| Beer Barrel Polecats | |
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Release Date |
January 10, 1946 |
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Directed by |
Jules White |
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Written by |
Gilbert Pratt |
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Produced by |
Jules White |
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Preceded by |
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Followed by |
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Beer Barrel Polecats is the 88th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.
Cast[]
- Moe Howard
- Larry Fine
- Curly Howard
- Robert B. Williams
- Vernon Dent
- Bruce Bennett
- Lynton Brent
- Eddie Laughton
- Joe Palma
- Al Thompson
- Blackie Whiteford
Plot[]
Unable to find a bottle of beer anywhere in their town, the Stooges decide to brew some of the stuff themselves. Unfortunately, Curly ends up selling a bottle at a black market price to a detective, landing the trio in jail. Curly tries to smuggle a barrel of beer in jail under his overcoat, but the barrel explodes under the heat of lights while the trio has their mugshots taken.
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, leading them to knock the warden 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, and work together to flee the prison (recycled footage from So Long Mr. Chumps). They are ultimately captured, and sent to solitary confinement.
After 40 years the trio are finally released as senior citizens, in which Curly, upon leaving, says, "You know what I'm-a gonna do? I'm gonna get myself a tall, big, beautiful bottle of beer!" Moe and Larry are so enraged at Curly that they beat him up and throw Curly back into jail!
Notes[]
- Curly Howard suffered a series of minor strokes prior to filming Beer Barrel Polecats. As a result, his performance was marred by slurred speech, and slower timing. He had also lost a great deal of weight by the time filming began. Though his performance was more spirited than most post-stroke films, he was unable to maintain the vitality for the duration of the normal 4-5 day filming schedule. To compensate for an unavailable Curly, director Jules White utilized footage from In the Sweet Pie and Pie and So Long Mr. Chumps, which featured a healthier and heavier Curly.
- Upon hearing that Curly's absence temporarily halted production on the profitable Stooge shorts, Columbia Pictures president Harry Cohn allegedly forbid the ailing Stooge from taking any future time off to regain his strength. It was a disastrous course of action that would culminate with Curly suffering a debilitating stroke on the set of Half-Wits Holiday in May 1946.
- This episode was actually the final appearance of Eddie Laughton, who later passed away in 1952, the same year Curly, Dick Curtis, and Duke York died. Laughton appeared in two Three Stooges recycled footage episodes in 1951 and 1959 called Pest Man Wins in 1951 from the previous one called In the Sweet Pie and Pie in 1941. He also appeared in another recycled footage after his death in 1952 called Sappy Bull Fighters which was the final episode of the Three Stooges in 1959 and from the previous one was called What's the Matador? in 1942.
Video[]
The Three Stooges S13E01 Beer Barrel Polecats
