During World War II, the Three Stooges proved to be America’s best defense with their violent and offensive humor. They didn’t get toned down nor created shorts that ignored the battles across the Atlantic and Pacific. They reminded the troops not merely why we fight, but that you should never play fair against the enemy. Long as Moe had two fingers, he’d blind any Nazi spy. Curly wasn’t going to allow himself to serve Mussolini. And Larry was certainly not going to bow to the Japanese. The Three Stooges Collection: Volume Four – 1943 – 1945 contains shorts that remind us that Americans had to attack Nazis no matter how clueless they were.
“They Stooge to Conga” puts the Stooges in the role of door to door handymen. They are hired to fix a doorbell in Vernon Dent’s house. Little do they know that their client is a Nazi secret agent. In his study are Japanese soldiers plotting which half of the world they’ll control. The Stooges destroy most of the house while tearing the wires out of the wall in order to find the short in the bell. Dudley Dickerson once more plays the cook who has to maintain his work duties amidst the Stooge confusion. He has a great reaction from being attacked by a waffle iron. Their mayhem causes interference for the Nazi’s shortwave radio to foil their plan to sneak a U-boat up the coast. The Stooges go into overdrive when they discover the truth about Dent. They sink the U-boat and destroy the spy ring. “They Stooge to Conga” kicks up the violence to 11. “Back From the Front” has a title card disclaimer that reads, “Any resemblance between the characters in this picture and other human beings is a dirty shame.” The Stooges join the Merchant Marine. Once more Vernon Dent is a secret Nazi. This time he finks out his ship’s location to a U-Boat. The Stooges stupidly activate the torpedo that’s stuck in the hull. After floating around at sea, the Stooges come upon a Nazi ship carrying Dent. They go into action to win another one for Uncle Sam.
“The Yokes On Me” forces the Stooges onto a farm after they can’t enlist in the army. A majority of the short deals with them struggling with ancient tools and a gunpowder eating ostrich. This is perhaps the most controversial of their shorts since the last minutes have them confront Japanese-Americans that have escaped from a relocation camp. But it’s a hard call since the escapees wear matching jumpsuits like they are POWS and speak only Japanese during their struggle with the Stooges. There were POW camps in California. I don’t recall relocation camps forcing everyone to wear uniforms. So were they supposed to be American citizens or POWs? It is interesting that a Stooges short would use the words “relocation camp.” This seems to be one of the few surviving films of the time to admit the camps existed. “No Dough Boys” lets the Stooges make a few bucks by dressing up as Japanese soldiers for a propaganda photo. They take a lunch break without removing their make up or uniforms. The locals think they’re the three Japanese soldiers that escaped from the Coast Guard. Their only help comes from Vernon Dent, who is once more a Nazi spy. It’s up to the Stooges to break up another spy ring and save America.
There are plenty of shorts that give us the usual Stooge antics without being tied to the war cause. Haunted house action dominates “Spook Louder” and “If a Body Meets a Body.” They tangle with a wolf man in “Idle Roomers.” Curly takes part in an early lip-sync scandal in “Micro-phonies.” They also think that he’s a woman. “Idiots Deluxe” always cracks me up when Moe has to go to the country to settle his nerves. Their work with the bear is seared in my brain.
The Three Stooges Collection: Volume Four – 1943 – 1945 takes their slapstick into combat. They figure out how to mock the Axis countries without giving any compassion to the enemy. Moe, Larry and Curly proved to be a force that Hitler could never challenge. While there’s an uncomfortable edge to “The Yokes on You,” the other 20 shorts are sure to please the slapstick addict. The sad thought is that this will be the last complete volume featuring Curly. After this batch, he only made 10 more shorts before his untimely death. His brother Shemp Howard would take over his slot. Enjoy Curly while you can. He kept America safe from evil German comics.
The Shorts
“They Stooge to Conga,” “Dizzy Detectives,” “Spook Louder,” “Back from the Front,” “Three Little Twirps,” “Higher Than a Kite,” “I Can Hardly Wait,” “Dizzy Pilots,” “Phony Express,” “A Gem of a Jam,” “Crash Goes the Hash,” “Busy Buddies,” “The Yoke’s on Me,” “Idle Roomers,” “Gents Without Cents,” “No Dough Boys,” “Three Pests in a Mess,” “Booby Dupes,” “Idiots Deluxe,” “If a Body Meets a Body” and “Micro-Phonies.”
The video is 1.33:1 full frame. The black and white transfers look better than any Stooges shorts that I’ve seen on TV. You can see the details in Curly’s face as he gets bonked. The audio is Dolby Digital Mono. All the clanking comes through nice and sharp.
None.
The Three Stooges Collection: Volume Four – 1943 – 1945 continues the most import re-issue series of the year. Finally getting to see all these classic shorts in uncut form with high quality transfers is like falling in love again. They don’t make stars like Moe, Larry and Curly anymore.
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Sony Pictures Home Entertainment presents The Three Stooges Collection: Volume Four – 1943 – 1945. Starring Moe Howard, Curly Howard, Larry Fine and Vernon Dent. Boxset Contents: 21 movies on 2 DVDs. Released on DVD: October 7, 2008. Available at Amazon.com.
