Death Fact Check, Birthday & Date of DeathMoe Howard - Biography
The leader of the Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television for four decades, was an American actor and comedian known as "Moe Howard".Ted Healy and His Stooges was an act that toured the vaudeville circuit.When he was a boy, he cut his hair off with a pair of scissors, creating a ragged shape that resembled a bowl cut.
Howard was the fourth of five sons to be born to the Horwitz family and he was born in Brooklyn, New York.He was called Harry when he was a child.He, his older brother Shemp Howard, and his younger brother Curly Howard became known as members of the Three Stooges because they weren't involved in show business.Jack said that he had many Horatio Alger books, and that it was his brother's greatest pleasure to read them.They gave him ideas by the dozen.I think they helped him become a person of good character and a successful person.He was able to memorize his lines quickly and easily.
Howard's "bowl cut" hairstyle became his trademark despite his mother initially refusing to cut his hair in childhood.He cut his hair in the backyard after being teased at school.He stated during an appearance on The Mike Douglas Show that he used to fight his way to school.[2]
Howard played hookey from school because of his interest in acting, which caused his grades to get worse.I stood there until someone came and asked them to buy my ticket.An adult was needed to accompany a juvenile into the theater.When I succeeded, I would give him my ten cents, and I'd go up to the top of the balcony and watch the show from start to finish.I would follow the performance of the actor I liked the most.[3]
Howard graduated from P.S. despite his waning attendance.After only two months at the high school, he dropped out.After taking an electric shop course to please his parents, he quit to pursue a career in show business.[3]
Most of Howard's work was destroyed when a 1910 fire destroyed the films done at the Vitagraph Studios in Midwood, Brooklyn.In 1909, he met a young man named Ernest Lea Nash, who was later to provide a significant boost for his career ambitions.They worked in Annette Kellermann's aquatic act as diving "girls" in 1912.[3]
Howard continued his attempts at gaining show-business experience by singing in a bar with his older brother Shemp until their father put a stop to it, and in 1914 he joined a performing troupe on a Mississippi River showboat.In 1921, he and Ted were in a comedy routine.In 1923, he yelled at Shemp from the stage after seeing him in the audience.Shemp Howard was immediately hired as a permanent part of the act after he heckled the two brothers during the performance.
After retiring in June 1925, he went into real estate with his mother.The Shubert Brothers' A Night in Spain (January 1927–November 1928) had a successful Broadway run, as well as a national tour.Larry Fine joined the troupe after A Night in Spain and the end of a four-month run in Chicago, Illinois.
After the show ended in November, he signed for the Shuberts' new show, A Night in Venice, and recruited Moe Howard out of retirement to rejoin the act.In early 1929, Howard, Larry Fine, and Shemp Howard came together for the first time as a trio.After A Night in Venice closed in 1930, the trio toured as "Ted Healy and His Racketeers".[3]
"Harry Howard", Shemp, Larry, and Fred Sanborn were all in the first movie, Soup to Nuts, which was made on the verge of hitting the big time.On August 28, 1930, "Howard, Fine, and Howard" was performed for the first time at L.A.'s Paramount Theatre.They joined the RKO circuit and toured for almost two years before changing their name to "Three Lost Souls" and taking on Jack Walsh as their straight man.[4]
In July of 1932, the three of them accepted the offer of rejoining him for the new Shubert Broadway passing show.Ted walked out on the Shuberts during passing rehearsals in New York over a contract dispute.On August 19, 1932, Shemp gave his notice having not seen eye-to-eye with the hard-drinking and sometimes belligerent Healy and decided to remain with Passing which closed in September after pan reviews of its first roadshow performances in Detroit and Cincinnati.Shemp stayed at the studio for almost four years.
On August 20, the day after Shemp's departure, Moe suggested adding his youngest brother to the act; contrary to some sources, no search was conducted for a replacement.Jerry was so eager to join the act that he shaved off his auburn mustache and hair and ran on stage during the performance.Jerry, who took the stage name Curly, was hired by Healy.Ted performed on stage at Cleveland's RKO Palace on August 27, 1932, to introduce the new lineup of Moe, Larry, and Curly.Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer hired Healy and the Stooges to liven up feature films and short subjects with their antics.
Healy was being groomed as a solo character comedian after a number of appearances in MGM films.In 1934, with Healy pursuing his own career, his Stooges signed with Columbia Pictures, where they stayed until December 1957, making 190 comedy shorts.[3]
With the departure of Healy, the leader of the team was assumed to be a bully who was prone to slapstick violence.Despite his rather cruel demeanor towards his pals, Moe was also very loyal and protective of the other ones on film, keeping them from harm, and should it befall them, doing whatever it took to save them.
