Phony Express is the 75th short subject

Short subject

A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...

 starring American slapstick

Slapstick

Slapstick is a type of comedy involving exaggerated violence and activities which may exceed the boundaries of common sense.- Origins :The phrase comes from the batacchio or bataccio — called the 'slap stick' in English — a club-like object composed of two wooden slats used in Commedia dell'arte...

 comedy team the Three Stooges

Three Stooges

The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...

. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures

Columbia Pictures

Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...

 between 1934 and 1959.

Plot

The sheriff of Peaceful Gulch places a picture of the Stooges in the paper, claiming they are famous marshalls coming to rid the little town of its criminals. Despite this, the boys are almost chased out of the town after nearly poisoning the ill sheriff (Snub Pollard

Snub Pollard

Harry "Snub" Pollard was a silent film comedian, popular in the 1920s.-Career:Often mistaken as the brother of Australian actress Daphne Pollard, in fact the two were not related despite their shared surname. Harry Pollard was born as Harold Fraser and took the name Pollard as his stage name...

) who is suffering from lumbago. The sheriff finally puts them in charge of guarding the bank, which gets robbed while their backs are turned. To avoid being hanged, the Stooges search the area, with Curly in bloodhound

Bloodhound

The Bloodhound is a large breed of dog which, while originally bred to hunt deer and wild boar, was later bred specifically to track human beings. It is a scenthound, tracking by smell, as opposed to a sighthound, which tracks using vision. It is famed for its ability to discern human odors even...

 mode. The Stooges eventually discover the stolen money, but not before almost being discovered by the main outlaw, Red (Bud Jamison

Bud Jamison

Bud Jamison was an American film actor. He appeared in 450 films between 1915 and 1944.-Career:...

).