Topic: Monkey Businessmen (1946)

[metaldams]

http://www.threestooges.net/filmography/episode/92
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038746/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fIq_N7DfDvo

Watch the complete short in the link above.



      MONKEY BUSINESSMEN would be the start of a new season of Stooge shorts, filmed in late January through early February of 1946.  Before this season will be over, Curly will have his major stroke and Shemp will be the third Stooge.  Edward Bernds has stated that Curly was in really bad shape in this one and Moe had to coach him line by line.  If this is true, Bernds and Moe should be highly commended, because I feel for the era, Curly does a fine job here.  Overall, this is a very entertaining short.

      We have two new players who will go on to have more prominence in the Shemp era, those players being Kenneth MacDonald and Jean Willes (here her last name is Donahue).  I'm a big fan of both.  MacDonald was good at playing slimy characters, he reminds me of an Americanized Boris Karloff in his easy delivery.  My Dad, who has seen MacDonald in other films, claims he looked like my Great Grandfather, and my Dad also claims my Great Grandfather did a good Karloff impersonation.  Wrap your head around that.  Jean Willes I ranked number three on my all-time Stooge ladies list.  Very attractive to my tastes, she also had some acting chops.  She's good here, but got better in the 50's with GYPPED IN THE PENTHOUSE, her best Stooge role. 

      A couple of scenes gave me some pretty strong belly laughs, namely the scenes with Moe and Curly near the electric box on the wall and Curly getting thrown out of the room by Nurse Shapely.  Behind the scenes issues or not, Curly is fine here.  Moe thinking the wrench will prevent him from being electrocuted is hysterical, and there's a good payoff gag where they both put a wire in their mouths to no effect, only to be electrocuted by touching each other!  The scene later on when Nurse Shapely launches Curly out of the room is also great.  All we see is Curly following her into a room, the door closes, we hear a scream and his body is shown launching through the door.  What did Curly attempt on her or say to her?  We can use our imaginations, but ultimately, it's as mysterious as who threw those pies.

      Snub Pollard plays the patient in the wheelchair who thinks he has a bad foot, and this is his funniest Stooge role.  I think he gets wasted a lot, but not here.  Mr. Pollard starred in silent comedies for Hal Roach and was also in a ton of Harold Lloyd shorts, I mean a ton.

      A fun short overall.  I'll let some of you guys fill in the blanks on the other good parts as I trust you will, but basically every character in this film is put to good use and the pacing never lets up for one minute.  Enjoy Curly while you can.

9/10

[Shemp_Diesel]

Yes, I can recall the stories that Edward Bernds has told--as far as the ordeal the making of this short was. But I have to say--to my eyes--the finished product is not bad at all. If Curly did have to be coached line by line, I can't really notice it from watching the short. As Metal already alluded to, this is a testament to the talents of Mr. Bernds--with perhaps an able assist from Moe.

Maybe the best part of this short is the opening section with Fred Kelsey as Smiling Sam McGann--who hardly has reason to smile, given the three lunkheads he hired to fix his electricity.

I also enjoyed Cy Schindell as one of the heavy's--"What are you doing?"

"Breathing."

"Well cut it out--it ain't on the schedule."

Overall, I rate it a 7 out of 10....

[Paul Pain]

This short is a lot better than people give credit for.  The pacing here is quite comfortable, with each scene being given appropriate treatment.  The concept of the Stooges in this situation alone makes one laugh, then to see what else goes on... A great combination of actors and actresses leads to good viewing, in short.

Kenneth MacDonald makes his debut which, except for BLUNDER BOYS, means he's a villain.  I love his smooth double-talk.  He always made for a good chiseler, as seen by his appearances as crooked politicians and even as the judge in the PERRY MASON series in the 1960s.  We get a snapshot of what is to come here, and boy is it a bright future with Kenneth.  This was his only appearance with Curly.  And I attached a photo of Kenneth for your pleasure.


