Joe Besser's First Three Shorts

Hoofs and Goofs: 

(Short # 175 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges) 

A TALKING HORSE is how the Joe Besser era began. Besser was a veteran of vaudeville himself before appearing in various shorts, radio programs, and feature films for years; as he was already under contract with Columbia at the time, that was a large reason why he was selected. Now, his persona was best described as “whiny” and “cowardly” so that is in contrast w/ Curly & Shemp. It can be argued whether he was the best fit for this trio, especially over his concerns w/ being on the brunt end of slapstick violence. I’ve only seen a few of the final 16 shorts. Their general reputation is rather poor but I saw one I thought was “good” at the time—my opinions will be fair.

I am fair here in noting that this was not good. Joe is upset that their sister Birdie (Moe dressed as a woman) has been dead “for over a year” as he reads a book on reincarnation. Well, Moe pranks Joe and proclaims that Birdie will appear later in the day on the street. I’m not quite sure how that’ll cure Joe but wouldn’t you know it, Birdie is found on the street that afternoon, reincarnated as a talking horse! She doesn’t want to return to their apartment as she’s in love with another horse (this is actually SEQUEL BAIT. I’ll explain at the end and no this is not a joke)-she’s dragged away anyway.

There’s a few moments that made me chuckle but it’s all just so absurd. The main “joke” is a full-sized horse in an apartment set, her stomping about drawing the attention of a massive Jewish stereotype landlord. It feels tired, like a horse about ready for the glue factory. Bath salts appear in one scene as Birdie is washed in a bathtub. This at times made me feel like I was on the illegal drugs known as bath salts! This includes when Birdie apropos out of nowhere reveals that she’s pregnant, about ready to birth a foal. The horse also lays on a bed at one point. I can’t really blame Mr. Besser for the flaws in Hoofs and Goofs. Note that if you view this on Prime, the description for Goofs spoils a big reveal! Not that this is something to get too upset over. More worthy of condemnation: Moe’s stand-in during the final scene—they hope you won’t notice that it looks nothing like Moe Howard.

It wasn’t a gag when I proclaimed that Hoofs and Goofs received a sequel-that was odd given how Goofs ended but Horsing Around (a few shorts away from now) is worse-most say it’s one of the worst they ever did. That HAS been viewed before and yes, it won’t be long before it’s explained why that smells like horse droppings.

Muscle Up a Little Closer: 

(Short # 176 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges) 

Moe and Larry have “normal” hair here; that just doesn’t seem right. As lore says, this was a “suggestion” made by Joe Besser… the idea is that they should be mature. Yes, THE THREE STOOGES, mature. I’ve also heard that Besser enjoyed his time in this universe, but maybe he didn’t understand the appeal of the Stooges. The new hair only occasionally appears during these last shorts.

This was better than Joe’s first effort, Hoofs and Goofs. The trio are all wishing to propose to their ladies. However, the inherited engagement ring Joe was to give to his gal Tiny (Maxine Gates; of course, a large lady who is stronger than any of the Stooges) was stolen. They only briefly look for the ring; a dude named Elmo is suspected of the theft at their gym… of course he was the culprit. Instead, plenty of time is spent at their place of employment, “Seabiscuit Food Corp.” The usual antics occurred there. 

The apparent main plot of “looking for the ring” felt minor as most of the focus wasn’t on that aspect. There were new and old gags, which I guess were OK overall—there were some chuckles. However, “average” is as good a rating as I can give to Muscle. These end days at Columbia were not great for Moe & Larry… the official poster for this short misidentified Moe as Shemp.

A Merry Mix-Up: 

(Short # 177 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges) 

I had to post a Stooge review today; this is because October 5 is the birthday of Louis Feinberg, i.e. Larry Fine. The subtle middleman to Moe and whomever was in the role of the third Stooge, his contributions to the trio should not be underplayed nor ignored. This isn’t the best short they ever did by any means, but at least there’s Larry in triplicate, along w/ Moe & Joe. 

That’s right, the gimmick of A Merry Mix-Up is that Moe, Larry, & Joe are all one of a trio of identical triplets, and the 9 in total unexpectedly meet each other at a restaurant. A narrator throughout explains the scenario; one set are womanizers, the second are married, and the third are engaged. In fact, mix-ups occur in the final 2/3 of the short when both the three married women and the three fiancées show up at the same restaurant where Moe, Larry, & Joe are at.

The sextet of women (Suzanne Ridgeway, Harriette Tarler, Nanette Bordeaux, Ruth Godfrey, Jeanne Carmen, & Diana Darrin) are all amusing in their roles, as was Frank Sully as both the narrator and the exasperated waiter at the restaurant who is endlessly confused. While not top-tier among the 190 shorts they did at Columbia, this probably will be seen by me as one of the best in the brief Joe Besser era. He was fine whether he was Joe, Jack, or Jeff. There were laughs that included updated versions of old bits from the past, such as them being chased by a foe.

The 50’s effects that made this scenario possible (photography tricks and doubles) were fine as long as you don’t pause at certain points. The last shot was all 9 together, done via a matte effect. Director Jules White thought Larry in the wrong spot; after strenuous arguing, Larry remained in his spot… turned out, Mr. Fine was correct and thousands didn’t have to be spend to do it again.

Earlier in the day I did revisit some classic Stooge shorts via a livestream. As a new review, it’s a blessing that A Merry Mix-Up wasn’t putrid. Happy Birthday to Larry Fine.