Customer Reviews

The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 8: 1955-1959

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Well, I guess if others can write a review of a DVD set more than two months before it is even released, I can too.

For Stooge fans, the long road is finally over. The shorts with Joe Besser are going to be available on home video. Fans who appreciate the Stooges in all of their incarnations applaud Sony for issuing the Columbia shorts to the end. I'm sure that as they got into the volumes with Shemp, sales dropped off. That and the dreadful economy could have made the company cancel the remaining volumes. But they didn't and I believe that this fact alone earns this set a five star rating.

As for the shorts themselves, they are not the best work of the guys. There are a lot of repeat plots and stock footage used in both the remaining Shemp shorts and in some of the Joe shorts. But contrary to a previously posted review, this didn't happen because the Stooges ran out of gas or were "tired". This was because Columbia was cheap!! In the middle and late fifties the shorts' market in the US dried up. The one word reason - television. The Stooges were a dying breed. Who could have guessed that the very medium that killed their lucrative shorts career would provide them their highest level of fame and financial success!!

Also Joe is not a fan favorite of many people. But let's face it - he didn't have a lot to work with. The scripts were weak and as mentioned above Columbia tried to use stock footage whenever possible to save money. But there is a childish lilt in the acting style of Mr. Besser. If you can make it past the anemic plots and just look at Joe on the screen, I think you'll see that he brought his own personality and comedy to the team.

So in review, this is a completeist's dream. I thank Sony for listening to the Three Stooges' fan base and completing the volumes. The picture quality on the previous sets has been remarkable and should remain that way on this final volume since they are much "newer" prints. And this set is providing three discs for the price of two in previous volumes (as least according to the price on March 23). Value and programs never released to the home market! What more could you ask for?!

This final volume of Stooge shorts is interesting on two levels. First, it represents the transition from the Shemp Howard years to the Joe Besser years, with many familiar plots and gags being lifted from older comedies. Some of these patchwork shorts are very clever: OF CASH AND HASH is a slick reworking of SHIVERING SHERLOCKS; CREEPS is probably better remembered than its inspiration THE GHOST TALKS. BLUNDER BOYS, an amusing parody of "Dragnet," is noteworthy for using entirely fresh material (even if the battlefield "exterior" looks like it cost five dollars to stage).

But this set is even more interesting to film buffs, as a living record of the end of an era, and as a fascinating exhibition of creative film editing. SCHEMING SCHEMERS deserves a special Oscar for the editing, with footage from three older comedies spliced into the new material. By the time Joe Besser joined the Stooges in 1956, two-reel short subjects were 99% extinct, and only Columbia and the Stooges were still making them. This actually had a liberating effect on the series. There is a new, free-wheeling, we-don't-care spirit about these last shorts that is missing from the half-hearted, script-bound remakes of the mid-fifties. The budgets are at a new low and the action is milder, but the Stooges are more relaxed and they improvise freely: Larry reciting Hamlet's soliloquy while chewing gum is a lunatic moment from FIFI BLOWS HER TOP; Joe scores in a shipping-room routine in MUSCLE UP A LITTLE CLOSER; Moe abandons his bossy role for dialect character comedy in SWEET AND HOT. There are many inside jokes for fans: OIL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL slips in a reference to writer Felix Adler; SAPPY BULLFIGHTERS has a poster headlining one Julio Blanco -- namely, producer-director Jules White; and more than one short shamelessly plugs Columbia's feature films then playing in theaters! The writers experiment with new ideas (including references to science-fiction and rock-and-roll), familiar ideas (the usual slapstick with pies, shotguns, and other weapons), and even ancient ideas (SWEET AND HOT sets the Stooges' act all the way back to 1934's WOMAN HATERS, with the same screenwriter again casting the trio as three unrelated characters in a musical comedy). The final Stooge short filmed, FLYING SAUCER DAFFY, was actually recorded in stereo; Columbia does have a broadcast video master in stereo, and hopefully it will be included in this DVD set. (Update: It isn't; Richard Gallagher of Home Theater Forum confirms that the track is mono. However, Mr. Gallagher raves about the picture and sound quality throughout the entire set.)

