Customer Reviews

One Fine Stooge: Larry Fine's Frizzy Life In Pictures

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

From ROGUECINEMA.COM

"Back in the early 1970s, Larry Fine was the first stooge to come out with a biography. Some interesting photos were placed in a text that was rife with errors, both grammatical and historical. Few copies sold, it quietly left the market, and is now a bizarre and costly collector's item. Larry remained very unhappy with the project, and until his death in 1975, would gather material for a proposed new autobiography.

Film and television historian Steve Cox gained access to this material thru co-author Jim Terry, and for the past several years they worked to produce perhaps the definitive book on any of the Stooges' lives.

One Fine Stooge is indeed mostly about the quietly endearing man in the middle, but it includes a wealth of information about the Stooges and their careers on stage, in films, and on television not found in other biographies, including Moe Howard's 1977 autobiography, the rather ghastly biography of Curly published in the 1980s (which has a Foreword by Michael Jackson -- a real portent for the bizarre psycho babble that fills the rest of the text), and Joe Besser's thoughtful autobiography from that same period. This latest look at the Stooges is, quite frankly, the best biographical piece on them yet.

Rare photos (including a couple of interesting color shots from the Shemp years), are now placed in a text that is enlightening, informative, and revealing. Even the staunchest stoogephiles will be pleased with such information as the fact that Shemp actually went on stage in place of Curly for many dates as early as 1945 before officially replacing him in 1946, or that two of the most reviled Stooges comedies (Cuckoo on a Choo Choo and Sweet and Hot) were among Larry's favorites. It was disturbing, albeit fascinating, to read Larry's personal feelings about his partners, his troubled marriage to an alcoholic and abusive spouse, and the death of his son.

It is amazing to read quotes from Larry such as 'At first Curly was very sensitive and embarrassed about his crew cut hair. He would never take his cap off; however as soon as he got popular in movies, he was proud of his appearance and wouldn't keep his cap on so everyone would immediately recognize him.'

Recollections from celebrities from Frankie Avalon, to Bob Saget, to Penn Jillette add another interesting dimension.

One Fine Stooge is the perfect book on the trio. It contains a wealth of rare photos, the general information for fans who don't already know the team's history, and fascinating tidbits for those of us who have been Stoogephiles for decades. It has our most passionate recommendation."

Do you know alot about the Stooges? Strike that. NOW, you do know alot about the Stooges once you pick up this book. Find out things that you never knew about Larry and the other Stooges. Jam packed with info, stories, memories and pictures that you will find in here are just INCREDIBLE. Everything from all aspects of their career, plus pages of excellect rare COLOR photos. Even if you are not a Stooge fan you will find this book a great read. Cox and Terry take you back for some wonderful memories as if you were a little fly upon the wall(ain't you got no clothes at all). There has not been a better Stooge book ever written as I see it. Moe Howard's book is a great book thru the eyes of Moe's memories but seeing the boys career thru Larry's percpective is quite refreshing, as he seemed like the most subdued of the Stooges and might not have much to say. You have got to read this book for the historical value of comedy teams and the lasting power that these boys have tested over time. Also the entertainment value of this book gives you a behind the scenes look at how they would operate. Thanks to the authors for the time and effort recreating Larry's life for us and to see a glimpse of comedic history in the making. I have waited for a book like this with these kind of photos forever. A must for your library, you WON'T be sorry.

Here it is, the story of Larry Fine. These 241 pages provide a portrait of the life of Larry Fine as a member of the Three Stooges comedy team. They also provide much more then just a glimpse into Mr. Fine the family man. Research for the book included newspaper clippings, personal notes and letters as well as a huge library of photographs, mostly unpublished until now. This is the story Larry wanted to tell, the true story of his successful career including the ups and downs of his personal life and many mishaps while working for Columbia Pictures. After reading this book I felt like I had lived this life with Mr. Fine. Steve Cox and Jim Terry should feel proud of what they have unleashed to the world. This book covers all angles of what life was like as a member of the Three Stooges comedy team. Unlike the book Larry was not proud of "Stroke Of Luck" this book is a keeper, a real fantastic addition to my collection. Larry said he was going to write another book and I feel the authors have done it here for him, this is the book Larry would have been proud to promote and call his own. Roll over "Stroke Of Luck" you have been replaced, your now only worth the paper your printed on. I know fans of the Three Stooges and film fans in general will love this book. This has been one fine read for sure. Another fantastic book is "Larry, the Stooge in the Middle" written by Larry Fine's brother Moe Feinberg.

