DVD Review HTF DVD REVIEW: The Three Stooges Collection Vol. Five: 1946-1948 (1 Viewer)

[Richard Gallagher]

The Three Stooges Collection Volume Five: 1946-1948




Studio: Sony/Columbia

Years: 1946-1948

Rated: Not Rated

Length: 432 minutes

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1

Languages: English

Subtitles: None



The Program

Thankfully, the economic slowdown has not slowed down Sony’s chronological releases of fully-restored Three Stooges shorts. This latest release, which covers the years 1946-1948, is historically significant because it includes the final appearances of Curly and the return of Shemp. Apart from a minor glitch here and there, these shorts look and sound terrific.

This collection includes the following shorts:

Disc One

BEER BARREL POLECATS
A BIRD IN THE HEAD
UNCIVIL WARBIRDS
THREE TROUBLEDOERS
MONKEY BUSINESSMEN
THREE LOAN WOLVES
G.I. WANNA GO HOME
RHYTHM AND WEEP
THREE LITTLE PIRATES
HALF-WITS HOLIDAY (Curly’s last credited short)
FRIGHT NIGHT (the return of Shemp)
OUT WEST
HOLD THAT LION (Curly’s last appearance, uncredited)

Disc Two

BRIDELESS GROOM
SING A SONG OF SIX PANTS
ALL GUMMED UP
SHIVERING SHERLOCKS
PARDON MY CLUTCH
SQUAREHEADS OF THE ROUND TABLE
FIDDLERS THREE
THE HOT SCOTS
HEAVENLY DAZE
I’M A MONKEY’S UNCLE
MUMMY’S DUMMIES
CRIME ON THEIR HANDS

Curly Howard, of course, suffered a stroke on the final day of filming on HALF-WIT’S HOLIDAY. Shemp Howard, who had carved out a successful career in Hollywood as a second banana for the likes of Abbott and Costello, agreed to replace his younger brother until Curly recovered. Unfortunately, Curly’s condition deteriorated and he died in 1952 at the age of 48. Shemp remained a Stooge, along with brother Moe and Larry Fine, until his death in 1955. Viewers can catch a glimpse of Curly in his final appearance, as a sleeping train passenger, in HOLD THAT LION.

Fans of Christine McIntyre will be please to see that she appears in eight of these shorts. Sharp-eyed viewers may recognize that “Cedric the Blacksmith” in SQUAREHEADS OF THE ROUND TABLE is played by Jacques O’Mahoney, who later changed his name to Jock Mahoney. He went on to star in two televisions series (THE RANGE RIDER and YANCY DERRINGER) and later played Tarzan in a couple of feature films.

Shemp was not as adept at physical comedy as Curly, who arguably had been the most popular Stooge. Nevertheless, Shemp was an accomplished comic actor and most of the shorts in which he appears have plenty of laughs. Fans who want to see all of the Stooges shorts released (and who among us does not?) should let Sony know that we want to see all of the Shemp shorts and all of the Joe Besser shorts. It is encouraging to see that this collection is already ranked #36 in sales at Amazon, so I have to believe that we will see Volume Six later this year.

The Video

The shorts in this collection have been meticulously restored and look terrific. Yes, there is the occasional soft spot (in particular, a few frames of UNCIVIL WARBIRDS look like they were spliced in from a third-generation dupe), but by and large the images are positively stunning. Indeed, it is difficult to believe that these shorts have ever looked better. Contrasts are strong, and Sony has resisted the temptation to apply excessive DNR. These shorts retain an appropriate level of grain, giving them a satisfying film-like appearance.

The Audio

The English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtracks obviously offer nothing which will tax your sound system, but the mono sound is clear, intelligible, and devoid of annoying hiss and distortion. Every word of dialogue is clear and intelligible.

The Supplements

As with the prior four volumes, there are no supplements on this set.

Other Features

Each disc includes the option of playing all shorts or selecting individual shorts.

The Packaging

The 25 shorts in this collection are spread over two discs, each with its own slimcase. The two slimcases are held in a slipcase. The artwork on the covers of the slimcases is similar to the artwork on the slipcase, except that the slimcases have different thumbnail photographs. The back of each slimcase includes a brief summary of each short.

The Final Analysis

I have said it before and I will say it again – I cannot recommend this set more highly. Stooges fans continue to snap up these sets as fast as Sony can produce them. It is encouraging the see that Sony has given the same superb restoration to the Shemp shorts that we have seen in the prior collections, so I remain optimistic that this will continue.

