their boss hid bank robbery loot! What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Filming on this one began with no specific title in mind. When Curly adlibbed, “Yes, we have no bonanza” (a wordplay on the song, “Yes, We Have No Bananas”) the title was born!
Yes, We Have No Bonanza earns 3 of 5 stars.
“Woman Haters” (1934) starring The Three Stooges & Marjorie White / Z-View
Woman Haters (1934)
Director: Archie Gottler
Screenplay: Jerome S. Gottler
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Marjorie White, Walter Brennan, Bud Jamison, Tiny Sandford and Fred ‘Snowflake’ Toones
Tagline: Music! Laughter! Girls!
The Plot…
Tom (Moe), Jim (Larry) and Jack (Curly) are traveling salesmen and members of the Woman Hater’s Club. They vow to never get romantically involved with a woman. Not long after, Jim falls in love with Mary (White). On a train to their honeymoon Jim and Mary run into Tom and Jack. Jim tries to play it off, like he’s not married, but Mary is on to him. Mary decides to get Jim jealous by flirting with Tom and Jack. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Woman Haters is the first Three Stooges Short. They weren’t even called Stooges yet. Curly was billed as Jerry Howard. It is one of the rare Stooges shorts where the boys’ characters don’t go by their Stooge names.
Marjorie White had top billing during Woman Haters original release. Sadly it was White’s last film as she was killed in an automobile accident the following year.
Woman Haters wasn’t originally considered a Three Stooges film. It was actually part of Columbia’s “Musical Novelty” series where all dialogue is spoken in rhyme with musical accompaniment. Woman Haters wasn’t a favorite of Larry, Curly or Moe.
Look for Walter Brennan playing the train’s conductor.
Woman Haters earns 3 of 5 stars.
“The Sitter Downers” (1937) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
The Sitter Downers (1937)
Director: Del Lord
Screenplay: Ewart Adamson
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Charles Dorety, and James C. Morton
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
When the father of sisters that the boys want to marry refuses to allow it, what to do? They decide to go on a sit down strike! As the strike continues the boys become famous. Money and gifts pour in. Finally the girls’ father allows them to be married!
Moe, Larry and Curly along with their new wives, Florabell, Corabell, and Doorabell head off to start their new lives. First order of business is for the boys to build their dream house. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
The boys decide which sister to marry by pulling their names out of a hat. Larry gets Florabell. Moe gets Corabell. Curly gets Stetson. Wait, what?
The names of the Stooges’ fiancées change throughout the short. They are introduced as June Gittelson playing Corabell, Marcia Healy as Florabell, and Betty Mack is Dorabell. When their names are drawn from the hat, June is suddenly Florabell, Betty is Corabell, and Marcia is Dorabell. Then when Marcia is knocked out, Curly calls her Corabell. Things could get dicey come bedtime.
The Sitter Downers earns 4 of 5 stars.
“Ants in the Pantry” (1936) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
Ants in the Pantry (1936)
Director: Preston Black
Screenplay: Al Giebler
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Charles Dorety, and Bud Jamison
Tagline: Three assorted nuts…driving you bugs with laughter!
The Plot…
The boys are going to lose their jobs as pest exterminators if they don’t get some business soon! So they sneak into a mansion and distribute ants, assorted bugs and mice. Then they get hired by the mansion’s owner to exterminate the pests. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Clarence Nash, who voiced Donald Duck for Disney, provided the sounds needed for cats in the piano.
In a scene where ants were supposed to be crawling all over Moe, actual ants were! The bottle of the critters broke in his pocket and Moe didn’t realize until too late. Everyone on set was cracking up thinking Moe was really into acting it out.
Ants in the Pantry earns 4 of 5 stars.
“Busy Buddies” (1944) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
Busy Buddies (1944)
Director: Del Lord
Screenplay: Del Lord, Elwood Ullman
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Heinie Conklin, and Vernon Dent
Tagline: Laugh-leaders in the two-reel comedy field…these crazy cuckoos are busier than ever…creating more fun than ever!
The Plot…
The boys are going to lose their diner if they can’t come up with $97 by Monday. When Moe spots a cow milking contest that pays $100 to the winner, he hatches a plan. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
For my money the funniest part of this short is Curly cooking in the diner. The rest of the short is pretty generic stuff. I’m not complaining. Nyuk-Nyuk-Nyuk.
Busy Buddies earns 3 of 5 stars.
“You People” starring Jonah Hill, Lauren London, David Duchovny, Nia Long, Julia Louis-Dreyfus & Eddie Murphy – The Poster and Trailer are Here!
