A Pair of Three Stooges Shorts

Both are from 1936...

Movie Maniacs: 

(Short # 13 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges)

Curly: "How're we gonna get in pictures? We know nothing about movies!" 

Moe: "There's a couple o' thousand people in pictures now who know nothing about it... three more won't make any difference."

That was a quote from Movie Maniacs, not conversation heard in Hollywood this year! This short was one I hadn’t seen as often as the first 12; I’ll try to be as objective as possible while rating all 190 of these, including those I haven’t viewed before—there will be quite a few of those.

The trio sneak in a boxcar containing a random family’s furniture (including a bed, mirror, and kitchen set) so they’re all set on a trip to Hollywood, where they will attempt to sneak on a studio’s set to become stars. The gags in the boxcar alone are great; from making food & pressing pants to John Barrymore and Clark Gable in Mutiny on the Bounty references, that will be delightful for Old Hollywood fans.

Once in Hollywood, Bud Jamison (the studio boss of Carnation Pictures; he had the amazing name Fuller Rath) is a victim of circumstance as a mix-up leads him to believe they are studio executives. They raise heck on one set until the truth is revealed. Once in Hollywood there is a continuation of funny gags, slapstick, and mayhem. They made mockery of what looked to be a romantic drama that was being filmed. The ending minute was also a treat; they were on a solid run w/ the last few shorts.

Given the current state of Hollywood, I’d be happy with Fuller Rath running any of the studios. Heck, Moe, Larry, & Curly would do a better job of running Warner Brothers Discovery than Voldemort has as the CEO since 2022!

Half Shot Shooters: 

(Short # 14 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges)

A short I was glad was an outlier.

Not every fan of the Stooges love Half Shot Shooters. In essence, normally no matter what damage they inflict on each other or have inflict on them, they’re never hurt, let alone injured. This was not the case here. I don’t fault them for attempting something different; why this stands out will be elaborated upon.

In World War I, it is shown & implied that the trio slept through their entire time in Europe, much to the consternation of their Sergeant. He gives them black eyes and even a broken arm; well, that’s different. Once they’re discharged, they do get revenge on that Sgt. MacGillicuddy. We flash forward to 1935, where it was funny that everyone looked the exact same. The boys are poor and because they were a victim of circumstance, an improbable yet amusing re-entry into the Army occurs; guess who is their Sergeant.

There are solid laughs and slapstick for sure and there are only a few moments that could be described as “mean-spirited” yet the ending could accurately be described as “haunting” and for my tastes I am glad this was attempted but wasn’t a harbinger of things to come.

One important note, at least for me: this was the second appearance of Stanley Bystone (the Sergeant) and the first for Vernon Dent, as a restaurant. Both actors were in a slew of Stooge shorts; in fact, Dent appeared more often than any other supporting actor. The duo both go deep into the Shemp era.