True, you will see plenty of old material repeated throughout this set, but there are also some new routines that you'll only see here. Fully half of the Joe Besser shorts were filmed from scratch, with new, original stories and no recycled scenes. You'll also recognize Columbia regulars Emil Sitka, Gene Roth, Philip Van Zandt, Benny Rubin, George J. Lewis, Harriette Tarler, Joe Palma, and Frank Sully supporting the Stooges. If you've never bothered much with these later Stooge shorts, give them a try. These seasoned comedians still have plenty of gas in the tank.

Thank you so very much Sony for releasing these timeless comedies to DVD. Finally all 190 short subjects have been put on the market for present and future fans to enjoy. The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 8: 1955-1959 features 32 shorts, more than any of the other sets. Here you'll see most of the rarest Three Stooges films, varying in quality, but mostly enjoyable.

But really I have to admit that this collection is easily the weakest of all the volumes. The Three Stooges had reached their peak with Shemp in 1952, but decreasing budgets, the departures of director Edward Bernds and screenwriter Elwood Ullman caused a steady decline. Plus, there are the poor "fake Shemp" shorts in which long time stooge character actor Joe Palma doubles for Shemp. But there are still some very funny shorts left in this volume. Some of the remakes like Bedlam In Paradise and Creeps actually improve upon the originals and several rarely shown shorts like A Merry Mix-Up, Horsing Around, and Flying Saucer Daffy make this collection worthwhile.

1955:
Fling in the Ring
Of Cash and Hash
Gypped in the Penthouse (One of the last 2 Shemp films to not feature any stock footage - a funny comedy in the vein of Corny Casanovas and He Cooked His Goose.)
Bedlam in Paradise (This remake of Heavenly Daze is one of the few that's even better than the original. Added scenes include an opening prologue of Shemp dying in a rather comical fashion, the devil tempting Shemp with a she-demon, leading Moe and Larry astray as Mr. Heller, and getting a pie in the face in the end - "Well that beats the devil!")
Stone Age Romeos
Wham-Bam-Slam!
Hot Ice
Blunder Boys (The Stooges spoof Dragnet in this last original, no old footage, short starring Shemp)

1956:

Husbands Beware (This remake of Brideless Groom features a good twist at the end)
Creeps (A remake of The Ghost Talks that I prefer over the original. The Stooges tell their 3 sons, also played by The Stooges, a bedtime story of knights, ghosts, and murders.)
Flagpole Jitters
For Crimin' Out Loud (Sadly, this remake of Who Done It? was Shemp's final film. In November 1955, while sitting in a taxicab telling jokes with some friends, he died of a sudden heart attack at the age of 60.)
Rumpus in the Harem (The loss of Shemp left Moe and Larry with few options. Until a suitable replacement was found, Columbia continued the trend of using extensive stock footage and cast Joe Palma as double for Shemp, only filming him from angles that hid his face. This remake of Malice in the Palace is one of the last 4 "fake Shemp" shorts with Joe Palma doubling.)
Hot Stuff
Scheming Schemers
Commotion on the Ocean

1957:
Hoofs and Goofs (Joe Besser's first comedy with Moe and Larry. With all due respect to Besser, I think Buddy Hackett would have made a much finer stooge. His comedic style and appearance would have fitted pretty well. On the plus side, Larry is allowed to shine even more so than he did during the Shemp years and seems to have trimmed down as well. This marks the point when Moe, as the last remaining Howard comedian alive who truly understood the act inside and out, became the undisputed funniest stooge.)
Muscle Up a Little Closer (In this short we first see Moe and Larry with their hair combed back, a change suggested by Besser.)
A Merry Mix Up (Probably the most bizarre short since Cuckoo on a Choo Choo. The story of 3 pairs of identical stooge twins, all played by the stooges)
Space Ship Sappy (Low budget, grade B sci-fi flicks were a craze at the time and the boys take their first trip to space.)
Guns a Poppin! (A remake of Idiots Deluxe)
Horsing Around (A sequel to Hoofs and Goofs)
Rusty Romeos (A remake of Corny Casanovas)
Outer Space Jitters

