As I posted no proper review today, time to catch up with my Stooge reviews. I haven't seen any in a few days; however, two will be viewed then reviewed on Wednesday.
Corny Casanovas:
(Short # 139 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges)
Another minimalist Shemp effort. I say that as there are only two sets (apartment, house) and the only other person in the cast is Connie Cezan, who 50’s TV fans will know as Perry Mason’s secretary. The gimmick is that Cezan is dating all three at the same time without them knowing her ruse. To assuage any fears, she’s a heel because she wants to receive diamond rings, then she’ll skip town from all three Stooges. Don’t worry, no slut shaming to be done here! She is the victim of a pratfall, though.
The opening half is the trio cleaning their bachelor pad apartment as they talk to each other about their fiancés; eventually, they do discover that they all know Mabel… but not before the mayhem they caused to each other. They didn’t need much more than a mop, bucket, bed, davenport (which they reupholstered via sticking tacks in a rifle, which then fires like a Tommy Gun Al Capone would have used), paint, shoe polish and other items you find in a standard home, at least at the time. Some of it echoes moments from the past but I didn’t care as Casanovas was still riotous to me.
The laughs continue when Moe, Larry, & Shemp all meet Mabel, a few minutes after one another. They (the Stooges, I mean) beat the tar out of each other; I mean, more so than typical. As the denouement was quite memorable, Casanovas proved that sometimes you didn’t need a lot to earn belly-laughs for a theatrical crowd.
He Cooked His Goose:
(Short # 140 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges)
Deviating from the norm, this did. Only on a few occasions did we see the trio play different characters. In this case, Larry portrayed the owner of a pet shop who is also a philanderer, going out with both Moe’s wife and Shemp’s fiancé. His secretary Miss Lapdale… in fact sits on his lap. Larry in fact keeps his affairs as public as the now-former CEO of Astronomer!
I wanted to like this; however, this was more bizarre than funny. It’s set around Christmas and magically, because Shemp hides in a chimney, suddenly he materializes a Santa costume and wears it. Moe eats birdseed and suddenly starts acting like a bird. Yeah, the idea of Larry attempting to frame the other two so he can continue his cheating ways is a decent one but the execution didn’t really work for me. I also couldn’t tell you why on a few occasions, the viewer hears a musical stinger whenever Larry has an evil thought in his head.
Sure, there are some chuckles along the way; overall, though, it is lamentable that their attempt to not repeat themselves resulted in something I could not rate any higher.
Gents in a Jam:
(Short # 141 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges)
This was more what I wanted from the Stooges. They did not need more than an apartment set and another set consisting of two hallways to earn a number of belly-laughs. The premise is that the trio are living in an apartment but they’re in debt to their landlady, portrayed by Kitty McHugh. After mishaps attempting to paint their own apartment to earn some cash, they are still to be evicted… until Shemp’s rich uncle Phineas comes to visit. Of course he’ll pay that debt.
Complications arise when new neighbor Mrs. Duggan visits for a cup of sugar. Another mishap occurs and she loses some of her clothes! That’s a problem when her husband Rocky is “the world’s strongest man.” He was portrayed by Mickey Simpson of Giant fame; as he was 6 foot 6 (i.e. just under 2 meters) he looked like a giant compared to the diminutive Stooges. Many chuckles were had with such items as a bucket of paint, faucets that refuse to work correctly, and a radio.
That’s even before Emil Stika arrives as Phineas. Rocky and the Stooges constantly knock Phineas on his keister as the former attempts to chase down the latter. Arguably, the side players received more focus than the main trio… in this case that is OK. The pace is fast and the final two or so minutes are especially hysterical. McHugh passed away in 1954-I’ll say the circumstances are “upsetting.” On a note that may be humorous to some, even in the world of making Three Stooges shorts, there was drama behind the scenes. For reasons unknown to me, producer Hugh McCollum was dismissed; director Edward Bernds resigned from Columbia out of solidarity.
Jules White directed the rest of the almost 50 shorts left for the Stooges at the studio. He’s great himself yet Bernds deserves plenty of credit for starting out during the mediocre last few efforts from Curly then directing a number of very good or better Shemp shorts, including classics Brideless Groom and Who Done It? I’ll miss his contributions.
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