The Three Stooges: An Illustrated History, from Amalgamated Morons to American Icons

by Michael Fleming

Book Overview

More people today can name the members of the Three Stooges than can name three justices of the Supreme Court. The Stooges are comedy icons whose enduring appeal and slapstick legacy have made them... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385488807
• ISBN13: 9780385488808
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: Doubleday Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 2.26 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 8.3" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

OK...so it "ain't" Shakespeare...

But when you think STOOGES...only THREE will come to mind. I can't see ANY of these guys doing Hamlet...(would probably be called OMELET, knowing them), and yet their works have endured over time, and endeared them to us, generation after generation. Mr. Fleming does an outstanding job of capturing the essence of being a "stooge" in the heyday of talkies following vaudeville. The photos are numerous AND hilarious. The quality of paper used in the printing is of note as well. One major selling point is the compilation of ALL their works from the first short to the last appearnance...it's all there! Having read the Moe Howard book as well, it was nice to see another person's perspective on one of (if not the best) comedy teams of all time. I grew up with the stooges shorts being shown on local TV (in Philly), and in all that time, we never lost an eye at our school...lol! So if you need a good, concise tome on these knuckleheads...look no further. This is a very good book, and will surely conjure up a lot of memories.

The Three Stooges: Craftsmen

Perhaps the term "craftsmen" is difficult to associate with the Stooges, however they were masters of slapstick and comedy. Physically comedic in appearance, they were underappreciated and underutilized by the Columbia crowd. In the best of the shorts, their timing was impeccable and their delivery delightful. The book provides a great deal of information as to the particulars of their careers and also reminds us of what could have been, especially in the later "Shemp" years, had they been blessed with better quality writing and production values.

very funny!

the three Stooges have always made me Laugh.they were funny back then & now.this book deals with their rise and the business side.very solid Book.for any fan of theirs this is a special treat.from the first time i saw them i was rolling on the floor and to this day i find them amazing.

Very good of kind

I recall reading in my youth Parent magazine movie reviews in which one of the ratings was "Good of kind"; by which I understood that a film could be (say) of the horror genre and not quite up to a Greer Garson or Bette Davis glitzy soaper, but could still be a very good horror film.Now the Three Stooges were certainly "good of kind." They never could have done Oscar Wilde (or perhaps they could have?)or even rise to the level of Laurel and Hardy (again, perhaps...). But what they did, they did for the most part well. The original theater company that did "Lysistrata" would have welcomed them, as would some medieval troupes that toured the provences with less than high-tone routines.Mr. Fleming's book was given to me as a Christmas gift from my daughter on New Year's Eve, just in time for me to start taping AMC's Three Stooges marathon. Since a good percent of this book is a series of resumes of each Stooge short from the very first "Woman Haters" to the 190th "Sappy Bullfighters," this gift could not have been more opportune. (Would you believe that each episode has appended to it a count of how many slaps, head conks, and pie throwing took place in each film?) This section provides me with a wonderful checklist to see which ones I am still missing.But even before that, we have the wonderful account of how these three/four got to be the mainstay of the Columbia lot and how they kept that position without ever knowing about it, since their bosses kept their value a secret from them.The saddest part is certainly the section about Curley's growing deterioration leading up to his collapse in the film #97 and Shemp's replacing him in film #98.The only error I can find (other than a disputed number of pies thrown in an episode here and there) is misnaming "Mutts to You" as "Nuts to You."So if this topic is for you, this book certainly is. As much fun to read as to use as a reference tool for all Stoogephiles.

I laughed, I cried

My boyfriend was laughing out loud as he read this book so after he finished it, I decided to see what was so funny. I was dubious because I've never been a Three Stooges fan, something my boyfriend has always considered a flaw. However, I've always considered his love of the Three Stooges one his flaws. He now feels triumphant because I couldn't put the book down. I've pointed out that I still don't get the Stooges humor - but the story of their development as an act, their vaudeville years, and the relationships between the brothers is fascinating. It's an extremely well written book and I did laugh but what really struck me was how hard The Stooges worked, the amount of physical abuse they suffered while performing, and how much they're still a part of our culture. I'm very glad I read it, I highly recommend it; and much to my boyfriend's amazement, I want to rent a Stooges tape.