1958:
Quiz Whizz (A partial remake of All the World's a Stooge)
Fifi Blows Her Top
Pies and Guys (A remake of Half-Wits Holiday)
Sweet and Hot (One of the worst episodes, but Moe is a hoot.)
Flying Saucer Daffy (Although released in '58, this is actually the final 3 Stooges short. The remaining films were in fact made prior to this one. Not the best one to go out on, but a funny comedy nonetheless.)
Oil's Well That Ends Well (A remake of Oily to Bed, Oily to Rise)

1959:
Triple Crossed (A remake of He Cooked His Goose. Listen for Shemp's yelp when Moe fires a gun up a chimney.)
Sappy Bull Fighters (A remake of What's the Matador?. Listen for Curly's woo-woo-wooing. This short is a prime example of old footage not mixing well with the new, a problem that plagued alot of Besser shorts. In some scenes, Moe and Larry suddenly appear 20 years younger, then go back to late middle age the next.)

Here we go, June 1, 2010 will be a historical day in comedy history!!! Thanks to Sony, all of us Stooge Fans can sit back, relax and enjoy an entire week of ALL stooge shorts. It is worth taking a vacation for. Now the next question is WHEN ARE THEY RELEASING ON BLU RAE!?...LOL. Actually, I'm happy with them on DVD and one day when I'm in the old folks home, I hope they can pull out their ancient DVD player and let me relax in peace to nothing but Stooge shorts.

Yes, I know that Volume 8 will contain shorts that have repeated plots, the stooges are older and without Curly and Shemp, but it will take me back to my childhood days when I did not care what short was on, as long as I just got to watch, I was happy.

To everyone else that REVIEWED, I wish we could all get together in a big room, put on the big widescreen and enjoy this proud day of June 1, 2010 together. Lucky for me that my 11 year old daughter and 14 year old son enjoys watching.

SO STOOGE FANS UNITE AND GET EXCITED, the time is near, Just 2 more months from this time victory will be at hand.

I retired from the Marine Corps 3 years ago, so a Semper Fi to all my fellow Stooge Fans! Get out the popcorn and Enjoy, Enjoy, and Enjoy!

I agree with the other reviewers in giving kudos to Sony Pictures for following through with packaging ALL the Stooge shorts for DVD. Unlike some collections which seem to stall halfway and frustrate fans to no end, Sony stuck to their guns here. And thank goodness they didn't split the remaining shorts into TWO last volumes. Although this period is usually considered the weakest of the team's efforts, what with the "fake Shemps" & recycled material, they're still an important part of the Stooge saga. Some fans don't particularly care for Joe Besser, who was brought on board to fulfill their short subject contract. But I thought he was pleasantly amusing, with his girlish whines making him sort of an "effeminate Curly". He deserves credit for bringing his own uniqueness to the team...and of course, there was always Moe & Larry, two dependable, hard-working clowns who did their best in spite of anemic budget cuts & woeful storylines. It says a lot about the Stooges to manage fleeting moments of genuine comic inspiration amidst all this mess.
Of course, the Stooges would go through one more incarnation after the shorts when burly "Curly" Joe DeRita joined & the team became movie stars in the twilight of their careers; quite an accomplishment, if you think about it.
Volume 8 will kind of feel like reading an epic novel: You can't wait to see how it ends!

Appropriate words of praise for Columbia/Tri-Star! But we'll soon be able to hear them spoken by the gorgeous "newsboy girl" with the bulldog voice in the hilarious opening scene of "For Crimin' Out Loud", Shemp's last filmed footage. Since the Stooges were STILL making money in theatre rentals for Columbia, the studio continued to crank out these bargain-basement shorts. Of Shemp's final 16 films, all but two were re-makes: "Gypped in the Penthouse" (with Shemp's silly take-off on "Home on the Range"), and the outrageous "Dragnet" spoof "Blunder Boys", which features what may be the Stooge's most bizarre moment of all time ("Alright---you guys prepare for 81-Z!")

By now, everyone knows that Joe Palma (among his roles, he's the caveman that gets hit with the nest of eggs in "I'm a Monkey's Uncle") filled in for Shemp to finish out the Stooges' contract for his final four films. But because of the team's continued profitablity to the studio, Columbia hired Joe Besser & produced another two years of shorts, while the budgets continued to decline.

