Topic: Fright Night (1947)

[metaldams]

Good observations as usual Dr. Hugo & it reminded me of something I was going to bring up when we got to the short Six Pants--Shemp was his own character, but there were times when Shemp did some of the things that I think most folks would consider Curly's mannerisms. Most notably, I'm thinking of the "magic hand-waving trick" or barking like a dog.

I was just wondering if it ever bothered anyone when Shemp did that? Personally, I had no problem with it--even Larry on occasion pulled out the "hand-waving gesture" and Moe on some rare occasions would channel Curly.

I may be forgetting an incident in a Bernds film, but every time Shemp, or Moe, pulls off a Curly like mannerism, it's a Jules White short.  Jules White was known for telling actors how to act, to the point where White would act the roles out himself.  Bernds let actors interpret their roles.  In other words, I feel Shemp and Moe were told to act like Curly.

[Shemp_Diesel]

I know of 2 examples where it was not a Jules short where Moe channels Curly. Maybe I shouldn't bring it up now, but there is Shivering Sherlocks and Who Done it?. Perhaps I should wait until we get to those films before going on about it...

[metaldams]

I know of 2 examples where it was not a Jules short where Moe channels Curly. Maybe I shouldn't bring it up now, but there is Shivering Sherlocks and Who Done it?. Perhaps I should wait until we get to those films before going on about it...

The ones that always pop up in my mind are SING A SONG OF SIX PANTS and I'M A MONKEY'S UNCLE.  You're probably right about those other shorts, it's been a while for me.

[VaudevilleFan]

I know of 2 examples where it was not a Jules short where Moe channels Curly. Maybe I shouldn't bring it up now, but there is Shivering Sherlocks and Who Done it?. Perhaps I should wait until we get to those films before going on about it...

Discussion of the Shemp shorts aren't going to turn into a "pick out the Curlyisms" are they?

[Shemp_Diesel]

Discussion of the Shemp shorts aren't going to turn into a "pick out the Curlyisms" are they?

I hope not. I was hoping the Shemp years meant we could heat up the old Jules White vs. Ed Bernds war....


 

[Shemp_Diesel]

Btw, I think this is one of a few bit parts for Stanley Blystone. He didn't seem to be as much a player during the Shemp years as he was the Curlys--though he does have a memorable part in Of Cash and Hash, and next week's short as well...

[Dr. Hugo Gansamacher]

Good observations as usual Dr. Hugo & it reminded me of something I was going to bring up when we got to the short Six Pants--Shemp was his own character, but there were times when Shemp did some of the things that I think most folks would consider Curly's mannerisms. Most notably, I'm thinking of the "magic hand-waving trick" or barking like a dog.

I was just wondering if it ever bothered anyone when Shemp did that? Personally, I had no problem with it--even Larry on occasion pulled out the "hand-waving gesture" and Moe on some rare occasions would channel Curly.

Interesting question. Justly or not, I consider the barking to be proprietary to Curly (it certainly strikes me that way when Moe engages in it with the clam chowder in Shivering Sherlocks), but the hand-waving trick (I assume you mean the waving that controls the movement of Moe's head) to be a device that any subordinate Stooge can use (on Moe).  The barking is a personal expression, while the hand-waving is just a gimmick for retaliating (in a non-violent way) against Moe. So it does not seem to me a mannerism of Curly's any more than poking someone in the eyes or slapping them in the face is a mannerism of Moe's.

Edited to add:

I may be forgetting an incident in a Bernds film, but every time Shemp, or Moe, pulls off a Curly like mannerism, it's a Jules White short.  Jules White was known for telling actors how to act, to the point where White would act the roles out himself.  Bernds let actors interpret their roles.  In other words, I feel Shemp and Moe were told to act like Curly.

Well, I find that Shivering Sherlocks, in which Moe barks at the clam chowder, was directed by Del Lord.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

I agree, Doctor, some of those mannerisms seem Curly's own, and some seem stooge-generic.  I don't find Shemp's barking at all reminiscent of Curly, I'd consider that community property.  Moe's bit in Who Done It doesn't seem terribly derivative, but his clam chowder bit in Shivering Sherlocks is embarrassingly awful.  It's just too hammy.  Since Del Lord, as I understand it, was a much less dictatorial director than Jules White  ( who wasn't? ),  I would lay the blame for the hamminess squarely on Moe.  My guess is that there was during the next few years a constant tiptoeing of a fine line as to what the new Shemp-unit thought the audience expected of the stooges in general, and how much they thought the audience wanted a continuation of Curly's schtick.  Sometimes they guessed right, sometimes not.

[metaldams]

Edited to add:

Well, I find that Shivering Sherlocks, in which Moe barks at the clam chowder, was directed by Del Lord.

You're absolutely correct.  My memory can be a faulty thing sometimes.

