Topic: A Ducking They Did Go (1939)

[metaldams]

http://www.threestooges.net/filmography/episode/38
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031015/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Another very funny short which to me has that classic feel to it.  Del Lord was really cranking out these fun, energetic shorts at this point. 

One thing I noticed is the Columbia supporting players get put to great use in this one.  Cy Schindell as the helpless watermelon truck owner, Vernon Dent as the poor vegetarian who gets his clothes torn off, Bud Jamison in one of his all-time great roles as the police chief, and Lynton Brent as the hustling boss of the crime operation, unquestionably his best Stooge role.

Let's see, some favorite parts. Well, I love the entire opening scene, from the opening shot of their "dogs barking" to the chaotic watermelon fight.  I think outdoor scenes like this really add to the charm of this era in Stooge history, you really don't see them later on, probably for budget reasons.  Curly getting flustered as he's trying to shoot the duck in the water is a lot of fun and a good example of the man in his prime.  Tons of great reactions.  Ultimately, this short rules because it has my all time favorite Moe Howard eye poke.  Poking a Stooge is one thing, but an inflatable duck?  It's an inanimate object, yet Moe is so into the habit of eye pokes at this point that such a trivial fact won't stop those two digits from a-gougin'.  Really bizarre and funny.

Yeah, I like this one, it goes onto the greatest hits album.

9/10

[Paul Pain]

As much as I love this short, I have never appreciated the ending... why did they recycle the ending from "A Pain in the Pullman" (yay, Paul Pain!)?

The best part is how those idiots could sell all those memberships.

"I'll be back in a quack with a quack, and I do mean quack!"

"You gentlemen ever sold anything?" "Coitainly, anything we could lay our hands on." "The gentleman said 'sold,' not 'stole.'"

Great quotes!

The execution on this short is amazing.  The boys and Bud Jamison show their abilities to multi-task in this one.  They run, show sadness, anger, and joy, and sing harmony.  Pure talent in this cast through and through.

Curly better executed the duck scene then Moe did later in Stone Age Romeos/I'm a Monkey's Uncle... proof that scenes are best with the actors they are written for.

My favorite part is everyone's faces when they shoot the inflatable duck and it just blows to pieces.

[Shemp_Diesel]

Another short that to me falls under the good category. Again, the year 1939 wasn't as great to me as previous years, but we are creeping closer to the Golden Age, so I shouldn't do too much griping.


7 out of 10...

[Lefty]

"Is your blood red?  Are you a potent hunter?  All you need is a prime appeal!  What about a duck?  There's one in every office!"

"Your face looks familiar, but I don't know where to put it!"

These two Curly lines alone are enough to make me enjoy this short.  And of course, the "I owe you 10%" bit, the overall scenes with Blackie and Doyle, along with the duck hunting by the police, really make this show very good.  Of course, the stock-footage ending was not the brightest idea, but that's about the only bad thing.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Good point about how good the supporting actors are in this one, and my fave has to be Bud for two reasons: one, he absolutely nails that last high note when they're singing, and two, yes I think he does say "shit" when they're ducking behind his desk.
     I don't care if it was a shortcut, the re-use of the bucking-bronco ending tickles me to death.  It was also the best part of the movie that came out a couple of years ago, and not just because it was the end of the movie.  I thought it was a nice touch.

[JazzBill]

For some reason this one doesn't do much for me. It has a couple good bits in it. The singing scene and Curly being outsmarted by the ducks are a couple of the bits I enjoyed. But all in all I consider it to be a below average short and rate it a 7.

[Kopfy2013]

A good short.  Curly was at the top of his game.  I will give it an 8.  A couple of things I did not like was the ending.  I wonder if in Jules White's archives he mentions another ending and for some reason it did not work out so they used this.

Curly in the lake with the duck lasted a little too long.

What I did like was all the one liners ... many mentioned here already like "my mind's a blank" after Larry gets slapped for what he is thinking.....  "Do I look familiar" the boss says and Curly's response.

The best one was when Curly says 'Canvas back!?! That is what they called me way back when I was a boxer' ... and he says it with pride !!! I love it.

Signing out 'Kanvas back Kopfy"

[Signor Spumoni]

This is among my favorites.  I, too, love it when Moe pokes the decoy's eyes.  I enjoy hearing them sing, especially Bud when he hits that last note.  I like Curly's face when Bud hits that note.  I wondered how someone taught all those ducks to follow Curly; that looks so cute.  I like the part where Moe and Larry follow Curly and the ducks saying, "Quack! Quack!  Quack, quack, quack!"  I like Curly's moronic laugh just before he tries shooting the duck off his head.
There are other parts I enjoy very much.  One of those things is a plot which has genuine story line.  Many of the later shorts lack that.