But Columbia should still be given credit for trying some NEW things in the Besser films to keep them fresh; yeah, the 2 "talking Horse" shorts are lame, but at least they TRIED something different. Then there's the trio of Sci-Fi films, as Columbia attempted to cash in on the current craze (I'm old enough to have seen "Space-Ship Sappy" in its initial theatrical run in the summer of 1958). "Flying Saucer Daffy" is a goofy combination of grade-Z, late-50's sci-fi and the familiar Cinderella story. And "Outer-Space Jitters" features a pre-Bonanza Dan Blocker as the "Goon!"

And, despite Muriel Lander's annoying flashback scene as an obnoxious kid, I've always enjoyed "Sweet and Hot", which has it's own unique charm (I wonder how much it cost the studio to rig the effects for the 1-second bit when Tiny plops down on the couch and the whole room bounces from the impact?)

About 15 years ago, having just finished our Thanksgiving dinner ("Now, get out in the kitchen and ROAST THE TURKEY!"), my siblings and I gathered around the TV for some Stooge viewing (VHS, of course); and guess which film---out of ALL 190 Shorts---we chose to watch? It was Joe Besser's "OIL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL" --- the only one of their films that features ONLY the stooges playing ONLY themselves---and one of my favorite films of ALL 190; we laughed ourselves silly.

Still, the Besser shorts were a sad way to close out the magnificent 24-year reign of the Stooges at Columbia. But remember, Moe and Larry were senior citizens by this time, so the style of the films necessarily changed from what it had been in their hey-day. But the trio carried on and gave their absolute professional best---and for that, I feel any TRUE Stooges fan should respect (and purchase) the ENTIRE video legacy of this legendary team.

Gosh, fellas (Moe, Larry, Curly, Shemp and Joe)---THANKS A LOT! (and Columbia, too).

And while we await the release of this final, historic set, ponder these immortal lines:

"Gotta eat an apple, I'm hungry!"
"You oughta hold him on the Habeus Corpuscle!"
"I won't have time later...Then I'll kill you now!"
"The harmony's bad; we didn't have time to rehearse."
"I got it for my Bar-Mitzvah!"
"How's your American Can?
"Do I look like Davey Crockett?"
"I hear 'em, I hear 'em---JINGLE bells, JINGLE bells!"
"And don't forget to see "Pal Joey", folks"
"Not me, I want to linger with the rest of the girls.."
"Incidentally, do Bar-B-Q have pits?"
"Please, my time is Linament!"
"I smell something burnin'-- that's ME sizzlin'!"
"Our key was made out of a little piece of steel"
"They thought you were Mars men----MARS MEN!!"
"That guy gets in my hair--AND my eyes!"
"How now, brown cow---ya' bubble-brain!"
"I'll have to take him out in pieces!"
"...and even the telegraph pole; SHUT UP, tadpole!"
"I told you that thing had dandruff--LEAPING Dandruff!!"

Words of wisdom in our troubled times.

What can I say? When the first set was released I thought it was too good to be true and by the time they released the late 'Forties material the series of dvd sets would come to a halt.

I was wrong. Not that my fears were unfounded, all to often a television or film series on dvd only gets so many releases before the manufacturer pulls the plug - look at Barney Miller, Kojak, The Naked City, etc etc.

So I offer a mighty hats-off and "HURRAH!" to SONY for not only presenting sharp looking sensibly packaged sets but at a great value, at astonishing frequency and with crystal clear film prints.

And here I am at my desk holding the last volume - I can watch any Stooges short at my whim, any hour of the day or night. It feels good. I only wish I knew the name of the product manager who oversaw the project so I could buy him a virtual beer.

That they didn't charge extra for the third disc in this final set lights a warm glow in my heart for this company.

All past slights are forgiven.

