The New Three Stooges
Encyclopedia
The New Three Stooges is a syndicated
television program
that ran from 1965-1966 starring the Three Stooges. The show follows the trio's antics both in live-action and animated segments. The cast consisted of Moe Howard
, Larry Fine
and Curly-Joe DeRita, with actor and close friend Emil Sitka
co-starring, as well as Margaret Kerry
. This was also the only Three Stooges series that was aired on television. The first attempt was in 1949 with Shemp Howard with Jerks of All Trades
. The third attempt was Kook's Tour
with Curly-Joe in late 1969 and early 1970. Jerks of All Trades and Kook's Tour are currently in the public domain and are sold on video.
, Moe's son-in-law, who was their film agent at this time. Edward Bernds
, who had directed the Three Stooges when they were making their ever-popular shorts from 1945–1952, was also hired to write and direct the series. Emil Sitka
, who had appeared in many of the Stooges comedies over the years, was slated to appear in these wraparounds as straightman or stooge to the Stooges.
Cambria Studios
produced 156 short Stooge cartoons under the supervision of Lee Orgel. Four cartoons were produced to correspond thematically with forty of the live-action Stooge opening and closing sequences, so that one live-action sequence could serve as a wraparound for four different cartoons. Joe DeRita later commented that this presented something of a problem for viewers:
The pilot cartoon, "That Little Old Bomb Maker," featured a unique live-action wrap around that was not reused on other cartoons.
, although still not as limited in animation as Cambria Studios
' three previous Syncro-Vox
series, Clutch Cargo
, Space Angel
, and Captain Fathom
. This was one of the few Cambria productions that did not use the Syncro-Vox technique. The boys were visibly aging during this time (Moe was 68, and Larry was 63), so the slapstick
was subdued in the live action segments. In an interview on Rhino Entertainment
's first volume of these shows, Lee Orgel also states that the Stooges' penchant for slapstick violence was kept to a minimum due to the concerns of parental groups. In addition, Larry's motor skills had begun to slow, resulting in many lines of dialogue being slurred. This resulted in much of the comedy being divided between Moe and Curly Joe, with Larry only chiming in when necessary.
The color television series did last successfully from 1965-1966. Although the show was last aired in syndication
on WGN
in the mid-1990s, it has on rare occasion been seen on Boomerang
and Cartoon Network
since. Some episodes are currently available on VHS
and DVD
(often in cheap "dollar packages") because the majority of the series fell into the public domain
.
The New Three Stooges became the only regularly scheduled television show in history for the Stooges. Unlike other films shorts that aired on TV like the Looney Tunes
, Tom and Jerry
, and Popeye
, the film shorts of the Stooges never had a regularly scheduled national television program to air in, neither on network nor syndicated. When Columbia/Screen Gems licensed the film library to television, the shorts aired in any fashion the local stations chose (examples: late-night "filler" material between the end of the late movie and the channel's sign-off time; in "marathon" sessions running shorts back-to-back for one, one-and-a-half, or two hours; etc.)
, Cambria Studios' distributor
was supposed to forward quarterly statements to the trio to keep them abreast of the show's profits. Norman Maurer recalled receiving only one or two statements over a five-year period, ultimately leading to a lawsuit. Ironically, the judge
presiding over the case knew little about the film or television industry and ruled in favor of Cambria. The Stooges would appeal
the decision in 1975, leading to a victory in their favor. However, it changed nothing in regard to the distributor's failure to provide the necessary profit statements to Normandy Productions, and by the time the case was decided, both Larry and Moe had died.
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
that ran from 1965-1966 starring the Three Stooges. The show follows the trio's antics both in live-action and animated segments. The cast consisted of Moe Howard
Moe Howard
Moses Harry Horwitz , known professionally as Moe Howard, was an American actor and comedian best known as the leader of The Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television for four decades...