I don't like the ending because it feels tacked on and because I dislike that particular ending very much.

[Bud_Jamison]

oooo... the Mayor!

Top notch Stoogery! 8/10 stars and a fine Jamison vocal performance to boot!

[TiskaTaskaBaska]

"Is your blood red? Are you a potent hunter? All you need is a prime appeal; there's one in every office!"

"If he can pipe rats pie-eyed, then I can pipe ducks sober!"

Moe eye-poking a blow-up duck decoy; it doesn't get much better than this. With the exception of the ending this is one of their perfect ones. And I adore their five part harmony; Bud Jamison....what a voice. I give this a 9.8 and take off two-tenths for the lazy cheap-out ending recycled by Columbia (but they did build the pond specifically for this short, so I guess the were cutting corners).

(PaulPayne; I remember reading that the scenes Moe played in Stone Age Romeos had been written for Curly, and Moe played as Curly would have [or attempted to anyway; who can replicate that magic?]. So that one always gives me a melancholy smile; a brother saluting a man that no one on the planet could ever replace.    ).

[MrsMorganMorgan]

A thought has occurred to me about this short several times over the last year, and I just thought I'd ask my friends in the Stooge forum. Does anyone else think it's a little "funny ha ha" that "man, there ain't been a wild duck around here since goodness knows when" as the old watchman put it, and yet he has a prize duck collection nearby?

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

His ducks are domesticated farm animals, I would guess. 

[MrsMorganMorgan]

His ducks are domesticated farm animals, I would guess.

Still sounds funny to me. 

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Well, wild ducks wouldn't be winning prizes, I don't think.

[Paul Pain]

It's been 2 years since we watched this, and I still love it!  I have, however, come to appreciate the stock footage ending as it is, at the least, worked into the footage quite nicely.  A previously unmentioned highlight is Chuck Callahan, who is just splendid working in a duo with Bud Jamison in this.

yes I think he does say "shit" when they're ducking behind his desk.

I concur; he is just as potty mouthed as Edgar Kennedy in PERFECT DAY  

[Hollister56]

The part where they run into the police station and come to a stop and Moe slaps Larry and says shut up, Larry replies I didn't say anything, Moe, that's for what you were thinking, then turns to Curly, looking really pissed off and Curly replies, MY MIND'S A BLANK...................with a blank look on his face.

To me this is one of the funniest lines.

This is a Classic 3 Stooges Short.

[Woe-ee-Woe-Woe80]

I always thought this was a good but not great Stooge short, I agree the ending was a letdown and I also thought the first half where the boys were hungry and them getting the job were the best portions of the short, I also didn't care much for Curly's battle with the duck because it went on a little too long, also is it just me or is this one of the few Curly episodes where Larry seems to be getting the brunt of Moe's wrath instead of Curly? That was something you didn't see much in the pre-stroke Curly episodes.

I do love the scene where Bud Jamison claims he got the duck when it was really the mayor who'd gotten the duck.

Overall I give this short a 7/10, I consider 1939 to be the start of the Golden Age period although the only lame duck episode of that year was "Saved By The Belle".

[Paul Pain]

Ultimately, this short rules because it has my all time favorite Moe Howard eye poke.  Poking a Stooge is one thing, but an inflatable duck?  It's an inanimate object, yet Moe is so into the habit of eye pokes at this point that such a trivial fact won't stop those two digits from a-gougin'.  Really bizarre and funny.

I think Moe eye-gouging Schicklegruber in THEY STOOGE TO CONGA is better.  Maybe I'm biased because it IS Hitler after all.

[Dr. Mabuse]

Another winner from Del Lord, even though it doesn't rate quite as high as his other 1939 classics.  Nevertheless, "A Ducking They Did Go" is a fast-paced outing — highlighted by a memorable supporting cast and Lucien Ballard's glistening cinematography in the pond scenes.  The look of infectious joy on Curly's face after harmonizing with Bud Jamison remains among my favorite Stooge moments.  A pity about the recycled footage from "A Pain in the Pullman," which makes for a sloppy and disappointing finish.

Extra Trivia: The Stooges' last celluloid rendition of "You'll Never Know Just What Tears Are." 

8/10

[I. Cheatam]

The stock footage ending hurts it the most, but it was still one of the very few shorts at that time to use footage from a previous one.