Sooooooooooo..... does SONY have the rights to "Laurel & Hardy"?? :)

When I was a kid in the late 50's/early 60's I watched The Three Stooges religiously, and loved them all, but I have to admit, I couldn't wait until they got around to showing the episodes with Joe Besser. At the time, it was probably due to the fact that he only made 16 shorts, and they wouldn't show up as much as the "Curly's" and "Shemp's", so they became more of a rare treat. And the fun and catchy new introduction of the boys singing "hello, Hello, Hell-O...HELLO!" got you psyched for the mayhem about to begin! Looking at them today with a more mature and knowledgeable eye, and with the recent viewing of Volumes 1-8 in chronological order, under my belt, the cheapness of the sets, the "dumbing" down of the writing and the recycling of old footage and scripts becomes more obvious, I agree, but the fun, smiles, and obvious talent and love for their craft that The Stooges exude never fades! I have to agree with other reviewers, if they only had better scripts, larger budgets and more creative control, I think the partnership of Moe, Larry and Joe would have grown and flourished. Well, you can't change the past, but you can enjoy the present, so pick-up all 8 sets ASAP!!!

For my two-cents, my favorite "Joe" episode has to be "Fifi Blows Her Top"......

Also, for those who would like to explore further the "controversy" over whether Joe would allow "eye-pokes", "slaps" and other general physical mayhem, look him up on Wikipedia, and let quotes from Joe himself give the last word......

Despite the untimely death of Shemp Howard in 1955 and major cut backs at Columbia Pictures the "Three Stooges" continued to make shorts even though the end of an era was near. Because of budget problems at Columbia there was a definite need to reuse and recycle old stock footage with varying degrees of quality to produce more shorts and an even bigger problem for Moe Howard; who would replace Shemp?

It's no secret that Moe's first choice was Joe DeRita but because of contract obligations he would have to settle for another vaudeville veteran Joe Besser. I'm sure that many fans out there have found the shorts with Joe Besser just as funny but he never quite did it for me. I have always wondered what direction the "Three Stooges" would have taken if Joe DeRita would have became a stooge when Moe originally came calling. Love him or hate him, Joe Besser will always be the forgotten stooge.

Sony Pictures must be commended once again for finally listening to the fans after all the years of inferior shorts in the public domain and devoting precious time and meticulous care into the restoration of the final 32 stooge shorts found in Volume 8 as well as their entire remastered "Stooges" collection to date. It should also be noted that this collection contains three discs this time and Sony did not increase the price for fans.

All 32 shorts from 1955-1959 are presented on three single sided discs and packaged in slim cases. The disc artwork and packaging is fantastic to say the least, making Volume 8 even more attractive and highly collectible for any Stooge fan to own. The 32 newly restored & remastered shorts from Sony Pictures are once again presented in chronological order, politically incorrect and in Beautiful Black & White. I think Sony Pictures did an excellent restoration job to bring us this final collection. In my opinion the final 32 shorts look amazing & the remastered soundtrack is perfect.

Sony Pictures, you have given us "Stooge" fans exactly what we've always wanted; the best picture & sound possible. Thanks!

Final 32 Shorts Include:
Fling in the Ring
Of Cash and Hash
Gypped in the Penthouse
Bedlam in Paradise
Stone Age Romeos
Wham Bam Slam
Hot Ice
Blunder Boys
Husbands Beware
Creeps
Flagpole Jitters
For Crimin ' Out Loud
Rumpus in the Harem
Hot Stuff
Scheming Schemers
Commotion on the Ocean
Hoofs and Goofs
Muscle Up a Little Closer
A Merry Mix Up
Space Ship Sappy
Guns a Poppin
Horsing Around
Rusty Romeos
Outer Space Jitters
Quiz Whizz
Fifi Blows Her Top
Pies and Guys
Sweet and Hot
Flying Saucer Daffy
Oil's Well That Ends Well
Triple Crossed
Sappy Bullfighters

A prior reviewer wrote that these eight volumes do not comprise the entire collection of Columbia Stooges shorts. This is incorrect. In fact, all 190 Columbia shorts are included:

Vol. 1 - 19 shorts
Vol. 2 - 24 shorts
Vol. 3 - 23 shorts
Vol. 4 - 21 shorts
Vol. 5 - 25 shorts
Vol. 6 - 24 shorts
Vol. 7 - 22 shorts
Vol. 8 - 32 shorts

That's 190 shorts, folks. The has been no political correctness by Sony.

Another reviewer asked about "Self Made Maids" and "Scrambled Brains." Both of those shorts are included in Vol. 6.