[Shemp_Diesel]

Btw, I was wondering, was there supposed to be some kind of behind the scenes mishap during this short as far as Shemp getting injured during the sparring scenes--I kind of vaguely remember that gawd-awful Three Stooges tv movie from years ago kind of implying that there was some kind of injury to Shemp when they recreated this short--but I've tried to block all the memories of that tv movie from my brain...

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Looking back over the broad view of the Curly character, I don't myself see him as a man-child.  What he seems more like is a dog.  He's generally happy to be hanging out, adventurous, and under stress reacts with barking, whining, growling, rolling on the floor, and biting.  This is his regular persona, never mind when he is specifically told to act like a dog, when the act of course intensifies.  Babe's personal love of dogs is, I think, a springboard for his characterizations.  This is why none of the other stooges were able to do his bits: they ended up doing imitations of Curly acting like a dog, when Curly's natural reaction to any stressful situation was to be a dog.

[Dr. Hugo Gansamacher]

Looking back over the broad view of the Curly character, I don't myself see him as a man-child.  What he seems more like is a dog.  He's generally happy to be hanging out, adventurous, and under stress reacts with barking, whining, rolling on the floor, and biting.  This is his regular persona, never mind when he is specifically told to act like a dog, when the act of course intensifies.  Babe's personal love of dogs is, I think, a springboard for his characterizations.  This is why none of the other stooges were able to do his bits: they ended up doing imitations of Curly acting like a dog, when Curly's natural reaction to any stressful situation was to be a dog.

An astute observation.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Thank you, Doctor.

[metaldams]

Looking back over the broad view of the Curly character, I don't myself see him as a man-child.  What he seems more like is a dog.  He's generally happy to be hanging out, adventurous, and under stress reacts with barking, whining, growling, rolling on the floor, and biting.  This is his regular persona, never mind when he is specifically told to act like a dog, when the act of course intensifies.  Babe's personal love of dogs is, I think, a springboard for his characterizations.  This is why none of the other stooges were able to do his bits: they ended up doing imitations of Curly acting like a dog, when Curly's natural reaction to any stressful situation was to be a dog.

You do make some very good observations, I can't argue with the dog stuff at all.  However, I would not discount the child in Curly either.  This is a man who writes letters to Santa Claus, sings random songs in a high pitched voice, and in OILY TO BED, OILY TO RISE, has a temper tantrum under the cart when when the logs were thrown on him my six year old nephew would have - a few years ago.  The glee in which he swims in the mirage in WE WANT OUR MUMMY can only be described as child like as well. 

But yes, dog is incredibly accurate too.

[Paul Pain]

Part of what goes into the recycling of Curly bits is the over-arcing familial theme.  Throughout the Curly shorts, we are told Moe is Curly's brother (and sometimes Larry is thrown in too); the same is true of Moe, Shemp, and Larry (except those two shorts we shall get to much later).  As a result of this theme, we can argue that familial behaviors can be exchanged as well in a different fashion.  But each family member is UNIQUE (of course, Shemp, Moe, and Curly really were brothers, to strengthen things further) and has their own interpretation.

[Larrys#1]

We are now up to Shemp. Curly was a great stooge and it's extremely sad that Moe and Larry had to continue on without him. I'm sure it wasn't easy for people back in 1940s to deal with this since I'm sure he was many people's favorite stooge, so Shemp had big shoes to fill. Considering that Curly was ill the past couple of years and it showed in his performance (slowed speech and lack of energy), Shemp brings new life to the stooges. When Curly first started, it took time for him to develop his role and build the proper chemistry between him and Moe & Larry. But Shemp fits in very well in this episode. He fills in the role as third stooges and he does an excellent job at it. Obviously this is because he worked for a short time with Moe and Larry during the Ted Healy years and he worked as a solo comedian for many years and already had his character developed. Shemp never tried to be Curly. He's essentially acting the same way as he did during his solo years... only now he's working with Moe and Larry. And he fits in so well with them and the chemistry is already there from day one. Shemp is one brilliant comedian and I honestly think more people would've appreciated him more if they didn't have Curly to compare him with. Personally, I like Curly better (always have), but that's just because I like the energy he had. But Shemp was great too and I always find myself giving myself a break from Curly and watching some Shemp episodes every now and then.

Ok.... so you got it now, I think Shemp is great. Now sadly, Shemp starts off in an episode that I find to be just average. And the following episode after this is no better, which I'll elaborate on next week. It isn't until HOLD THAT LION where things take off. Shemp is great in this episode, but the episode itself is not. Too many things just go on for too long... such as the fight scene between Shemp & Chopper and the whole chase scene at the end. Those two bits take up a whole chunk of the episode and they're not really all that funny as I think they should be. Not Shemp's fault though.

The beginning scene where the stooges fight the dummy was good and as I said, Shemp gives a great performance here. So, it's not a bad episode, but there are much better Shemp episodes up ahead.....

8/10

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

@Metal:  yes, childlike as well.  The swim in the mirage proves both our points:  he swims like a kid AND like a dog.