Steve Cox's "One Fine Stooge" is not only the "finest" biography of Larry, (the thinking man's Stooge), ever, it is also the best Three Stooges book ever! Cox presents a fascinating, affectionate history, and readers will get the privileged feeling they're perusing Larry Fine's personal scrapbook! A wonderful treat for all true Stooge fans, (you know who you are.). Bravo!
*****

My copy came today, and I am blown away by this book. I've read many Stooge books over the years, but after awhile, they tend to overlap each other and replicate certain things. This book is different. The preface alone is fascinating, going in detail in regards to the disappointing "Stroke of Luck" book. It went as far as to call its author, James Carone, a "blowhard." Also much to my surprise - Besser, DeRita, and Sitka never visited Larry at the Motion Picture home during his final years. And DeRita and Besser never met each other, always declining to do so.

All of that promises to be the tip of the ice, though. There's over 200 pages of things like that, things I did not know, and I've been a Stooge follower for almost 20 years. There's a horde of rare pictures, ones I've never seen, and some are in color. Somewhere in heaven, Larry is smiling that his life story was finally told the right way. Flipping through the book, it was clear that Larry wanted something like this.

The wait for this book was worth it. Even if you've read Moe Fineburg's book on Larry, you'll want to own this. Quite frankly, this book blow's Fineburg's out of the water. I've always been less than impressed with that book, for whatever reason. Just the opposite with this new one. Because of the wealth of rare tidbits, stories, other recollections, and previously unseen photographs ... this might be the best Stooge-related book ever published.

It's that good.

This book does an absolutely marvelous job at delving into the life of Larry Fine, finally going beyond old urban myths, stereotypes, and the general perception that he was just the Stooge in the middle, some guy who got lucky but who wasn't as accomplished or funny as his partners. His character truly comes to life in this book, starting in his childhood days in Philadelphia, going to his early days in vaudeville with his future wife Mabel and her sister Loretta, to his 25 years of making shorts at Columbia, to the unexpected revival and mass popularity the Stooges received in the late Fifties and through the Sixties (when unfortunately they had to seriously tone down their trademark violent antics to please the parents of the children they were being almost exclusively marketed to), and finally to Larry's final years in the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital, after he'd had a stroke. Though some sections of the book do read like a standard bio of the Stooges, only with the emphasis on Larry, the majority of the book goes so much deeper. There are so many stories that have never been written about before or which most people don't know about, such as Larry's deep love of his wife Mabel, a woman whom he continued to adore and stick by even through her alcoholism in her later years, his love of his children Phyllis and Johnny, the story of how he met a little blind boy backstage after a show in the Sixties and got really choked up by the encounter, his relationship with his hairdresser and her husband in his final years, how he found out Shemp had passed away, his relationships with the other Stooges, and even the point of view that Ted Healy, the Stooges' founder and original straightman, might not have been murdered at all but died from other causes and only coincidentally happened to die shortly after receiving a brutal beating. There are also lots of great pictures and mementos, some of them very personal and touching, such as Larry's handwritten letters to young fans, get-well cards young fans sent to him, pictures of him with his children, and the hand-written calendar he made for his daughter Phyllis to let her know when he'd be coming home from the road. There are so many sweet things about this lattermost memento, really showing what a nice sweet guy Larry was, and what a devoted family man. It's really touching to read about how in real life the Stooges were quite the opposite of their screen characters.