, Larry Fine
Larry Fine
Louis Feinberg , known professionally as Larry Fine, was an American comedian and actor, who is best known as a member of the comedy act The Three Stooges.-Early life:...
and Curly-Joe DeRita, with actor and close friend Emil Sitka
Emil Sitka
Emil Sitka was a veteran American actor who appeared in hundreds of movies, short films, and television shows, and is best known for his numerous appearances with the Three Stooges—nearly 40...
co-starring, as well as Margaret Kerry
Margaret Kerry
Margaret Kerry is an American actress, motivational speaker and radio host best known for her 1953 work as the model for Tinker Bell in the Walt Disney Pictures animated feature, Peter Pan.-Career:...
. This was also the only Three Stooges series that was aired on television. The first attempt was in 1949 with Shemp Howard with Jerks of All Trades
Jerks of All Trades
Jerks of All Trades is the title of an American television pilot released on October 12, 1949. It was the Three Stooges' first and only pilot made with Shemp Howard in the role of the third stooge. Filmed before a live studio audience, it was a pilot for a planned TV series on ABC, which was never...
. The third attempt was Kook's Tour
Kook's Tour
Kook's Tour is the title of an American short comedy film produced in late 1969 and early 1970. It was the final film to star the Three Stooges and originally intended as part of a television series. However, on January 9, 1970, before filming was completed, Larry Fine suffered a severe stroke,...
with Curly-Joe in late 1969 and early 1970. Jerks of All Trades and Kook's Tour are currently in the public domain and are sold on video.
Production
Forty-one live action sequences were executively produced by cartoonist Norman MaurerNorman Maurer
Norman Albert Maurer , a comic book artist and writer, was also a director and producer of films and television shows.-Comic books:...
, Moe's son-in-law, who was their film agent at this time. Edward Bernds
Edward Bernds
Edward Bernds was an American screenwriter and director, born in Chicago, Illinois.-Career:While in his junior year in Lake View High School, he and several friends formed a small radio clique and obtained amateur licenses...
, who had directed the Three Stooges when they were making their ever-popular shorts from 1945–1952, was also hired to write and direct the series. Emil Sitka
Emil Sitka
Emil Sitka was a veteran American actor who appeared in hundreds of movies, short films, and television shows, and is best known for his numerous appearances with the Three Stooges—nearly 40...
, who had appeared in many of the Stooges comedies over the years, was slated to appear in these wraparounds as straightman or stooge to the Stooges.
Cambria Studios
Cambria Productions
Cambria Productions was the West Hollywood, California animation production studio most famous for its wide usage of the Syncro-Vox technique of animation developed by Edwin Gillette, who was a co-partner in the studio.Owned by Clark S. Haas, Jr...
produced 156 short Stooge cartoons under the supervision of Lee Orgel. Four cartoons were produced to correspond thematically with forty of the live-action Stooge opening and closing sequences, so that one live-action sequence could serve as a wraparound for four different cartoons. Joe DeRita later commented that this presented something of a problem for viewers:
The pilot cartoon, "That Little Old Bomb Maker," featured a unique live-action wrap around that was not reused on other cartoons.
Reception
Many fans dismissed The New Three Stooges as a disappointment. The animation was limited and of low quality, somewhat reminiscent of Rocky and BullwinkleThe Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
The Rocky & Bullwinkle Show is an American animated television series that originally aired from November 19, 1959 to June 28, 1964 on the ABC and NBC television networks...
, although still not as limited in animation as Cambria Studios
Cambria Productions
Cambria Productions was the West Hollywood, California animation production studio most famous for its wide usage of the Syncro-Vox technique of animation developed by Edwin Gillette, who was a co-partner in the studio.Owned by Clark S. Haas, Jr...
' three previous Syncro-Vox
Syncro-Vox
Syncro-Vox is a filming method which combines static images with moving images, the most common use of which is to superimpose talking lips on a photograph of a celebrity or a cartoon drawing. It is one of the most extreme examples of the cost-cutting strategy of limited animation...
series, Clutch Cargo
Clutch Cargo
Clutch Cargo is an animated television series produced by Cambria Productions and syndicated beginning on March 9, 1959. Notable for its very limited animation, yet imaginative stories, the series was a surprise hit at the time, and could be seen on 65 stations nationwide in 1960.- Plot :The...