Rocky Woods and Cy Schindell are good as Kenneth's grunts, and the other assemblage of nurses works to smooth the gaps between scenes.  Fred Kelsey is always good as the irritable Stooge foil that the Stooges annoy just by being Stooges.  Snub Pollard would only show up once more in his Stooge career, but he does a great job here as the headcase who thinks his foot's broken.

And the Stooges?  What can I say?  They're great.  They all get their moments to hog the limelight, and they carry themselves well.  Curly's illness isn't very obvious except for the scenes with the sauna, where he obviously is getting off-camera coaching, but he covers it up by acting like he's having to think about how to turn a silly dial.

I'm going with 9/10.  Metaldams's review made me reconsider my feelings because I used to have it as 7/10.

And what an interesting next few weeks will it be with some of the worst (THREE LOAN WOLVES) and some of the best (THREE LITTLE PIRATES) Curly has to offer.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Three words:  Smilin' Sam McGann.

[metaldams]

Three words:  Smilin' Sam McGann.

Absolutely!  Him screaming on the phone next to that goofy smiling picture of his is comedy gold.

[Dr. Hugo Gansamacher]

A lot of fun with electricity (and with words) in the first part of this one: Smilin' Sam McGann gets the "juice" that he demanded, Moe gets electrified by the "intrickate stuff" that he handles with a pair of pliers, Moe and Curly celebrate "success" by closing a circuit and electrifying each other, and finally the anger of the never-seen Mr. Jordan yelling at Moe over the telephone causes the cord of the receiver to burst into flame.

A great début by the redoubtable Kenneth MacDonald, Stooge villain extraordinaire, and a less notable but still welcome first appearance by Jean Willes as Nurse Shapely. Curly is clearly in a bad way, struggling to get his lines out, but, in view of the information provided by Metaldams about how he was faring during the production, he could have done worse.

"Ah, my favorite scent—Fleur de Polecat!" Not quite as fine as Gene Roth's line in one of the last shorts, "By golly, that's good—tastes like rotten eggs!" but still a pretty funny line.

[Lefty]

Even with Curly being sick, this is still a very good short.  Lots of laughs, the debuts of Kenneth MacDonald and Jean Willes, Fred Kelsey at his nasty best, Moe and Larry pretending to operate on Curly while using those 10-syllable names for equipment.  And Wade Crosby played a dumbbell to perfection, not even noticing that the "doctors" were wearing patients' sweatsuits.  Maybe he is an ancestor of Cindy Crosby of the Penqueens. 

[ThumpTheShoes]

Funny this.. a short made about taking a "nice long rest" and putting Curly through the paces when what he needed most was-- a Nice Long Rest!!

I kinda got an idea what got Curly knocked thru the door. Before he gets up, he sports a lecherous grin and has his hands up like he's "tuning in Tokyo".. remembering something about Nurse Shapely..  twiddling some knobs.. and then, he remembers what that reminds him of-- the steam room! He's supposed to rescue Moe and Larry!

This is a fun short, even though Curly kinda sounds like Edith Bunker.

Nurses! Nurses!!

[metaldams]

I kinda got an idea what got Curly knocked thru the door. Before he gets up, he sports a lecherous grin and has his hands up like he's "tuning in Tokyo".. remembering something about Nurse Shapely..  twiddling some knobs.. and then, he remembers what that reminds him of-- the steam room! He's supposed to rescue Moe and Larry!

Next time I watch this short, I will definitely look for that.  I think you might be right now that I think about it, and I'm disappointed in myself for not figuring it out.   

[BeAStooge]

... putting Curly through the paces when what he needed most was-- a Nice Long Rest!!

It is true that Curly shouldn't have been working at this time.  But there's too much blame placed on Columbia.

