For nearly five decades, the comedy teamThe Three Stoogesproduced films, performances, vaudeville acts, and more. Typically, the acts featured three of their titular, oddball stooges. Considered by many to bea legendary comedy trio, The Three Stooges featured six members — or “stooges” — in their time, but none were as popular a lineup as Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and Curly Howard. It was under thisStoogestrio that the group began working with Columbia Pictures: a distributor that would grant the group fame and injury alike.
During the filming of many short-subjectThe Three Stoogesfilms, some of the series’ most prominent cast members sustained serious injuries. The injuries were, for the most part, related to the physical humor required by the project’s slapstick elements, but some were outliers. Here are some instances in which productions ofThe Three Stoogescaused real-life injury to its cast.
The Stooges' Humble Start, and Their End
In the beginning, The Three Stooges were a vaudeville act that primarily operated under performer and comedian Ted Healy. Forming in the early 1920s, Healy — accompanied by his hardy crew of “Stooges” — would perform comedy acts that involved the group’s trademark slapstick and physical humor. Starting with Healy and Moe, the group grew from there, adding Fine and Shemp Howard before their Columbia Pictures era. As their popularity spread, one thing led to another, and by the mid-1930s, The Three Stooges were producing their short-subject films for Columbia, at the time run by president Harry Cohn.
Before shooting for Columbia Pictures began, Curly would formally replace Shemp. For Columbia, the Moe, Larry, and Curly lineup produced films as The Three Stooges steadily, until Curly suffered his first major stroke in 1945. While the event marked a major change for the group, Curly’s health was not unknown. It had been reported that Curly started suffering effects from filming as early as1942, ten years prior to his death. In sustaining a series of minor cerebral hemorrhages, Curry had begun to show signs of worsening health, and found it harder to make appearances. It was not long before he was unable to play the role.
Shemp returned following Curly’s departure fromThe Three Stoogesin 1946. The original stooge acted as the group’s third member until his own death following a cerebral hemorrhage. Shemp would ultimately die in 1955, three years and ten months after his brother Curly. Actor Joe Palmer stood in for Shemp following the tragedy. The third stooge role was then played by Joe Besser and “Curly Joe” DeRita during the group’s waning later years.
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Injuries Sustained by The Three Stooges
Many ponder to what extent the causes of Curly and Shemp’s deaths may be attributed to their working environments, but the problems were clearly present. In addition to Shemp and Curly’s deaths, Fine and Moe would both pass away in 1975. Fine, similar to his costar, suffered a series of strokes while Moe died during his battle with lung cancer.
During their careers, the injuries which the Stooges sustained ranged from minor blemishes to severe blows that left the cast broke and battered. While accidental injury iscommon within filmmaking, the injuries sustained by the Stooges during their time may read as more avoidable today. This was due to a variety of reasons, including poor working conditions, poor standards of safety, and evenviolence quotas per each film, sometimes put into place by directors.
Stoogesdirector Jules White was particularly known to extenuate and expand the production’s violence. White was known to approve of potential weapons on-set, such as mallets, saws, and scissors. Injuries as a result included sprained ankles, a broken nose, and damaged teeth. Unrelated injuries involved an instance where a fountain pen punctured the back of Fine’s head. On the other hand, Curly took an even rougher blow to his skull after his cranium struck a 2x4 during a stunt. The stunt ended in him getting six stitches.
The Stooges sustained so many injuries that some viewers may have thought them more durable than the average human, as was the case when a 9-year-old fanbeat the trio with a caneat the Atlantic City boardwalk. While the injuries they sustained may have accelerated and worsened health complications, the violence was not the only malpractice suffered by the Stooges. In the same environment that welcomed their injuries, theStoogescrew had their paychecks shorted for years by Columbia Pictures.
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How The Three Stooges Were Robbed
By adding insult to their injuries, The Three Stooges were not only physically harmed during their time with Columbia Pictures, but unfairly compensated, too. While stars arenot guaranteed a pay raisewhen reprising roles (and the members were allowed raises), the Stooges were routinely lied to about their popularity and rightful, projected income. When it came to their share of the pot, the trio simply saw less than what they were deserved. This was achieved by Columbia president Cohn, who kept the cast on a one-year contract during their partnership. The one-year model forced the trio to renegotiate their partnership every year. In addition to the lies, the company’s shorts department was suffering from financial trouble; the Stooges believed this was why there was a sense of urgency.
Despite what was reported to them, The Three Stooges ensured prosperity within Columbia’s shorts department: a department that proved lucrative between the late ’30s and ’40s, all thanks to the Stooges. The false info from Columbia was all to ensure that the trio remained onThe Three Stooges, and remained working for less than their worth. Today, The Three Stooges' fast-paced brand of comedy goes hand-in-hand with their legacy’s discussion. Fromhigh-selling auction itemsto thereboots, returns, and rerunsthat air still today, it’s clearThe Three Stoogesand their oft-wild stunts have not been forgotten.