I repeat my earlier plea – buy one set for yourself and another for a friend. For Duty and Humanity!

Equipment used for this review:

Toshiba HD-XA-2 DVD player
Sharp LC-42D62U LCD display
Yamaha HTR-5890 THX Surround Receiver
BIC Acoustech speakers
Interconnects: Monster Cable

Release Date: March 17, 2009

 

[Steve...O]

Thanks, Rich!

It's great to read that the high quality continues with this set. I look forward to seeing my own copy upon release.

Although Curly was irreplacable in many ways, I believe Shemp is a very talented comic who filled his slot very well. Hopefully his work will find a new appreciation with the release of this volume.

 

[Richard Gallagher]

Steve,

You're absolutely correct. There was only one Curly, and Shemp wisely did his own thing and didn't try to be another Curly. Joe Besser didn't work out as well, of course. Shemp and Besser both did a fair amount of work with Abbott and Costello.

 

[David Deeb]

Thanks Richard. Can't wait to pick this up this week.

The quality of the film restoration in this series is fantastic. Sony is doing a great job. Extras and commentaries would be great, however at this price, there really isn't much room for complaining. The value is incredible.

Thanks for pointing out the co-stars, but should also note that the great Emil Sitka begins his long association with the Stooges on this set. I think he went on to co-star in about 40 shorts with the Stooges. Some call him "the 4th Stooge". Moe even considered him for a replacement for Larry after Larry's illness.

Can't wait for the rest of these hilarious Shemp films and looking forward to the rarely seen Joe Besser films almost as much as any of the popular films.

 

[Xenia Stathakopoulou]

Richard, is the picture quality here even better than the first 4 volumes, since these are slightly newer shorts ????Not that I wasnt impressed with the other volumes, just curious.

 

[Ockeghem]

Amen. I have been counting the days to the 17th.

 

[Richard Gallagher]

I wouldn't say better per se, but I would say that that there is somewhat improved consistency. I noted that in earlier volumes close-ups tended to be on the soft side. That is less evident with the newer shorts. I suspect that this is a reflection of the original elements rather than the restoration/transfer processes.

 

[Xenia Stathakopoulou]

Thanks Richard,sounds good to me.Hopefully, we will at least get up to volume 7 by years end.

 

[Harry-N]

Thanks for the review, Richard. I'm looking forward to this set and hope I can find it in a brick & mortar store tomorrow.

Though I fondly remember watching the Three Stooges growing up in the '50's when they had their renaissance on television, I always had a penchant for the "Curly" titles. At that young age, I didn't appreciate Shemp, nor was their any explanation by the kiddie-TV hosts about whatever happened to Curly. Each was just there or not there, depending on the title being run.

In my later years, I've come to appreciate Shemp, certainly more than I used to, and I hope to be able to watch and enjoy his contributions to the Three Stooges. I've dutifully bought and enjoyed each of the prior volumes to this point and hope that Sony Legacy continues this fine program to its proper conclusion.

Harry

 

[Bill Parisho]

I said it before and I'll say it again. Please e-mail and congratulate Sony on the wonderful job they're doing with these sets.

 

[Mark Y]

Just a quirky thing I noticed on this set. Each short is preceded by a brief silent Columbia logo -- it's sort of the "successor" of the old Screen Gems TV distribution logo that used to appear at the beginning (and sometimes end) of TV prints of the Stooge shorts. Maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong -- starting with "You Nazty Spy" in 1940, the Stooge shorts did not have a Columbia studio logo at the beginning when originally released in theatres. The Screen Gems intro was added for the first TV release in 1958, and in later years, later TV prints replaced the Screen Gems with a Columbia logo (Screen Gems changed its corporate name to Columbia Pictures Television in the mid-1970s). I remember seeing "So Long Mr. Chumps" in Chicago in the mid-1980s with a short Columbia logo accompanied by the old Screen Gems fanfare -- an oddity; otherwise those Columbia intro logos would be silent like on the new DVD collection.

It's beyond trivial, and really doesn't matter whether it's there or not (since it's not an original part of the films as first released) but I thought it was kind of cool.

As for the shorts themselves, what I've looked at so far has looked and sounded excellent, up to the standard of the previous volumes. I certainly hope to see this series completed -- I've read suggestions that later volumes might include Shemp Howard's and Joe Besser's solo Columbia comedy shorts as extras -- I'd love to see that happen. It would provide something more, different from what a lot of people have seen before.