There was a 5-month period between UNCIVIL WAR BIRDS (produced 8/24 - 8/28/45) and MONKEY BUSINESSMEN (produced 1/30 - 2/2/46).  From what we know of Curly's impending retirement, that 5-month period was the time to rest... but they didn't.  After WAR BIRDS they left on a grueling 2-months/7-shows-per-week personal appearance gig on the east coast.  Add to that, a disastrous marriage for Curly during that 5-month period.

Their work at Columbia was leisurely by comparison, with each short only a 4-day production.  The event of May 6, 1946 probably had more to do with those 5 months than a Columbia work schedule.

  •   9/14/45 – 9/16/45  State Theater, Hartford CT
  •   9/21/45 – 9/27/45  Earle Theater, Philadelphia PA
  •   5 weeks beginning 9/28/45  Strand Theater, New York NY
  •   10/17/45  Curly marries Marion Buxbaum
  •   11/7/45 – 11/13/45  RKO Golden Gate Theater, San Francisco CA

  •   11/14/45 – 1/29/46  no recorded live appearances; no film work
  •   1/14/46  Curly and Marion separate

  •   4 working days,  1/30/46 – 2/2/46  Production of MONKEY BUSINESSMEN
  •   4 working days,  2/27/46 – 3/2/46  Production of THREE LOAN WOLVES
  •   4 working days,  3/22/46 – 3/26/46  Production of G. I. WANNA HOME
  •   4 working days,  4/15/46 – 4/18/46  Production of THREE LITTLE PIRATES
  •   4 working days,  4/23/46 – 4/26/46  Production of RHYTHM AND WEEP
  •   4 working days,  5/2/46 – 5/6/46  Production of HALF-WITS HOLIDAY

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Would this be one of the tours where Shemp filled in?

[BeAStooge]

Would this be one of the tours where Shemp filled in?

It is not.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

That would be grueling.

[metaldams]

So in other words, Curly seperated from his wife roughly two weeks before this short was filmed.  It's only speculation, of course, but I would have to think that would be a contributing factor to Curly's condition behind the scenes here.  It certainly couldn't have helped.

As far as the grueling schedule before this season, with a new wife, amongst other things, perhaps Curly had to work, if you know what I'm saying.  Again, only speculation, I'm not the man's accountant.  Also bear in mind The Three Stooges are from the show must go on generation.  Lou Costello, so I've read, did a radio show minutes after of hearing about his son's death.

[Paul Pain]

So in other words, Curly seperated from his wife roughly two weeks before this short was filmed.  It's only speculation, of course, but I would have to think that would be a contributing factor to Curly's condition behind the scenes here.  It certainly couldn't have helped.

As far as the grueling schedule before this season, with a new wife, amongst other things, perhaps Curly had to work, if you know what I'm saying.  Again, only speculation, I'm not the man's accountant.  Also bear in mind The Three Stooges are from the show must go on generation.  Lou Costello, so I've read, did a radio show minutes after of hearing about his son's death.

We could go on and on with reasons behind Curly's demise, unfortunately.  It's a tragic set of circumstances that should be squarely blamed, in my opinion, on the human POSs (who I am certain are all rotting in hell next to Judas) who overworked all of the Stooges, which led to both Curly and Shemp's early deaths.

[Shemp_Diesel]

Well, maybe Columbia isn't totally to blame for pushing Curly during this time period--but on the other hand, I think it's safe to say that Harry Cohn & his minions were not shy about getting as many stooge shorts made as was humanly possible.

The fact that we have "After Death" Shemp episodes is sad testimony to that point...


 

[BeAStooge]

I think it's safe to say that Harry Cohn & his minions were not shy about getting as many stooge shorts made as was humanly possible.

The fact that we have "After Death" Shemp episodes is sad testimony to that point...

As contracted the studio expected 8 per year, not "as many as was humanly possible."  At the Stooges' height of production from 1935 - 1950, that was 32 days per year in front of the camera.  Their Columbia obligation was not a grueling schedule.