[Shemp_is_Awesome78]

 Well, this is a strange comedy. Believe me, I usually enjoy Shemp, no matter the movie, except this just doesn't work out. The opening sequence is something that would definitely happen in a comedy with The Boys, and the middle sequence is a mix between good and bad. The last chase thing is a jumbled up mess, except for some assorted gags.
 About the opening sequence.. My favorite gag in this is when Moe says, " Hit the dummy!" to which Chopper Kane starts to hit Shemp and Moe explains, " No, not him! The dummy!" and then Chopper goes on to start hitting the actual dummy, which backfires to the point where the dummy keeps on firing back between Moe, Larry, and Curly.
 By the way, does anybody notice how much physical stuff Shemp has to take in this film? He takes a bucket of water, a pie in the face, a cream puff in the face, and has his head slammed in a door to generate a door to open. But, he also ends up being the hero in this movie, so all the physical things barely matter, in the end, because Shemp is the hero.
 Another good gag in the opening part is when Moe is talking to Larry about Shemp's boxing. " There goes Shemp with a left jab! There goes Shemp with an uppercut! There goes Shemp with a hay-maker!" then we hear a sound effect and Moe says, " There goes Shemp.."
 Of course, then they encounter the villains of the movie, where the movie takes a slide downhill. I used to love the movie as a child, except looking back at it now, it's less enjoyable. I just don't like plots like this movie where first we have great comedic stuff and then the movie goes downhill all because of the villains. Even though the villains are very fairly decently played.
 The middle sequence... There is great potential for a cream puff fight right here, but the writers must've figured that they had a pie fight in the last movie, so it would've been a bit repetitive.
 However the villains strike again this time talking about bets. Bleh. Boring.
 The ending sequence ( the chase).. This would've worked well. There's just something I can't put my finger on about this scene. This scene has its flaws, including one thing: It's a bit long! It takes up about 1/3 of the movie, which this scene could've been cut down to a shorter length.
 But, there are also things that I do like about this scene: One thing is the part where one of the villains is talking to a villain that was previously knocked out by The Three Stooges, and Moe has to move its head. That scene is quite hilarious, and does get a couple of laughs.
 Also, I like the use of Shemp being the hero, for he is the one to release the moth balls that cause the villains to fall and for he is also the one to bonk the villains on the head with a mallet. It just works out good, because in Curly shorts, usually the third Stooge did not save the day, and I notice in the Shemp shorts the third Stooge usually takes care of whatever problems the Stooges usually face.
 Then, The Three Stooges are rewarded money, and this movie all ends with a happy ending. All's that ends well.
 My overall thoughts: A fairly decent movie that is a sort of jumbled up movie that has various good parts, but also some various parts. Believe me, this was a hard one to rate, except I'm going to go with Metal and rate this a

 8/10

[Shemp_Diesel]

We've chewed the fat on a number of good subjects about this short--but unless I missed something, the best lines of all haven't been mentioned:

"Don't be a baby, it's all in fun."

"I hate fun!"

 

[Desmond Of The Outer Sanctorum]

one of the villains is talking to a villain that was previously knocked out by The Three Stooges, and Moe has to move its head.

I agree that that part is hilarious.

But why is it that unconscious people in the Stooge universe almost always have their eyes wide open? Oh, well, that's another subject.

[Paul Pain]

I agree that that part is hilarious.

But why is it that unconscious people in the Stooge universe almost always have their eyes wide open? Oh, well, that's another subject.

It depends.  Having been knocked out before, sometimes your eyes are still open, sometimes they aren't.

Shemp does better with the "I'm dyin!" than Curly does.

[Woe-ee-Woe-Woe80]

I've thought Shemp did a really good job returning to the Stooges after Curly has suffered a major stroke which disabled him and gave a great performance, I didn't think Moe & Larry gave out their best performances in this short although it is understandable considering Curly has suffered a stroke and they didn't know what their careers would be like working with Shemp, fortunately by the time of "Hold That Lion" we've gotten to see the Stooges perform at their best again.

Overall I give this short a 7/10, "Fright Night" was only a good short and it wasn't until "Hold That Lion" when we get to see the Stooges second golden era which lasted until 1952.

[TwoOunceBrain]

This was a funny short, but the only thing that hurts it is the film's title, since people were expecting this to be a scare comedy.

[Dr. Mabuse]

The show must go on.

Shemp's adept comic skill revitalizes the trio amid Columbia's lower production values. With Edward Bernds at the helm,  "Fright Night" is a fast, funny and seamless transition to a new Stooge era — followed by even better shorts. Still, as Larry admitted in a 1973 interview, "When we lost Curly, we took a hit."

8/10

[Daddy Dewdrop]

As we close in on my Top 80 Stooge shorts, it's really starting to split hairs as I find ALL of them to be wildly entertaining.  I have a hard time choosing between Curly and Shemp as I love them both.  The (later) Shemp era starts off in fine style here.  I rank this one #81 overall.