The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names, “Moe, Larry, and Curly”.
The Three Stooges got their start as sidekicks to Ted Healy’s raucous vaudeville act, called “Ted Healy and His Stooges” or “Ted Healy and His Southern Gentlemen.” Healy tries to tell jokes, while his noisy assistants, brothers Moe and Shemp Howard and Larry Fine, interrupt. This original trio did one feature film entitled “Soup to Nuts” after which Shemp left the group to pursue a solo career, and was replaced by his brother Curly Howard. This incarnation of the team was the first to be known on film as The Three Stooges. Shemp rejoined the group after Curly suffered a debilitating stroke in May 1946, reinstating the original line-up until November 1955, when Shemp died of a heart attack. As an interim replacement, film actor Joe Palma was used in four Shemp-era shorts, followed by Joe Besser as a long-term replacement. Ultimately, Joe DeRita (nicknamed “Curly Joe”) replaced Joe Besser by 1958. The act regained momentum throughout the 1960s as popular kiddie fare until Larry Fine’s paralyzing stroke in January 1970 effectively marked the end of the act proper. Moe tried unsuccessfully one final time to revive the Stooges with longtime supporting actor Emil Sitka filling in for Larry. Larry ultimately succumbed to a series of additional strokes in January 1975, followed by Moe, who died of lung cancer in May 1975.
They appeared in 220 films throughout their career. Of those 220, 190 short films were made for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959, for which the trio are best known. A handful of the Three Stooges shorts first aired on television in 1949, on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) network. It was not until 1958 that Screen Gems packaged 78 shorts for national syndication; the package was gradually enlarged to encompass the entire library of 190 shorts for television. Some 50 years after their last short film was released, the Three Stooges remain wildly popular with audiences. Their films have never left the television airwaves since first appearing in 1958, and they continue to delight old fans while attracting a new legion of fervent admirers.
Three Stooges Line-up
Moe Howard
Real Name: Moses Harry Horwitz
Born: June 19, 1897
Died: May 4, 1975 (aged 77)
Stooge years: 1922–1975
Larry Fine
Real Name: Louis Feinberg
Born: October 5, 1902
Died: January 24, 1975 (aged 72)
Stooge years: 1925–1971
Curly Howard
Real Name: Jerome Lester Horwitz
Born: October 22, 1903
Died: January 18, 1952 (aged 48)
Stooge years: 1932–1946
Shemp Howard
Real Name: Samuel Horwitz
Born: March 11, 1895
Died: November 22, 1955 (aged 60)
Stooge years: 1922–1932, 1946–1955
Joe Besser
Born: August 12, 1907
Died: March 1, 1988 (aged 80)
Stooge years: 1956–1958
Joe DeRita (“Curly Joe”)
Real Name: Joseph Wardell
Born: July 12, 1909
Died: July 3, 1993 (aged 83)
Stooge years: 1958–1975
