Fans of the Three Stooges are beginning to dwindle with
time. Kids are exposed to more high brow humor on one hand and the antics that
the Stooges brought to the forefront are being taken over by kids on Disney
channel programs. Since most of their shorts and films were made in black and
white, kids today won't bother to watch them and adults don't feel like
shelling out big bucks for their films. Thank goodness the people at Mill Creek
still like the Stooges and offering quality product for a low price.
Die hard fans were pleased last year when Sony offered the
complete box set collection of the Stooges shorts. Now they can make a point of
collecting THE THREE STOOGES 6 MOVIE SET. It's a no frills, no extra set of 6
films made by the Stooges after they were "rediscovered" in the late
50's/early 60's. If you're not familiar with the Stooges history, once shorts
fell out of grace with movie companies they were tossed aside without so much
as a thank you for providing Columbia with 24 years of dedicated service where
they helped them earn plenty of money. With the invention of television
stations were searching for low cost entertainment to fill the hours. Studios
repackaged the shorts of people like the Stooges and the Little Rascals and suddenly
everyone remembered them. Cashing in on their new found popularity, the Stooges
set out to make features for the same company that let them go before. Now you
can pick up 6 of those movies for just $8.96! (amazon.com price)
The set starts off with HAVE ROCKET WILL TRAVEL (1959) which
sees the Stooges as janitors working at a space program who accidentally find
themselves inside a spaceship heading for Venus. Traveling through outer space
and arriving on Venus they encounter aliens, giant spiders, a wicked robot and
of all things a unicorn. No need to worry, they do find their way home. This
film found Joe DeRita (dubbed Curly Joe) as the third stooge since both Curly
and Shemp had passed away by this time. It offers some great sight gags and not
one but two sets of the stooges when they get duplicated!
The next film in the set is THE OUTLAWS
IS COMING (1965). When a diabolical bad guy (is there any other kind?) in the
old west stirs up trouble with the Indians in an attempt to start a war and
then take over the old west, a Boston magazine send out an intrepid journalist
played by Adam (Batman) West along with his assistants, the Stooges. When West
suddenly ends up the town sheriff you know trouble won't be far behind...or
some funny antics from the Stooges. Joe DeRita starred in this film as well.
Third up (the last on the first disc) is ROCKIN' IN THE
ROCKIES (1945). Made when they were still making shorts this movie has the
Stooges prospecting for gold, up against despicable gamblers and attempting to
help some girls they meet find a way to Broadway. The movie is filled with
musical numbers and more story than one usually finds in a Stooges film. One of
the nice things about this film is the fact that it has Curly Howard, the
original Stooge, still alive and well.
The second disc begins with THE THREE STOOGES GO AROUND THE
WORLD IN A DAZE (1963), taking them on the same trek Jules Verne launched in
his 80 DAYS novel. Phileas Fogg III, the grandson of the original adventurer,
bets Randolph Stuart III that he can accomplish the same trek his grandfather
did in the same amount of time. He sets out to do so with the help of his three
servants, the Stooges of course. Unbeknownst to him is the fact that Stuart is
a con man who intends to use this trip as camouflage for his plan to rob the
bank of England. Joe DeRita once again takes up the third Stooge role.
The next film is one of my favorites of all time, something
that I recall from when I was a kid, THE THREE STOOGES MEET HERCULES
(1962). Working in a drug store the Stooges attempt to help their neighbor,
timid inventor Schuyler Davis, with the time machine he's working on. A mix up
transports the Stooges, Schuyler and his girlfriend Diane back to the ancient
times in Greece where they run afoul of King Odious. Placed in the galley,
Schuyler develops quite the set of muscles and when they escape the Stooges
bill him as Hercules which upsets the real Hercules. Of course they find a way
out of it and back home. Joe DeRita is on tap here again.
Lastly we have TIME OUT FOR RHYTHM (1941). This one doesn't
feature the Stooges in the starring role but as support players. The movie
revolves around Danny and Mike, two guys who want to meet a talent agent and
make their way to the big time. A woman comes between them and they part ways
only to reunite with the chance at producing a big show on Broadway. As I said,
the Stooges are in supporting roles here with Curly on hand and in drag doing
his impersonation of Carmen Miranda.
So there you have it, descriptions of the 6 movies included
in this set. Are they worth adding to your collection? For Stooges fans,
absolutely. How could you possibly consider your collection complete without
these? Sure they guys appear a little older and worn down but hey, they were getting
older and yet could still hold their own with younger comedians of the time.
Their slapstick routines were becoming so well known you knew what to expect
but that was part of the joy of watching the Stooges. You knew Moe would get
mad, Larry would say something goofy and Curly/Curly Joe would end up smacked
by one or the other.
More importantly this set offers something that few films do
these days. It offers family entertainment, something that they youngest to the
oldest can watch without fear of someone being offended or insulted. No gore,
no guts, no bad language or vulgarity, the movies offered here were films that
we enjoyed as children and that I would bet youngsters might get a laugh out of
today. I intend to give that a run the next time my niece and nephew come over.
With the way they loved Abbott and Costello that I showed them, I'm betting
this collection will be a hit as well. Definitely one to add to the collection.
Click here to order.
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