http://www.threestooges.net/filmography/episode/30http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0030834/?ref_=fn_al_tt_3The first short directed by Charley Chase. The Charley Chase era does have some controversy with Stooge fans, but I have to imagine that it's later shorts, because I see nothing that can be considered wrong with this one. If anything, we have a classic on our hands.
I've always enjoyed the way the boys are introduced with Larry and Curly playing checkers with paint cans on floor tiles. I always thought this was quite funny. The pig Latin scene is also pretty iconic, and it's great the way O'May the name is introduced into the plot as confusion for O'May the interior decorator.
I've always been a fan of the mistaking paint for coffee while painting the table gag. I just saw that gag in a latter Bowery Boys film, which Elwood Ullman wrote a lot for, and I know this gag appeared in an early talkie Charley Chase film (I wanna say Luncheon At Twelve, it's been awhile since I've seen it), so this is another case of the comedy world being incestuous with gags.
The boys are all in great form, with Curly getting to ham it up again, this time at the sight of a tassel as opposed to Weasel or Hyacinth. The people who think of this stuff are genius. Such innocuous objects. A tassel? I'd have Curly go crazy over bacon. That's innocuous enough, and perhaps I just have bacon on the brain because I'm going to Denny's soon. Mmmmmmm, bacon.
I also like Bess Flowers and Bud Jamison in this one. Bess Flowers makes no bones about the fact she's out to impress the world while Bud doesn't give a shit, he was just a letter carrier who ran into money. Nice dynamic there, the kind of thing I never appreciated when I was younger, so much younger than today. I like Bud's spotted paint gag as well.
Classic Larry moment in this one would be him gazing at the camera with sad expression, white paint splattered all over his face.
10/10