, Space Angel
Space Angel
Space Angel was an animated science fiction television series produced in the United States from early 1962 through 1964. It used the same Synchro-Vox lip technique as Clutch Cargo, the first cartoon produced by the same studio, Cambria Productions....
, and Captain Fathom
Captain Fathom
Captain Fathom was an animated television series produced in 1965 by Cambria Studios. Like Cambria's other productions, Clutch Cargo and Space Angel, it was produced in Synchro-Vox. 18 30-minute episodes, all in color, were filmed. The episodes could be broken down into 5 6-minute segments in...
. This was one of the few Cambria productions that did not use the Syncro-Vox technique. The boys were visibly aging during this time (Moe was 68, and Larry was 63), so the 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...
was subdued in the live action segments. In an interview on Rhino Entertainment
Rhino Entertainment
Rhino Entertainment Company is an American specialty record label and production company. It is owned by Warner Music Group.-History:Rhino was originally a novelty song and reissue company during the 1970s and 1980s, releasing compilation albums of pop, rock & roll, and rhythm & blues successes...
's first volume of these shows, Lee Orgel also states that the Stooges' penchant for slapstick violence was kept to a minimum due to the concerns of parental groups. In addition, Larry's motor skills had begun to slow, resulting in many lines of dialogue being slurred. This resulted in much of the comedy being divided between Moe and Curly Joe, with Larry only chiming in when necessary.
The color television series did last successfully from 1965-1966. Although the show was last aired in syndication
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
on WGN
WGN-TV
WGN-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the CW-affiliated television station in Chicago, Illinois built, signed on, and owned by the Tribune Company. WGN-TV's studios and offices are located at 2501 W...
in the mid-1990s, it has on rare occasion been seen on Boomerang
Boomerang (TV channel)
Boomerang is a 24-hour American cable television channel owned by Turner Broadcasting System, a division of Time Warner. Boomerang specializes in reruns of animated programming from Time Warner's extensive archives, including pre-1986 MGM, Hanna-Barbera, Cartoon Network, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises...
and Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (United States)
Cartoon Network is an American cable television network owned by Turner Broadcasting which primarily airs animated programming. The channel was launched on October 1, 1992 after Turner purchased the animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1991...
since. Some episodes are currently available on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
(often in cheap "dollar packages") because the majority of the series fell into the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
.
The New Three Stooges became the only regularly scheduled television show in history for the Stooges. Unlike other films shorts that aired on TV like the Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
, Tom and Jerry
Tom and Jerry
Tom and Jerry are the cat and mouse cartoon characters that were evolved starting in 1939.Tom and Jerry also may refer to:Cartoon works featuring the cat and mouse so named:* The Tom and Jerry Show...
, and Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
, the film shorts of the Stooges never had a regularly scheduled national television program to air in, neither on network nor syndicated. When Columbia/Screen Gems licensed the film library to television, the shorts aired in any fashion the local stations chose (examples: late-night "filler" material between the end of the late movie and the channel's sign-off time; in "marathon" sessions running shorts back-to-back for one, one-and-a-half, or two hours; etc.)
Lawsuit
The series proved to be a financial headache for the Stooges. In accordance with their contractContract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
, Cambria Studios' distributor
Distributor
A distributor is a device in the ignition system of an internal combustion engine that routes high voltage from the ignition coil to the spark plugs in the correct firing order. The first reliable battery operated ignition was developed by Dayton Engineering Laboratories Co. and introduced in the...
was supposed to forward quarterly statements to the trio to keep them abreast of the show's profits. Norman Maurer recalled receiving only one or two statements over a five-year period, ultimately leading to a lawsuit. Ironically, the judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
presiding over the case knew little about the film or television industry and ruled in favor of Cambria. The Stooges would appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
the decision in 1975, leading to a victory in their favor. However, it changed nothing in regard to the distributor's failure to provide the necessary profit statements to Normandy Productions, and by the time the case was decided, both Larry and Moe had died.