His on-screen persona did not reflect his real personality according to his autobiography.He boasted of being a shrewd businessman by wisely investing the money he made from his film career, but he didn't get any royalties from any of their shorts, and Columbia owned the rights.According to Larry Fine, Columbia allowed the Stooges to do live tours when they were not filming in exchange for half- salary during those months.The yearly take increased because of the profits from the tours.
The first Three Stooges short, Woman Haters, was released in1934.Columbia was making a series of two-reel "Musical Novelties" with the dialogue spoken in rhyme, and the Stooges were recruited to support comedian Marjorie White.The main titles of the Stooges were changed to give them the top billing.This print is seen on TV and video today.[3]
Their next film, Punch Drunks, was the only short film written entirely by the Three Stooges, with Curly as a reluctant boxer who goes ballistic every time he hears "Pop Goes the Weasel".Men in Black was their first and only film to be nominated for an Academy Award.Three Little Pigskins, Pop Goes the Easel, and Hoi Polloi are some of the short films they made at a steady pace of eight per year.[3]
The Three Stooges made several anti-Nazi short films in the 1940s.I'll Never Heil Again and They Stooge to Conga are Moe's favorites.These shorts were the first of which preceded The Great Dictator by months.[3]
During the filming of Half-Wits Holiday, Curly suffered a stroke.Prior to the filming of Beer Barrel Polecats, he had suffered a number of them and was replaced by Shemp, but only until Curly would be well enough to rejoin.Curly appeared in Hold That Lion!He died of a second series of strokes at the age of 48 on January 18, 1952 after a brief appearance in the only Three Stooges film to contain all three Howard brothers.[3]
The idea of a weekly sitcom series on the premise that the Stooges would try a different job or business every week was the brainchild of the trio after Shemp rejoined the act.The source of the comedy was that anything they tried turned out to be a disaster.The pilot took a day to film and never aired.It was most likely a kinescope film of a three-camera television production.
B.B.The show was stopped by Columbia Pictures' vice president of business affairs.They were warned that they couldn't perform in a TV series that might compete with their two-reel comedies.Columbia threatened to take the boys to court if they tried to sell the series.The project was abandoned to avoid a legal hassle.The film is in the public domain.
The Three Stooges' series of shorts were popular through the 1950s.Gold Raiders was a George O'Brien Western.In the 1950s, he co-produced Western and musical films.
Shemp died of a heart attack at the age of 60.Jules White used old footage of Shemp to complete four more films, with Columbia regular Joe Palma filling in for her, until Columbia head Harry Cohn hired Joe Besser.Howard wanted a "two-stooge" act, and it was Cohn's idea, not his, to replace Shemp as part of the act.
Besser is an established Columbia comedy shorts star and frequent movie supporting player.The shorts were filmed by Joe, Larry, and Moe.The making of short subjects came to an end before Cohn's death.He was hired by Harry Romm as an associate producer.The stories that he was forced to take a job as a gofer at Columbia are completely false.[3]
The library of short films was sold by Columbia to Screen Gems.A new audience of young fans was gained by this.The new "third Stooge" is Joe DeRita, who is also known as "Curly-Joe" because of his resemblance to Curly Howard and to differentiate him from Joe Besser.Both Shemp Howard and Joe Besser had starred in a series of their own comedy shorts.Paul Shannon, host of Adventure Time at WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh, and Sally Starr at WFIL in Philadelphia are two of the local television children's shows that ran the Stooges films.The films were so popular that some fans tried to duplicate the actions of Moe, prompting the Stooges to warn them against it.
The rejuvenated trio starred in six feature-length movies, including Have Rocket, Will Travel and Snow White and the Three Stooges.[3]
Howard, Larry, and Curly-Joe continued to make live appearances, many notable "guest appearances", such as as three firemen who appear for only a few seconds and a longer appearance in 4 for Texas.The cartoons sandwiched between live-action segments of the Stooges filmed in color were the subject of a children's cartoon show.
The Steve Allen Show, Here's Hollywood, Masquerade Party, The Ed Sullivan Show and The Joey Bishop Show were some of the shows that featured the Stooges.
The men were paid residuals for their later efforts and continued to receive the bulk of the profits from sales of Stooges merchandise.When his show-business life slowed down, he sold his real estate and did minor roles in movies such as Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title and Doctor Death: Seeker of Souls.
During an interview with the writer of a "where-are-they-now" book, Douglas' hair in a style popular at the time, made a surprise appearance.When the audience was given the chance to ask the writer about famous people, Howard asked, "What happened to the Three Stooges?"He combed his hair after being recognized by Douglas.There needs to be an episode needed.
The production of Kook's Tour, which was a documentary of Howard, Larry, and Curly-Joe out of character, touring the US and meeting with fans, was halted on January 9, 1970, when Larry suffered a major stroke during filming.He died on January 24, 1975, at the age of 72.Kook's Tour was released in a 52 minute version after enough footage of Larry was shot.After Fine's stroke, Howard asked a supporting actor to replace Larry, but this final lineup never shot any material.