Keeping my fingers crossed that Sony will indeed go all the way with this.

 

[Robert13]

I picked my copy up today. Haven't watched it yet but I'm very excited to have "The Hot Scots" on dvd, one of my faves.

Hopefully, they will announce Volume 6 soon to keep these coming out a steady pace.

Does anyone know if they are sticking with a 9 volume or 8 volume set at the moment?

 

[Jonathan Peterson]

Just a heads up to anyone who hasn't ordered these sets yet. Amazon has the first four for only $13.99 and Volume 5 for $15.99. That is an awesome deal and I was able to fill in my collection.

 

[PaulP]

Mine should be arriving today from Amazon. Hopefully the next volume isn't far behind. They promised to be done by the end of the year.

 

[Joe Tor1]

Does anyone know if there was a cut in “Beer Barrel Polecats” (The first short of the set)?

The Stooges wreak havoc on themselves while brewing homemade beer, are sent to prison for selling a bottle to a detective, are photographed, accidentally slug the Warden and douse him with sand, and find themselves breaking rocks.

When they are breaking rocks, they mention another prisoner (14414?) whom they are to break out of jail! Where did that plot element come from?

Was there a cut scene that established this? Or was it just very loose plotting? It seems odd, even for a Three Stooges.

So, experts... what's the verdict?

 

[Jonathan Peterson]

I am anything but an expert but according to Wiki they used scenes from previous shorts. Maybe that explains it.

Beer Barrel Polecats - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Joe Tor1]

Thanks Jonathan! It says...

"While in prison, the Stooges begin to plot their escape (recycled footage from In the Sweet Pie and Pie), and end up destroying the saws being used to whittle down the iron bars in their cell. A few days later, the Stooges have a run-in with a fellow convict (Joe Palma), leading them to knock the warden (Vernon Dent) out cold, and landing them on the rock pile. While hammering away, the boys stumble on an old friend also in the clink, Percy Pomeroy (Eddie Laughton), and work together to flee the prison (recycled footage from So Long Mr. Chumps). They are ultimately captured, and sent to solitary confinement."

Okay, I understand use and re-use of stock footage. Lots of my favorite TV shows did this too.

BUT, someone should have noticed that the "Pomeroy Escape Plot" came out of nowhere.

Okay, though... I'm no longer concerned about a cut. Thanks, again!

Now, I'll have to go back and watch "So Long Mr. Chumps". (Volume Three)

 

[Mark Y]

Yes, that has always jumped out at me too. The "So Long Mr. Chumps" footage is out of context and makes no sense in "Beer Barrel Polecats." It didn't make any sense to me as a kid either -- nor did a death sentence for making bootleg beer 13 years after Prohibition ended.

Wait til they get to the 1950s shorts, when Joe Besser runs up a chimney, Moe fires a pistol at him, and Shemp yells!

 

[Mark Y]

I don't think anything has been officially stated, but someone from the fan club did get in contact with someone from Sony who said they will finish the series by the end of this year. Latest word is that they'll be adding Shemp's solo shorts to the 1955-1956 shorts, and Joe Besser's solo shorts to the final volume. We'll see if that pans out. Also no word on the later features -- they've all been out on DVD except "Have Rocket Will Travel" -- a set of those would be nice, and I'd love to see them in full-frame too...I'll have to look at "Stop! Look! And Laugh!" again, but our local station ran that one last weekend and it's hard to describe, but they kind of "zoomed/stretched" the image from the widescreen version. (There were still borders at the top and bottom but barely noticeable.) People say they were "protected for widescreen," but there is a scene in there from "How High Is Up" where Curly is doing some acrobatics on a high building, sliding backwards on girders just far enough to not fall to his death. In the version I saw recently, it's cropped in such a way where you can't see that and it kills the gag. (I'll have to re-look at the DVD.)

Anyway, I'd love to see a features set -- nothing's been announced, but if they do one, they'd ought to include "Rockin' In The Rockies," and the "Three Stooges Scrapbook" pilot and Joe De Rita solo shorts as extras. That would be cool. I'd "double-dip" on the features if they did that -- especially if they're not cropped.

 

[Ockeghem]

I just watched this one the other day. I love that short -- Curly's movement toward the end of the girder is priceless. I'll watch much more closely for some of what you've mentioned the next time around.