Three Stooges Collection, The: Volume One, 1934-1936

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Thank you, Sony, for finally giving these Columbia Pictures icons the kind of DVD retrospective that they deserve. The first of presumably multiple volumes is being released this Tuesday. The set showcases the Sultans of Silliness in their first 19 short films, made between 1934 through 1936--including the very first one, with all the dialogue in rhyme. Remastered in High Definition and presented in chronological order, these short films now give fans the chance to appreciate the development of one of the most successful comedy teams in history.

I have to admit that I laughed out loud a number of times while watching these again. My wife, meanwhile, shook her head and said something like, "I can't believe you think this is funny." It's a cliché, of course, that only guys go for the Stooges--something sitcom fans might remember was a running gag in "Cheers." Okay, so I have something in common with that show's shallow bartender, Sam Malone. So what? I'm not alone, you know. As film historian Ephraim Katz observed, The Three Stooges were immensely popular--so much so that they generated the longest-running series of two-reel comedies in the history of sound films. And when a number of those 200 short features were rerun on television in the '50s and '60s, the Stooges found renewed popularity with a whole new generation.

The original Stooges were part of a vaudeville act, with Moe Howard and brother Shemp playing second bananas to headliner Ted Healy. But when the trio started making these short films for Columbia, there was no Healy and no Shemp. Instead, portly Curly Howard joined his brother, Moe, along with frizzy-haired Larry Fine. Shemp would rejoin the group after Curly had to leave years later because of a stroke. When Shemp died, he would be replaced by Joe Besser, then Joe De Rita (a.k.a. Curly Joe). But none of them were able to recapture the chemistry that Moe, Larry, and Curly had together. To fans, these were the original Stooges: the bullying leader Moe, with his bowl-cut hair; chubby and crew-cut Curly, with his trademark "nyuk nyuk nyuks," his "whoo-whoo-whoops," his "soitenlies," his barks, and that cute-but-coy way he came on to attractive women; and Larry, who was the middle man, someone who could gang up on poor Curly, or join Curly in paying Moe back.

This collection shows an evolution of the Stooges' material and patented slaps, two-finger eye-pokes, and other abuses--the kind of slapstick comedy based on physical pain that has kept them second bananas in the eyes of many critics. But you know what? With these gorgeously remastered shorts presented in the order of their filming, you also pay more attention to the development of the Stooges' characters. Watch their faces and the reaction shots of those around them and you'll be amazed at everyone's virtuosity. It truly is a joy to watch, and while we didn't realize it as kids who just laughed at the Stooges' antics, it's what made the physical comedy work . . . if, that is, you're a guy. Or a little girl. My daughter laughed right along with me.

Women? Well, I have no answer for that, except to direct you to their fourth short, which featured a very young, very tall, and very straight Lucille Ball playing opposite the Stooges in only her second year as an actress. And she went on to do a little physical comedy herself. Coincidence? I think not!

There may not be any bonus features, but this set is by far the most impressive one to feature The Three Stooges. The black-and-white shorts have never looked so good, and it's great to get them in the order of their production.

"Woman Haters," the very first one, was written entirely in rhyme, and what's more, both Larry and Moe burst into song opposite Marjorie White. The premise is simple, with the boys joining a club that requires a vow that they'll have nothing to do with women. What should be of interest to Stooges fans is that some of the trio's trademark physical abuse--the two-fingered eye poke and a hand drawn sharply from the forehead across the chin--are actually initiation rituals performed by the grand leader of WH. The club exists no more, but those rituals became a part of every one of the Stooges' short films to follow.
The first film is basically an extended vaudeville skit, with Larry forced to marry Mary and then defend himself from his women-hating buddies.

Amazingly, in only their second short feature, "Punch Drunks," the Stooges really found the formula that fans will recognize as a part of all their later films. This outing, Moe is a boxing promoter, Curly a waiter at a restaurant where boxers hang out, and Larry an itinerant violinist who plays for change. When Larry plays "Pop Goes the Weasel," it drives Curly nuts, and he starts destroying everything--and everyone--in sight. Naturally, the boys form a "corporation," and Curly becomes K.O. Stradavarius. He gets to the title match all because of Larry's fiddling. The narrative is richer-involving a scam that will characterize most of the boys' mishaps--and there are more verbal gags than in the first film. When the Stooges try to help a woman in distress whose car is stuck in the mud, she says, "I'm in a terrible dilemma." "Yeah," Moe says, leaning up against the door of her car. "I don't care much for these foreign cars myself!" Also of interest here, a REAL fish is used as a prop. But the thing worth watching is the dynamics of the trio that were established in this short, with Moe the leader ("Spread out!"), Curly the goofball who's the most frequent victim of Moe's abuse, and Larry the stand-by who throws out ideas and tries to stay out of Moe's way.

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