| The Stooges | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Real Name |
Harry, Larry and Shemp |
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First Appearance |
Soup To Nuts (1930) |
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Original Publisher |
Fox Film Corporation |
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Created By |
Ted Healy, Benjamin Stoloff and Rube Goldberg |
Origin[]
In their first onscreen appearance Soup to Nuts, the Stooges, who consist of Harry, Larry and Shemp, are three bumbling firemen who are friends of Ted Healy, a salesman for the Schmidt Costume Shop. One day, Ted makes a deal with them to head to the costume ball. In which they entertain the people there. The three eventually save the day after Carlson accidentally causes a fire and they extinguish it.
In Disorder in the Court, The Stooges are nightclub musicians and key witnesses in a murder trial, nearly miss court and then turn their testimony into slapstick chaos, complete with a musical reenactment of the crime. Pandemonium erupts through mistaken scares and staged demonstrations, until a parrot reveals a confession from the real killer. The accused showgirl is cleared, and the trial ends in typical Stooge mayhem.
The Brideless Groom centers on Shemp, who inherits $500,000 on the condition that he marry within 48 hours—leaving him only seven hours to find a bride. Urged on by the other Stooges, Shemp desperately proposes to multiple women, triggering a series of slapstick disasters, including an accidental engagement to his awkward student, Miss Dinkelmeyer. The scramble culminates in a chaotic brawl at the justice’s office, where Shemp ultimately marries Miss Dinkelmeyer just in time to claim his inheritance.
In Sing a Song of Six Pants, The Stooges run a struggling tailor shop facing repossession and see a chance for reward when outlaw Terry “Slippery Fingered” Hargan comes into their shop. After a series of bungled attempts to profit from his capture, a chaotic showdown follows. Though they miss out on the reward, the Stooges end up with Hargan’s stolen money, allowing them to pay off their debts.
In Malice in the Palace, The Stooges run the Cafe Casbah Bah, where bungled food service and animal mix-ups create chaos for their customers. They soon discover the patrons are thieves plotting to steal a priceless diamond. Disguised as Santa Clauses, the Stooges infiltrate the Emir’s palace, outwit the guards, and recover the diamond through sheer slapstick luck and persistence.
In Jerks of All Trades, they become interior decorators, angering Mr. Pennyfeather before being hired to redecorate his home—unwittingly the same man’s house. Their wallpapering destroys the place, and when the Pennyfeathers discover the truth, the Stooges are beaten and humiliated. Bruised but undeterred, the Stooges cross “interior decorators” off their office door and move on to their next ill-fated profession.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of the Stooges from before January 1, 1931 are public domain in the US, with some later shorts and works that are also public domain due to non-renewal.
Public Domain Film Appearances[]
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Public Domain Cartoon Appearances[]
- The New 3 Stooges (1965-1966)
Notes[]
- C3 Entertainment owns several registered trademarks which include the words "The Three Stooges". This means that although this early version of the fictionalized Stooges may be used, they cannot be advertised in a way that leads consumers to believe that C3 Entertainment was involved.
- While the fictionalized versions of the actors are public domain, Moe and Larry's publicity rights are still protected due to them being domiciled in California which has a right of publicity law lasting the life of the individual plus 70 years. Since both of them died in 1975, their right to publicity will not expire until 2045. The 2 Stooges who later joined the act, Joe Besser and "Curly" Joe DeRita are not set to have their publicity rights expire until 2058 and 2063 respectively.
- Since both Samuel "Shemp" Howard, and Jerome "Curly" Howard died over 70 years ago while domiciled in California, their publicity rights expired in 2025 and 2022 respectively.
- Hollywood On Parade, Disorder in the Court, Swing Parade of 1946, Brideless Groom, Sing a Song of Six Pants, Malice in the Palace, and Jerks Of All Trades are public domain due to their copyrights not being renewed on time.
- The entire New 3 Stooges cartoon series is public domain due to a faulty copyright notice in the intro.