"Fake Shemp" was a tasteless solution, but the studio was contracted to theatres to deliver 8 Stooges shorts in 1956, and the promotional materials created for distributors in Fall 1955 advertised Moe, Larry and Shemp.  That's all to which "After Death" is testimony.

[BeAStooge]

It's a tragic set of circumstances that should be squarely blamed, in my opinion, on the human POSs (who I am certain are all rotting in hell next to Judas) who overworked all of the Stooges, which led to both Curly and Shemp's early deaths.

In Curly's case...

• From January 30 - May 6, they worked 24 days at Columbia.  Those 24 days also accounted for all their film work from September 1945 - May 6, 1946.
• Moe was a family man with a strong work ethic.  Per first-hand family and friend accounts, Moe didn't understand just how ill his brother was; everyone thought all Jerry needed was to put his party ways in the past, and work hard and settle down.  So, not aware of his brother's advancing arteriosclerosis, Moe took him on a 2-month personal appearance tour, and guided him into a marriage that was ill-fated and unhappy virtually from Day 1.
• And, what about Curly's self-responsibility?  Both for many years of a high-living lifestyle that caught up to him, and not stepping up to say, "Moe, I can't do it."

The studio didn't overwork them.  Perhaps Moe did, but it was tragically unintended... he thought he was helping his brother build a more focused life.


In Shemp's case...

• They worked a total of 9 days at Columbia from 8/26/54 - 11/22/55; nine days, over 15 months.  From 1952 thru 1954, stock footage remakes reduced their studio time to an average of 15 days per year.
• Live appearance tour workloads reduced as well during this period, and I don't think they did any in 1955 (but I do have a follow-up inquiry pending on this).  Shemp was not overworked... even if you add in his role as building manager for the 4-apartment complex he and his wife purchased and moved into in 1953.  With his son and daughter-in-law living in one of those apartments, I doubt if Shemp dealt with a lot of stress in that capacity.

I don't see any "POS" that need to burn in hell.  I see a lot of well-intended, but bad judgment.  And I see a lot of "life's not fair."

[metaldams]

In Curly's case...

• From January 30 - May 6, they worked 24 days at Columbia.  Those 24 days also accounted for all their film work from September 1945 - May 6, 1946.
• Moe was a family man with a strong work ethic.  Per first-hand family and friend accounts, Moe didn't understand just how ill his brother was; everyone thought all Jerry needed was to put his party ways in the past, and work hard and settle down.  So, not aware of his brother's advancing arteriosclerosis, Moe took him on a 2-month personal appearance tour, and guided him into a marriage that was ill-fated and unhappy virtually from Day 1.
• And, what about Curly's self-responsibility?  Both for many years of a high-living lifestyle that caught up to him, and not stepping up to say, "Moe, I can't do it."

The studio didn't overwork them.  Perhaps Moe did, but it was tragically unintended... he thought he was helping his brother build a more focused life.


In Shemp's case...

• They worked a total of 9 days at Columbia from 8/26/54 - 11/22/55; nine days, over 15 months.  From 1952 thru 1954, stock footage remakes reduced their studio time to an average of 15 days per year.
• Live appearance tour workloads reduced as well during this period, and I don't think they did any in 1955 (but I do have a follow-up inquiry pending on this).  Shemp was not overworked... even if you add in his role as building manager for the 4-apartment complex he and his wife purchased and moved into in 1953.  With his son and daughter-in-law living in one of those apartments, I doubt if Shemp dealt with a lot of stress in that capacity.

I don't see any "POS" that need to burn in hell.  I see a lot of well-intended, but bad judgment.  And I see a lot of "life's not fair."

This.  Paul Payne and Shemp_Diesel, I respectfully disagree.