I love the looks of You People. We’ve got a great cast starring Jonah Hill, Lauren London, David Duchovny, Nia Long, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Eddie Murphy. The concept is loaded with opportunities for laughs. The fact that You People is on Netflix makes it a no-brainer to watch.
A new couple learns that opposites attract but some families don’t when they find themselves confronting their parent’s clashing views of their relationship in this comedy written by Jonah Hill and Kenya Barris. You People starring Jonah Hill, Lauren London, David Duchovny, and Nia Long with Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Eddie Murphy comes to Netflix on January 27.
“Renfield” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!
I’ve watched the Renfield trailer twice and like it better with the second viewing. At first glance there seemed to be too much comedic angst, but comedy and horror can work well together. (See Abbott & Costello or The Three Stooges when they meet up with monsters.) I’m still not sold, but watching on streaming would be a no-brainer.
🩸LET’S EAT🩸Sink your teeth into the new trailer for #RenfieldMovie, in theaters April 14th.
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Renfield
Only in Theaters April 14
www.renfieldmovie.comEvil doesn’t span eternity without a little help.
In this modern monster tale of Dracula’s loyal servant, Nicholas Hoult (Mad Max: Fury Road, X-Men franchise) stars as Renfield, the tortured aide to history’s most narcissistic boss, Dracula (Oscar® winner Nicolas Cage). Renfield is forced to procure his master’s prey and do his every bidding, no matter how debased. But now, after centuries of servitude, Renfield is ready to see if there’s a life outside the shadow of The Prince of Darkness. If only he can figure out how to end his codependency.
Renfield is directed by Chris McKay (The Tomorrow War, The LEGO Batman Movie) from a screenplay by Ryan Ridley (Ghosted series, Rick & Morty series), based on an original idea by The Walking Dead and Invincible creator Robert Kirkman.
The film co-stars Awkwafina (The Farewell, Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings), Ben Schwartz (Sonic, The Afterparty) and Adrian Martinez (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Focus).
Renfield is produced by Skybound Entertainment partners Robert Kirkman and David Alpert (The Walking Dead, Invincible), co-presidents Bryan Furst (Daybreakers) and Sean Furst (Daybreakers) and by Chris McKay. McKay’s producing partner Samantha Nisenboim (co-producer, The Tomorrow War) will executive produce.
“Healthy, Wealthy and Dumb” (1938) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
Healthy, Wealthy and Dumb (1938)
Director: Searle Kramer
Screenplay: John Grey
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Bud Jamison and Lucille Lund
Tagline: Larry Lets On It’s “LOVELY!” Moe Murmers It’s “MARVELOUS!” Curly Calls It “COLOSSAL!”
The Plot…
When Curly wins $50,000 in a radio contest, the boys begin living like millionaires. Fine clothes, BIG cigars and a room at Hotel Costa Plente. Unfortunately the boys realize they’re in hot water when the winning check after taxes comes to $4.85. They’ll end up in jail if they can’t pay their hotel bill and it’s huge. Luckily the boys discover four rich widows are in the room down the hall. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
There’s a fun set-up scene before Curly wins the radio contest. Moe and Larry are playing poker for pancakes. Curly is cooking ’em as fast as Moe is losing. Could Larry be cheating?
The plot twist of the women needing money and hoping to marry three rich men just as our boys need to marry three rich ladies is a good one. Plus the writers through in a monkey for good measure.
Healthy, Wealthy and Dumb earns 4 of 5 stars.
“False Alarms” (1936) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
False Alarms (1936)
Director: Del Lord
Screenplay: John Grey
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard and Stanley Blystone
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
Larry, Curly and Moe are firemen one the verge of losing their j0bs. They’ve missed too many calls due to card playing and womanizing. Curly sneaks off for a date only to discover his girl has two friends. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
False Alarms was filmed on location!
False Alarms earns 4 of 5 stars.
“Three Sappy People” (1939) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View
Three Sappy People (1939)
Director: Jules White
Screenplay: Clyde Bruckman
Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Lorna Gray, Don Beddoe, Bud Jamison and Ann Doran
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
The boys are telephone repairmen mistaken for three psychiatrists with “unusual methods” of treating mental illness. A rich man hires our guys to treat his free-spirited manic wife. What could go wrong?
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Larry, Curly and Moe get another opportunity to create havoc at a high society party.
There’s a rumor that Lorna Gray nearly choked on a pastry during the concluding “pie fight”. While Ms. Gray was surprised (watch her reaction) by the pastry hitting the bullseye of her open mouth, she later denied that she was in in any trouble.
Three Sappy People earns 4 of 5 stars.
