Topic: Oily to Bed, Oily to Rise (1939)

[metaldams]

http://www.threestooges.net/filmography/episode/42
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031746/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Definitely one of the all time great Stooge shorts.  I've been pitching my version of the golden era for weeks now, and it's here where I think we've arrived.  We're now at the point where everything comes together - strong Stooge performances, classic sight gags, great character actors, and good storytelling, better than at any other point.

Curly is a ball of energy in this one, clucking like a chicken and throwing child like temper tantrums at will.  Moe has plenty of good insults to deliver as well, my favorite being "Plymouth Rock," just because it's so bizarre.

The plot of Curly being a wishing wizard is a lot of fun and is put to good use throughout the story.  There's also the intertwining of the down and out hungry Stooges and the deed swindlers going back and forth.  I like the way in the beginning the swindlers are driving their car and almost run into the Stooges while later in the film the boys are driving in the same car and almost run into the swindlers on the same road.

Oh, then there's Ma Jenkins, one of my all time favorite Stooge characters.  Beautifully innocent, she gives away her home without realizing there's oil on it, allows three weird looking strangers into her home for a meal, and just casually introduces them to her gorgeous daughters.  If only the world really was the way it is through her eyes.  Again, a beautiful character.

Speaking of the daughters, June did go on to play Susan Alexander Kane in some little film called CITIZEN KANE, and May is the Stooge debut of Ms. Lorna Gray, who will grace us with her presence in the next few films with both her looks and talent and is fortunately still with us.  Don't have much else to say about April except she was a nurse in CALLING ALL CURS and was quite attractive. 

Oh, and of course I'd be remiss not to mention the oil geezer gag, one of the all time great sight gags in Stoogedom.  Yes, this short rules, a definite keeper.

10/10

[Shemp_Diesel]

I would agree in calling this the beginning of the "Golden Age" where the 2 greats, Jules and Del churned out classics left and right. And this is what I consider to be the first full strength Jules directed short.

Some favorites bits of mine: Curly talking about dreaming up some roast chicken and dumplings then getting slapped by Moe: "What's that for? That's for not dreaming enough for the both of us." Also, "I'm sawing a saw in half with a saw, see."

"Don't look now but I think we're about to be killed." And of course "print that"....


April, May and June "three of the prettiest months of the year." I agree Curly.

A short so good that even Joe Besser couldn't ruin it too much when it was rehashed in 1957.

8 out of 10...

[metaldams]

A short so good that even Joe Besser couldn't ruin it too much when it was rehashed in 1957.

You know, I came incredibly close to making a comment like that myself.

[Shemp_Diesel]

Great minds I suppose Metal. Now if only I had a mind, great or otherwise....   

[Lefty]

I am another of the millions who think that this short is one of the all-time best.  I might even put this one over Disorder in the Court now.  As the saying goes, "Never a dull moment." 

My favorite quote is "I'm sawing a saw in half with a saw, see?"  Every time when Curly says, "Hey, don't look now, but I think we're about to be killed," and I see the cliff coming closer, I yell, "Look out!"  The Stooges giving monkey-flips to the bad guys always cracks me up.

Mrs. Jenkins:  "I just sold the farm for $50 an acre.  They told me a dust storm was coming!"
Lefty:  "That's all right, I have some oceanfront property in Las Vegas I'll sell you for $40 an acre."

And of course, the best scene is the action with the oil geezer right on the piazzer.  I give this short 10 out of 9.  Oops!  Make that 11 out of  10.

[Paul Pain]

This is definitely one of the best Stooge shorts ever.  Curly and his magical wishes... all three of them sitting in the back seat.  "Don't look now, but I think we're about to be killed." 

The execution of Curly and Moe with the well shows their relationship.  Curly's almost literal execution from when he's floating on the 'erl is perfect.  The thud is so realistic I cringe while I laugh.

"How could a bear, get down there!?"  "It's barely possible."  Moe and Curly seem to have a hard time keeping character there.

But why would that guy grab that stiff sign and use it to wipe his shoe?

I agree that this was the one good Besser short in it's remake "Oil's Well That Ends Well."

