Stooges DVDs

[Marty McFly]

I was wondering if anyone had a list of all the volumes of the Stooges on DVD. Not the name of every short on the disc, just how many discs were released and what their titles are.

Note: I am looking for the Columbia released ones, not the 3rd parties.

Thanks!

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-->Marty McFly<--

We could really bust some head...in a spiritual sense of course.

My DVD Collection

[Pumpkinhead]

Good question....

[Laughing Gravy]

Hey, hey, at no extra charge, here's a review I wrote for a classic movie website:

To date, Columbia Tristar Home Video has released four volumes of classic Three Stooges shorts in the DVD format. Unfortunately, the shorts included constitute a mixed bag, and the overall package is barely satisfactory..

The Stooges starred in a total of 190 two-reelers for Columbia from 1934 to 1959 (97 with Curly, 77 with Shemp, and 16 with Joe Besser). Some of the best of these shorts are showcased on the four DVD volumes; unfortunately, so are some of the worst.

The first collection is called CURLY CLASSICS and includes six shorts, led by Micro-Phonies (1945), the funniest of the later Curly films. This is the one in which the rotund stooge impersonates ‘Mme. Cucaracha' and sings opera. Moving down the list, we find Punch Drunks, wherein hearing the tune ‘Pop Goes the Weasel' transforms Curly into a vicious pugilist; A-Plumbing We Will Go, the title of which explains the plot, and Woman Haters, the Stooges' first Columbia short, spoken entirely in rhyme. The collection is rounded out with Men in Black, a not-too-funny short that surprisingly received an Academy Award nomination for Best Short Subject, and Three Little Pigskins, which at least has Lucille Ball in it. Overall, Curly Classics rates ** out of 4.

The second collection is entitled ALL THE WORLD'S A STOOGE, and contains seven shorts, including one of their best, Violent is the Word for Curly (1938), directed by Charley Chase. The Stooges impersonate college professors and sing ‘Swingin' the Alphabet'. None of the other shorts on this disc come near the entertainment value of that one; Grips, Grunts and Groans has Curly subbing for a wrestler, 3 Dumb Clucks features the titular characters trying to prevent their father's marriage (dear old dad is portrayed by Curly with sideburns!), Three Little Pirates features the classic ‘Rajah' routine that the Stooges would utilize often in the future, and Back to the Woods showcases the boys as frontiersmen fighting off Indians. At the bottom of this collection's barrel are All the World's a Stooge, which concerns the Stooges masquerading as children, and doesn't live up to its clever title, and Uncivil War Birds, one of the later Curly shorts that are almost painful to watch (incidentally, don't confuse this short with the much earlier – and much funnier – Uncivil Warriors, not yet on DVD). **½* for this one.

Next up is the gem of the set, SPOOK LOUDER. Sadly, we're back to only six shorts, but five of ‘em are terrific, and all five feature Shemp: Fright Night, Hokus Pokus, The Ghost Talks, Shivering Sherlocks, and Mummy's Dummies. All are from the period in which Shemp had just returned to the team following Curly's retirement, and all are loaded with laughs. The sixth short, Spook Louder, is the only one on the disc to feature Curly. The collection rates an overall ***½*.

The latest collection is entitled NUTTY BUT NICE, and it is a step down. The only really good short included is Hoi Polloi, in which one nutty professor wages another that he can turn the Stooges into gentlemen. The remake, Half-Wits Holiday, is also included for some reason; it is a much lesser short, notable only as Curly's swan song as a Stooge (he suffered a stroke during filming, and disappears before the climactic pie fight). A-Ducking They Did Go, Higher Than a Kite, Nutty But Nice and False Alarms are typical Stoogefests, with the boys, respectively, as shady hunting license salesmen, auto mechanics, singing waiters and firemen. ** for this one.

Overall, the picture/sound quality of the shorts is excellent, with only a splice here and there. A few of the Stooges' shorts are in the public domain, so you will find such titles as Disorder in the Court, Sing a Song of Six Pants, and Malice in the Palace available from other companies besides Columbia; let the buyer beware. Columbia has promised additional Stooges collections later this year, and one hopes that more care will be put into the selection process. It would also be nice to see some of the later Stooge features with Curly Joe DeRita, such as HAVE ROCKET WILL TRAVEL, THE THREE STOOGES IN ORBIT, and THE THREE STOOGES MEET HERCULES.

An update for July '01:

The fifth official Columbia DVD Stooges collection is entitled MERRY MAVERICKS and features six shorts, most with a Western theme. Best of all is Punch Cowpunchers(1950), with Moe, Larry, and Shemp cavalry members sent to corral the infamous Dillon Gang, with the not-too-able assistance of Jock Mahoney as a clumsy cowpoke ("Shucks! I fell off my horse again!"). Mahoney is side-splitting and this is one of the funniest shorts the Stooges ever did, despite the fact that they're practically supporting players.

The disc also contains Out west, Vagabond Loafers, Dopey Dicks, Merry Mavericks (all with Shemp) and Cactus Makes Perfect(with Curly). All are okay for Stooge fans, with only DOPEY DICKS a real standout. *** for this collection (the next disc, DIZZY DOCTORS, will be released later this month, with disc #7, HEALTHY, WEALTHY, & DUMB, to be out in the fall.

[doctort13]

Are any of Shemp's solo shorts available on any DVD other than "The Early Years" release?