Most Helpful Customer Reviews
38 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
For Duty and Humanity!, February 21, 1999
As a very knowlegeable Three Stooges fan, I can honestly say that I've read almost every book available relating to the boys. Having read The Three Stooges Encyclopedia, I can also tell you, in my opinion, it is the best one out there. Jay Leno once said "half the world loves the Stooges and the other half wonders why". Mr. Kurson does a wonderful job of bringing the latter side closer with his painstaking research and understanding of what made the Stooges funny. Being the Stoogefile that I am, I loved parts 2-4 which contained the most complete listing of every possible name of anything or anyone in every Stooge short. It was a great reminder of why I love them as much as I do. For the non-Stooge fan (yes I know- some do exist!), if they were to read part 5 (which gave a detailed synopsis of every Stooge short ever made) then I'm sure they would be a Stooge fan now! To the two narrow-minded critics of this book, please tell me where else you can find the words to the Maharaja routine or the words to Ze Lollipop song? Before you critique any other books, I suggest you ask yourselves one simple question; "What is the author trying to accomplish?" What Mr. Kurson was able to accomplish through his seemingly painstaking (but enjoyable) research , was what made the Three Stooges the geniuses they were- it was their attention to detail. It's the names of their employers (Mr. A. Mouser, among others). It's where they worked (The Los Arms Hospital). Or even where they relaxed (The Hotel Coste Plente). Any book can tell you about their history, from the days with Ted Healy and the Annette Kellerman Diving Girls to when their comeback occurred. However, no other book illustrates so vividly their verbal humour (and attention to the little written details) that made them what they were. For that Mr. Kurson, I'm sure you made the boys proud. And as an author, you're the most intellgent imbecile who's every written a book about the Stooges. Excelsior!
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Very Disappointing, January 12, 1999
By A Customer
Serious Stooge fans--beware! You or I could have written this book--off the tops of our heads. And we could have probably done a more thorough, definitive job. The book looks great on the shelf. But "Encyclopedic?" With the exception of a few very general biographic details about some of the main players, this book reveals nothing that could not be learn by simply sitting and watching the films. There is no insight into the people or the production of the films. No attempt to contextualize. No point of view. It's as if the author knew nothing about film or the Stooges and was assigned by the publishers to sit, watch all the films, make a few notes about each one on a legal pad, then collate the information into a book. Any serious fan could have--should have--done better. For all it's hundreds of pages and quality print job, it's infuriatingly empty -- and redundant, too. And what's with the lame clipart? Stick with the vastly superior and more substantial Three Stooges Scrapbook -- still in print and available at Amazon.com
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
The reader from New York was right on the money., February 2, 1999
By A Customer
I received this book for Christmas and was really looking forward to it . . . until I started reading it. I won't reiterate the points made by the reviewer from New York (about two or three reviews down from this one), but I will say that he hit almost every point right on the money. This is not an encyclopedia as much as it is a hard cover fanzine. There is nothing informative here. Watch a Stooge short, jot down odd names or events, and viola you have the Three Stooges Encyclopedia. The reproduced stills have been reproduced ad nauseum in countless other books. You learn nothing about the boys, their careers, or the times in which the films were produced. I would find this type of information more important than seeing a definition of Brighto. The Stooges were too important a comedy force to be glossed over in a book like this. And as a side note, I find it rather sad that the author and his brother cannot let the book stand on its own merit, but rather have to write their own reviews after getting a negative one. As a final note, I once again agree with the New York reviewer that the Three Stooges Scrapbook is by far THE definative "encyclopedia" on the career of the greatest comedy team of all time.
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