Curly also has the spotlight when he throws the temper tantrum while battling the chuck-wagon.  Pure classic.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

The opening scenes at Richard Fiske's farm are paced like lightning.  They're talking and moving so fast you wonder how they can get the words out, never mind with such comic gusto.
     Plotwise, it's lucky that the short moves so fast, because it gives you no time to realize that, aside from telling Mrs. Jenkins that a dust storm is coming ( sleazy but not illegal ), the swindlers haven't yet done anything really wrong.  The stooges discover the oil after the guys have left - the guys were just speculating.  $40 an acre might be a low-ball offer, but unless their check was going to bounce (we'll never know) in depression dollars it doesn't sound awful, and they were going to town to legitimately ( if hurriedly) record the deed.
     Just nitpicking.  Don't mind me.

[metaldams]

The opening scenes at Richard Fiske's farm are paced like lightning.  They're talking and moving so fast you wonder how they can get the words out, never mind with such comic gusto.
     Plotwise, it's lucky that the short moves so fast, because it gives you no time to realize that, aside from telling Mrs. Jenkins that a dust storm is coming ( sleazy but not illegal ), the swindlers haven't yet done anything really wrong.  The stooges discover the oil after the guys have left - the guys were just speculating.  $40 an acre might be a low-ball offer, but unless their check was going to bounce (we'll never know) in depression dollars it doesn't sound awful, and they were going to town to legitimately ( if hurriedly) record the deed.
     Just nitpicking.  Don't mind me.

It may be nitpicking, but you actually make some good points concerning the swindlers.

[Kopfy2013]

It may be nitpicking, but you actually make some good points concerning the swindlers.

Nothing illegal but maybe morally wrong ?

[JazzBill]

I have always considered this an above average short. Plenty of good bits and sight gags. I never gave it a thought that the swindlers really didn't do anything illegal. Does this mean that the Stooges were actually the bad guys in this short ? I rate this short a 8 1/2.

[Kopfy2013]

Consecrate, consecrate !!!

I agree with Metal. A great short. 

I also love 'April, May and June' line.

What a feel good short.  the Stooges get what they want, do the right thing, rescue damsels in distress becoming heroes.

By the way, the quintuplets - Canada crack at the end by Curly refers to Canada's Dionne quintuplets.  You can Google that for more information.

For a rating I am torn.  What percentage of their shorts should be a 10? ... Is 10 percent (19) of them too many?  Is it 5 percent? ... This could be a 10 or a 9 ... I am going off the theory that 10's should be rare - rarer than 10% .... so I am going to give this one a solid 9.....

Please don't take me illiterately though !

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

     There's no particular need to rate these numerically, IMHO.  This is not a swim meet.  I myself like to pick moments ( or episodes ) of brilliance to discuss, or moments ( or episodes ) where the acting, writing, or directing is especially good or bad . Agonizing over whether a short should be a 9 or a 9.4 is, as Kopfy says, something that need not be taken illiterately.  I've said it before, and I say it again: invite your most worthless friends over, loosen up with your humor-enhancer of choice, and stooge out.  Lose the math. Get stupid. This advice comes from the Big Chief. 

[TiskaTaskaBaska]

I'm back and I have a lot to catch up on!!

This short is in that era where almost everything was pure gold...it starts out with Moe inexplicably calling Curly "Plymouth Rock" and goes from there.

I get fixated on such little stuff in there shorts; and there is such gold here. "You ain't trying hard enough. Consecrate, consecrate!!" How many times did they have to throw the "Free Car" poster before it fell readable in the frame? Is that guy wearing spats when he steps in the mud? How cute is Curly's little motion to make sure he knocks over the leg of under the wagon so the wood falls on him again? How awesome is Richard Fiske?

I have access to direct first-hand information about people going to a house and asking for a meal during the Depression. My mom was 9 when the stock market crashed and her dad worked for RCA; they lived in a big house. A man dressed in his best three-piece suit actually did knock on their door and ask for a meal, which my dignified Grandmom Van gave him. Sadly, my mom and Uncle Jerry sat on the porch while he ate and stared at him. So yes, it did happen and people like the Widow Jenkins would have a stranger in their house and serve them roast chicken and dumplings with hot apple pie!