The only shortcoming I can find with the book is that it does seem to be a bit skewered towards the Stooges in the DeRita era. That chapter is by far longer than either of the chapters on Larry's life as a Stooge when he was working with Curly and Shemp. It might have been their most financially successful and popular period, but how many fans today seriously consider that their best and most memorable work? To put it mildly, I'm not exactly a big fan of the watered-down non-violent child-friendly latter-day Stooges, though I am of course happy that Larry and Moe lived long enough to finally start making serious money and to get the respect they deserved. And while the cover photo is really beautiful, looking as though it were taken yesterday instead of decades ago, I'm not happy that DeRita is the third Stooge on it. I'd bet almost anything that the infamous Comedy III is behind that one. It should have been Curly or Shemp, and everyone else knows that! Still, in spite of how the book does lean a bit more heavily towards the Stooges' latter-day career instead of their classic glory days, and the illogical choice of the third Stooge on the cover, it's a great book, with a lot of great information about a truly underrated comedian and a truly great man.

Steve Cox never fails to amaze me. Just when I think he's done his best, he comes out with a new book that's even better!

I went into this book knowing nothing about the fine Larry Fine or any of the other Stooges. I bought the book because I like everything this author has ever written.

What an amazing history these lovable goofs have!! This book is like a jewelry box, filled with rare gems.

The photos are truly one of a kind. How Steve Cox unearths these old (and RARE) photographs is nothing short of a miracle. He should've been a private investigator (as suggested by Fred Gwynne, a/k/a Herman Munster, and noted in the author's Munsters book).

I think the cover photo is truly something to behold. You can't fully appreciate the crystal clarity until you hold the actual book in your hands. Internet pictures do nothing for this striking photograph. It's so perfect, you'd think the Stooges posed for it last month, using today's top-notch digital photography.

It's very sad to see how the lives of many of these "Fine" individuals turned out. My heart just broke to hear about the despicable man who took advantage of poor frail Larry Fine in his later years. It makes you wish they were all still alive today, to receive the love and adoration of their millions of fans.

If you love the Stooges, you NEED to purchase this book, immediately. You'll kick yourself if you don't (and spend a small fortune on eBay trying to acquire it later).

And even if you're a casual Stooge viewer (or you know nothing about this zany crew), you'll still be touched by this lovingly "Fine" tribute to Larry and the guys.

Bravo Steve Cox!!

"One of us is crazy, and it ain't YOU!"
- Larry (CRASH GOES THE HASH, 1944)

I can't believe I'm holding this book in my hands! It seemed that this gem was never gonna get released. The day I received it, I devoured it from cover to cover in one night. This is the book that Larry Fine meant to have published instead of the abominable Stroke of Luck that came out in the 70s. I'm sure he's smiling down now that author Steve Cox has fulfilled his wishes. As a Stooge fan, I found a surprising amount of facts about the Three Stooges that I didn't know. And I was equally surprised at the wealth of information on Larry's private home life. With Jim Terry, Steve has outdone himself once again, by uncovering the most obscure of facts and presenting them in a totally enjoyable and engrossing read. And if a picture speaks a million words, then this book presents several gazillions of rarities! By far, the best book I have read about the Three Stooges

This is the first book to paint a clear portrait of the life and personality of Larry Fine, the porcupine-haired member of the 3 Stooges. The authors have accomplished this by assembling a barrage of personal recollections (by associates, family members, friends, and fans), unusual photographs (many never before published), historic newspaper clippings, and original artwork and correspondence (my favorite is Paul Howard`s get well card acknowledging Larry`s prostate surgery -- what a treasure!). The result is a well-rounded perspective of Larry Fine, on-stage and off, during the good times and bad.

This is the first book to capture the full enthusiasm of the Stooges' rebirth in the late 1950s and early 1960s, a portion of the Stooges' career that was phenomenally successful, yet is often downplayed or forgotten. The book also contains a wealth of previously unpublished information focusing on the history of the Stooges comedy team as a whole, as well as on the individual members of the various "3 Stooges" teams.

The layout and graphics of this book are very slick, adding to the reading pleasure. It is so chock-full of illustrations and other interesting tidbits, if you're like me, you'll find yourself paging through it over and over again, enjoying everything this book has to offer.

If you're a fan of the 3 Stooges as a whole, or of Larry Fine as an individual, you will love this book!

5 stars *****. I couldn't put it down. This is truly a MUST for any Larry/Stooges fan. The book features excellent research by the authors, it beautifully illustrated with many never before published photos and interviews. This is based on Larry Fines unpublished memoirs and scrapbooks.
If you love The 3 Stooges, you will be delighted with this book. The best to have been published in a long time.