      As far as Curly's self-responsibility, something else to ponder is he was 42 years old when he suffered his major stroke.  With each passing day, the more and more I realize Curly was a young man on the set of HALF-WITS HOLIDAY.  I'm 36, and I would be shocked if I had a stroke a mere six years from now.  It's possible, but if it happens, it would be shocking.  A 42 year old man to go through that, barring rare cases of bad genetics, usually has self destructive behavior, be it diet, lack of exercise, or too much partying and too little growing up. 

      Now the one thing I will say the films may have contributed to Curly's health is the fame it brought Curly, because fame can be stressful, but I would not call the physical ordeal of making the shorts, which Brent did a good job of narrowing down, something a healthy 42 year old man can't handle.  Same with the stress of fame, I see lots of successful 42 year olds not having strokes.  Speaking of stress, the whole ordeal of marrying a woman you barely know, spending tons of money on her, and then quickly getting a very public and humiliating divorce must be very stressful and surely was much worse to Curly's health than the demands of Harry Cohn, Jules White, and Hugh McCollum.  Harry Cohn most people feel was a bastard, but I'm not too hard on the guy in Curly's case.

 

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Medical treatment for heart attack or stroke was primitive if not nonexistent back then.  Even diagnosis was a problem.  It seems to me that this thread is supplying a good bit of balance regarding the illnesses of Curly and Shemp.  Remember, this happened almost 70 years ago, what they had was a death sentence.  There was no surgery invented that could have saved either one of them.
     And genetics is a major factor.  I'm one who believes that they both died of stroke, and yes, Curly was in his forties, but Shemp was only sixty.  Very young both of them, but not too young for stroke, especially if it runs in the family.

[Shemp_Diesel]

Well, I've been educated as far as some of the contractual obligations the boys had to fulfill and how much work they were actually doing for Columbia--but contractual obligations aside, I have to think that basic human decency could come into play at some point--I mean, the fact that Moe and Larry had to finish filming Half-Wits Holiday after Jerry had the major stroke that ended his career, or as I mentioned before, Fake Shemp.

Contracts be damned--how about giving someone some time off to grieve....

[metaldams]

Well, I've been educated as far as some of the contractual obligations the boys had to fulfill and how much work they were actually doing for Columbia--but contractual obligations aside, I have to think that basic human decency could come into play at some point--I mean, the fact that Moe and Larry had to finish filming Half-Wits Holiday after Jerry had the major stroke that ended his career, or as I mentioned before, Fake Shemp.

Contracts be damned--how about giving someone some time off to grieve....

Lou Costello, minutes after finding out his infant son drowned, did a radio program - voluntarily.  That generation had a very strong show must go on work ethic.  I understand where you're coming from, but for all we know, perhaps Moe and Larry agreed HALF-WITS HOLIDAY needed to be completed.  Maybe Curly would have wanted it.  The point is, we don't know.

[Shemp_Diesel]

You're right Metal, we don't know--but I guess if nothing else, it makes for interesting discussion. I was going to say good discussion, but I don't there's anything "good" about pondering what could have been done with Curly....

[BeAStooge]

Contracts be damned--how about giving someone some time off to grieve....

After Curly's stroke, one month passed before they had to return to Columbia for FRIGHT NIGHT filming.  (Unconfirmed, but a Howard family member once said that they finished the day of May 6 at Moe's request.)

After Shemp's Nov. 22 death, they did not report back for work until the first week of January; the 4 "Fake Shemp" shorts were 1-day/each affairs, over a 3 week period.  Prior to Shemp's death, they hadn't been at the studio since July 1, 1955 when new footage for FLAGPOLE JITTERS was shot.

Columbia was a business, and Harry Cohn was a tough businessman and regarded-SOB.  Regardless, in the real world, typical workplace policies give 3 days with pay for death in the immediate family; I've usually seen that policy "unofficially" stretched to 5 days. 

Where and when were the Stooges robbed of "time off to grieve?"

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Unless they were signed to separate contracts, which I don't think they were, death would negate the contract, wouldn't it?  Unless all parties agreed, probably verbally, to carry on.