I always cringe when Moe gets it in the face from the pump; I understand that stuff really got in his eyes and messed him up. A few more chuckles; I love the bodies being launched from the car. It looks like the arms and legs of the dummies are stuffed with wet hair; I love how they fall with the flat thud. I love, "It's real imitation silver!" And I love how, every once in a while, our Stooges get a "win"!

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Plymouth Rock is a breed of chicken.

[TiskaTaskaBaska]

Plymouth Rock is a breed of chicken.

.....now some of the magic is gone. 

[Larrys#1]

Excellent episode. The whole scene at the farm where the stooges saw the log in half and then load the wagon is hilarious. Curly imitating a chicken was downright funny. I like to see the sick Curly from 1946 do something like that. Just goes to show how different the healthy Curly is from the ill Curly.

I like the scene where the stooges fix the water pump and then try to chase after the crooks to get the deed back. And I agree with Big Chief.... those crooks technically didn't do anything wrong. I know they convinced Mrs. Jenkins to sell oil property cheap, but it's not like they put a gun to her head. She willingly signed, sealed and delivered the deed. Just because she didn't know about the oil is no excuse to take back a signed deed. But that's just my opinion on the matter.

Overall, great episode that's fun to watch over and over.

10/10

[Woe-ee-Woe-Woe80]

Nice to see a lot of love towards this short, this is definitely one of my favorite Stooge shorts, Curly is definitely full of energy in this one and I loved the scenes where Curly is bawling like a baby when he can't get the wagon door to shut, Curly getting his head sawed, the stooges nearly falling off the cliff in their car, some people say the second half of the short is better than the first half but both halves are excellent IMO, this short is also one of the rare shorts where Moe doesn't smack Larry, I also love the country outdoor scenes that you get to see in this short.

I give this short a 10/10

[Dr. Mabuse]

One of Jules White's early masterworks with everything firing on all cylinders.  Curly is an astonishing force of nature.

9.5/10

[Paul Pain]

Watching this one again after so long makes it readily apparent what a classic this one is.  We have excellent direction, an incredible script, and a fantastic cast.  The laughs just churn out in this one as Curly and Moe make jokes incessantly when someone isn't getting abused.  This creates a constant laughter that makes this one memorable.

In particular, all three Stooges are in sync every step of the way.  I have nothing to complain about with this one except that there's nothing to complain about.  This one is probably a top-5 short all-time in my book.

[Shemp_Diesel]

This episode had me thinking about a topic that came up in the weekly discussions years ago about the endings to a lot of Stooge shorts & whether a majority of them were satisfactory. I think I've come to the opinion that most of them were like this short--of course, there are some shorts like a Tassels in the Air or Busy Buddies that don't have great endings--but for the most part--I think the Stooges and their creative teams got it right....

 

[Allen Champion]

One of the very finest Stooge shorts--even if it was directed by Jules White.  Jules can do boffo work when he has a good solid story.  A Stooges top ten classic!

[Daddy Dewdrop]

Solid short to be sure, but a Top 10 classic???  There are so many more I'd rank higher.  As it stands, it comes in at #65 on my list.

[J_Kasumi]

I've recently rewatched this short on the YouTube channel, Three Stooges+. This is coming from someone who has watched it about six or seven times in her life. But, long story short, I adore this short. It's honestly nice to see the Stooges in a decent light. Granted, the opening before they get to Ms. Jenkins is a bit slow, that's not a negative in my personal opinion. Sometimes you need a bit of slowness to build up to a great payoff. I especially love the comedic line of "Hey ,don't look now, but, I think we're about to be killed." I don't know why, but, something about how Curly says it, kills me with laughter. It's also nice to see the boys want to do something good for someone who did right by them, and we get to see them get what they want in the end. Another bit that cracks me up to no end is Moe's face with the destroyed cigar. That facial expression just slays me with a laugh. A great short, in my top 20 list. Pokes: I give it more than ten, about ninety five pokes out of ten. Yes, it's that good, in my personal opinion.