Product Details

• Actors: Shemp Howard, Larry Fine, Moe Howard, Christine McIntyre, Ralph Dunn
• Directors: Edward Bernds
• Format: Black & White, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: January 28, 1997
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6301574613
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #27,150 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  Video > Comedy > Parody & Spoof > Three Stooges

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Each of the Three Stooges shorts in this video collection contains something a little special. "Fright Night" (1947, short number 98 in series) is the first of the episodes to include Shemp after brother Curly had a severe stroke. Having already worked with Moe and Larry in vaudeville and having appeared in several films already, Shemp had no trouble fitting right in. The plot is negligible, but there is a good chase-around-the-warehouse sequence that does not suffer at all without all the woo-woos of the past.

"Hold That Lion" (1947, number 100) has the only scene of this series in which all four stooges appear! Looking for the archvillain Slipp (the mustached Kenneth McDonald, the eternal baddie of this series), they run across a certain sleeping person (with a full head of hair) who goes woo-woo and barks in his sleep. A very touching moment for actors and for fans. The intrusion of a lion onto the trains adds little past giving the wonderful comic Dudley Dickerson a small chance to do his thing.

There is little originality in the plot of "Who Done It?" (1949, number 114), in which a prominent citizen (played by Emil Stika) is attacked after calling in detectives--who are first seen tied up after a robbery of their own office. They arrive at the usual spooky house and are threatened by sexy Christine McIntyre and three other creeps, and there is little they can do for most of the film except run from room to room, doing more damage to each other than to the crooks. There is the old routine of switching the poisoned drinks around, but Shemp's reaction to drinking the poison--done in quick motion and presumably by a stuntman--is hilarious. There is also a good "turning out the lights" fight that does show some imagination. --Frank Behrens

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure gold! A must for all Stooge fans!, February 23, 1999

By	[e-mail] (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews

As a huge Stooges fan in general and a Shemp Howard fan in particular, I can safely say that this video encompasses the zenith of Shemp's career! Three shorts, all laugh out loud funny.

For starters, there is "Fright Night", which is Shemp's debut with the Stooges in short features. Imagine, if you will, the Stooges as trainers of a boxer (one, Chopper Kane). The boys have the misfortune of betting their life savings on their protege, only to be threatened by the local mob boss to have Chopper throw the fight! It goes without saying that hilarity ensues once the Stooges formulate a plan. The short contains numerous hysterical bits, especially the fight scene at the end in the warehouse, which is sheer brilliance. Speeding up the camera and the sounds it elicits was never used to better effect.

Next is "Hold That Lion", which is notable for at least two reasons. First, Curly Howard has a cameo. Second, one of the greatest characters ever created, Ickabod Slipp (played by Kenneth MacDonald), is prevalent throughout.

The boys inherit money from their uncle, but the unscrupulous Slipp intends to cheat them out of their fortune. Seeking to supoena the elusive Slipp, they follow him onto a train and then all hell breaks loose!

The antics are simply masterful, starting with Shemp and Larry's, "we're gonna get the filthy lucre/the moolah/the geedous (sic?)/No slippery guy named Slipp/Is ever gonna cheat us ..." singing routine. Add to this the train scenes and finish it off with Shemp's insistance on getting the bonds ("that's what I want 'em right now this minute [tick,tick!]). The flood of youthful memories is overwhelming ...

The best is saved for last with "Who Done It?". This might very well contain the most laughs per minute of any Stooge short. Every scene is a laugh riot. The boys are detectives, investigating the disappearence of old man Goodrich. Turns out to be an inside job (aren't they all?) with the butler (natch), his neice and others, including Nico aka "the Goon", joining in.

Too many scenes to mention, but the standouts are the initial investigation/photo scene, the chase through the house and the climax, the fight in the dark. Shemp, wielding his "trusty little shovel", lays waste to anything that moves (unfortunately, this includes his buddies, Moe and Larry!)

Larry Fine, in particular, shines in this short. His faces, reactions, slapstick, delivery, you name it, are all superb. Larry is on his game. Moe and Shemp are great, as always, as are supporting players Christine MacIntyre and Emil Sitka. Quite possibly the greatest short the Stooges ever made (and my personal favorite).

One final note. These shorts all contain clever plots, great gags and wonderful performances. Fifty-odd years later, they still stand the test of time. Run, don't walk, to get your copy!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shemp at his best.......and craziest!, February 23, 2002

By	Lana Durbin (Riverview, FL USA) - See all my reviews

FRIGHT NIGHT (1947) - A great short. It involves Shemp as a boxer. Before he was a stooge, he actually was a boxer! The warehouse chase scene at the end was simply hilarious.

HOLD THAT LION! (1947) - A stooge classic. The whole thing is laugh-out-loud hilarious! This particular short is also special. It has a cameo appearance by Curly....WITH HAIR!

WHO DONE IT? (1949) - This short is a true stooge gem. The scene where Shemp gets wacked-out from poison is fall-out-of-your-chair funny! As well as the end, when Shemp says his last lines.

FRIGHT NIGHT, HOLD THAT LION!, WHO DONE IT?: All stooge gems. This would have to be one of the best stooge tapes to own!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well, who done it?, January 30, 2002

By	Kyle Cruse (Escondido, CA USA) - See all my reviews

A great tape, with some excellent, fast-paced shorts.

FRIGHT NIGHT is Shemp's first Stooge short, and a very funny one at that. The chase through the warehouse is hilarious. Shemp's boxing scenes are excellent. This is actually Shemp's favorite Three Stooges short because it involved boxing, a sport he admired a lot.

HOLD THAT LION is a hilarious short, with Kenneth MacDonald at his best, as I. Slipp. There is also a cameo by Curly in this short, with a full head of hair. The Stooges pull up a hat off of his face and see Curly. He barks like a dog a does his famous "woo woo woo".

WHO DONE IT? is another great short. The Stooges are all very funny here, and this short has a great supporting cast. According to the back of the box, this short was planned by Edward Bernds as a Curly short. Shemp does the Curly shuffle in his own wonderful style. A great short, even if it does hardly have a plot.

A great tape needed to make a Stooge collection complete.